Having an automatic garage door means that you can easily open and close the door without having to get out of your vehicle. But just how far away can you be and still open or close the door? That depends on a few different factors. And if you’re starting to wonder why does my garage clicker have less range than before … well, there are a few reasons for that.

We’re going to take a closer look at some of the most common problems that you might be having and what you can do about them to get back to using your garage door opener fast.

Radio Frequency Interference

One of the first and most common reasons that you may have less range on your garage clicker is because of radio frequency interference.

What this means is something else that’s in the area is using the same radio frequency as your garage door opener. As a result, the other device is making it harder for your garage door to pick up the signal that your garage clicker is sending out.

When this happens you may notice that sometimes your garage door opens perfectly and other times you have to push the button several times to get it to open. Or you may notice that you can open it from the end of your driveway sometimes but other times you have to be directly outside the door. These are signs that there’s a signal interference that you need to take a closer look at.

Military bases and airports can cause difficulty with frequency interference. But so can things like light bulbs or older garage door systems that you might still have connected but not use or home appliances or even satellite dishes.

The good news is, many garage door openers now offer multiple frequency options. That means you can change the frequency that your garage door is using to make sure that you’re not getting interference. If you still have a problem, try swapping out to yet another frequency and see if that improves the situation.

Dead Batteries

Of course, there’s also the most obvious answer. That your remote might have a dead battery. If the battery is dying on your remote it’s going to start fading out gradually in most cases. That means you may notice that your remote doesn’t work all the time or that it seems to work only when you get very close to the garage door.

As you ignore this problem longer and longer you’re going to notice that it gets worse. Eventually your remote will stop working entirely because there’s just not enough power to get from the remote to the box that controls your garage door.

The good news is, this is an easy problem to fix. All you have to do is replace the batteries and your remote should start working just like new again.

Broken Remote

It’s also possible that there could be something wrong with the remote itself. While these are designed to be used regularly and for an extended period of time, they can absolutely start to wear down after a while. So it’s important to take a look at the remote itself as well if you’re wondering why does my garage clicker have less range.

Now, the remote does have a light on it that lets you know when it’s working. If the light is solid that means there’s no problem with the remote. If it’s off, or it’s faint, or it’s flickering that’s a sign there’s something wrong.

It could just be the battery, so that’s something that you would want to check into first. But it could be the entire remote. Start with new batteries. If that doesn’t fix the problem take a look at the contacts for the batteries to see if these need to be cleaned or need to be adjusted.

If neither of those things work then you may need to get an entirely new remote. You should be able to get several years out of your remote before this happens, but there are plenty of options to get a new remote without having to spend a fortune.

Not Enough Power

Sometimes your remote just isn’t made to handle the distance that you want it to work at. The antenna that comes with your system and the remote are designed to operate at a distance of around 50 feet. That means it works up to 5 car lengths away from your garage door.

Is your opener currently operating at that distance? If it is then you’re not actually looking at a problem with your system. But there is something that you can do about this as well. You can install an antenna booster that helps give your remote a little better signal and helps you get more distance out of it.

In fact, an antenna booster could give you over a hundred feet of distance, so you can easily open your garage door from further away. That makes it even more efficient.

What You Need to Know

If you’re looking at getting a new garage door opener or if you already have one but aren’t loving the range then you have a few options. Make sure you’re taking a look at each of these and getting a good idea of what’s going wrong with your system.

It’s always going to be best to start from the top and work your way through. That way, you can work with the easiest-to-solve problems first and then get to the more complex issues. But if you’ve been reading through this list, you already know that none of these are very complicated anyway.

Your garage door opener is an important fixture for your home because it makes your life easier. Don’t let it become a bigger annoyance for you. Instead, find out what you can do to fix it. And if you’re still having trouble, contact Scales Garagedoor to find out what we can do for you.