Thanks Kirk! 6 years later and your gift keeps on giving :) You provided the exact diagnosis and resolution to the Sommer DirectDrive garage door opener corroded contact problem. It is a simple to fix, but not obvious to diagnose problem. It's people like you who take the time to share solutions like this, that makes the internet go-round.
You described, diagnosed and repaired the bad contact problem. That was exactly the symptom with my Somer garage door opener and the problem was exactly as you showed: corroded contacts. After cleanup the opener is back to working. Thank you Kirk! What is surprising is that this problem, apparently fairly common does not show up at all in the Somer Troubleshooting checklist table. Of course if it did then you might not have this small slice of fame and gratitude!
After a crooked garage door repairman told me "it's the mother board and the motor" and offered me a new "better brand" for $575, I watched your video. It was dead-on correct. After 5 minutes on a ladder with a screwdriver and some sand paper, all is well! Thanks so much.
I left this morning to work all frustrated that the garage door stopped working. Came home, Google search led to your UA-cam video. Did what you showed and now working flawlessly. Thanks so much!
Thank you a thousand times !!!!!! My Sommer opener stopped working last night. The manual was of no help. I would have never thought of this fix. I was preparing to have to replace it. Tried your fix, 5 minutes later and bingo, a working opener again! May your name live among the stars forever.
Well...I have to tell ya, I thought this won't work for me. Especially after I looked at perfectly clean metal contacts. I wiped them with sandpaper anyway and TA-DA! My garage door works again!! Thank you Kirk for taking the time to show us all this simple method that saved us all an incredible amount of time and money. This literally took less than 5 minutes.
Bingo! Kirk - thank you so much for taking the time to post this. I called my garage door company and they came and told me they no longer sell this brand so I should buy a whole new operator. He left and I found your video. After sanding away the corrosion (yep, looked just like yours after 10 years) I put a penny wrapped in electrical tape under the contacts and that did the trick!
Your video just saved me a lot of money. My garage door would not open when I got home. I went through the trouble shooting list in the manual and it stated if the power was on but the door would not work at the wall or remote to call a technician. I watched your video and my problem was that the long screw you take out to check the connections had worked itself out of the proper position. All I had to do was turn it a quarter turn and bam, I was back in business! Thank you!
Thanks a million for this video! Went to pull out the garage today and no-go, door wouldn't go up, just the head unit was clicking. After a search on youtube yours was the first hit and it described my problem exactly. It's -20c (-4F) today so I didn't feel like having to trouble shoot in that kind of weather, so thanks for posting the video. As a temporary fix until it warms up a bit and I can pull it apart, I just wiggled the head unit a bit and it seemed to make proper contact again with the rail and the door will now go up and down.
Thank you so much!!! Years after you posted this video - you saved me hundreds, hundreds of dollars. I got my garage door opener 10 years ago from Costco - and when it quit working, I figured I'd need to replace the entire unit. I was considering a new door as well - so you likely saved me thousands. I looked in my owner's manual and found nothing that was of any help and then I came across your video last night. I went to bed without any worries because I was convinced that it would be an easy fix in the morning - and it was. I went out this morning and fixed it in minutes! Requested new contacts from Sommer too, and they are on the way. You're a rockstar!
Thank you. 6 years later, still saving us all from repair call out and allowing us to to fix ourselves. thank you, thank you! For pursuing the cause, resolving, then not stopping there but taking more of your time to make and post an excellent video! My SOmmer is 10 years installed and just started with the symptoms, described in your video, today. In my case the metal strip on the head unit actually melted the plastic surrounding it at one end and the strip was embedded low and not making any contact. I used a blade to cut back the plastic then to raise the metal strip and then used a sliver from a shim as a wedge. Works fine now which I was relieved, as cleaning the strip only at first, did not work.
Kirk, thanks for the walk thru on this, it worked perfectly after cleaning the contacts as instructed.. For added insurance, I applied a small dab of dielectric grease to the contacts to help inhibit any future corrosion.
This is a lifesaver. Wish I watched last year. One thing to add, if the top of the console is too close to the ceiling, you can use a flathead screwdriver to pry out the roller bar from the bottom of the tip.
Wow, should have gone to UA-cam first and saved hours of screwing with this opener. GREAT video and public service .Thank you. I did put a penny under the contact as a viewer mentioned to increase contact tension. Opener works great.
Thank you Kirk! I also had corrosion. I cleaned the contacts with contact cleaner and then scrubbed the contacts. Once done, I added dielectric grease. However, I still had issues getting the door to open. That's when I noticed that the main assembly wasn't parallel. Holding the front of the main unit allowed the contacts to engage and the door opened. Next stop, hardware store for something to hold the unit parallel to the rail.
Thank you for the excellent vid. I cleaned the head and rail contact with emery cloth until smooth and then coated both contacts with dielectric grease. Shimmed the rail contact with the penny covered in electric tape as recommended in the comments. Will also get the manufacturer's replacement fix sent to me for possible future repairs. Thanks again!
Kirk, I will add my sincere thanks to all the others on this page. I had the exact same problem. It turns out my "hot" contact (the one that energizes the chain) had done some overheating and was slightly melted / sunken into the body of the control unit. A little prying out and cleanup of all four contact areas with some 220 did the trick. (Whoever suggested dielectric grease below has s good idea also.) Such an easy fix!
Spot on. Thanks for posting. I really do like the concept of direct drive and both of mine have been trouble free for 10 years, but this was obviously a weak spot.
Thanks Man! I installed my Sommer 10 years ago and it just gave me the same symptoms as yours did. Thank you for the information, it worked just as described.
Exact same problem as I was having...seems to be an issue with these models. I cleaned the contacts as Kirk suggested and all is good now....thanks Kirk.
Well, Thank You, but mine needs parts. I talked to Sommer when mine suddenly stopped. After removing and re-inserting the wires to sensors and wall unit into the block in the unit I got it to go up and down twice, but when I tried to program remotes it stopped again. Next a tech came out from a local company. They adjusted my springs they installed 7 years ago. They needed it, he also adjusted and lubed the door. He declined to work on Sommer as his company didn't have much luck with them. I again removed and reinserted the wires, programmed the remotes and all was well, wall unit-green light and operated the door with the flashing lights to sense door, then all 3 remotes worked. Great, done. Next day back to not working. After your video my unit came off differently, two lg. bolts (veritcal) on top of unit. One contact was burned some, the plastic below melted and the plastic was broken that held the contacts in place. The first time I contaced Sommer they said lifetime warranty (parts only) but two years on send/receiving units, sensors...whatever. It's Sunday so I guess I will contact them and see if they send a new unit that has all the electronic parts, that's where the contacts broke off of. My unit is 4 years old and is direct drive. The motor seems to work when I had it working. Next time I will buy a unit that is more mainstream? Thanks for the heads up, at least I have a shot at getting parts I need?
Thanks for this video! I had the same corrosion and pitting on my contacts. After cleaning the contacts up I still had intermittent issues and found that the contact which connects directly to the rail was still not making a good enough connection. I ended up prying the contact upwards a bit and that solved the issue.
Thank you. I couldn’t get mine to work and this fixed it. Exact same problem except for my metal contact melted into the plastic more than yours. I not only cleaned it, but also popped it out with a flat head. Thanks again.
Thanks, while this didn't fix my problem, it did lead me in the right direction. Turns out the inside of my rail was extremely dirty. It would go down but not up. I ended up using a scrub pad and wd40 to clean it. It works fine now.
OK, a year goes by, contact problem again. Here is the full story. The torsion spring on the dual garage door broke. Suddenly the door gets "heavy" and doubles in weight. The family does not know that the door is now too heavy for the Direct Drive Motor to lift on its own and keeps pressing the open button. I call a garage door place to fix / replace the spring. The repair goes just fine, no problem. But now the Direct Drive will not work. It just flashes the light bulbs. I pull the motor and look at the contacts and yes, they are very "burnt". Using a very gentle touch and my variable speed Dermal, I clean off the contacts. Put it back together and bingo, everything works, back to normal. My take on this is, when the spring broke there was no home garage door opened on the planet that was going to lift that amount of weight. Not knowing what was happening, the family kept pressing and power button causing the latest round of high electrical resistance at the contacts to burn them again. I get home, I see the broken spring and immediately see it needs a fix. It gets fixed, but the "damage was done" and the contacts scorched causing so much resistance, the motor would not move anything. A few minutes of cleaning allows full voltage, and it works again. UPDATE: It has been 6 or so weeks and the contacts burnt again. To their credit, Sommer did honor the "lifetime warranty" and sent me both parts (both parts that have the contacts). It consisted of the control housing (contacts) and a rear bracket (also contacts). Had to transfer light bulbs, doors, top of housing, etc. Then reprogram the wireless keypad and remotes... all easy to do. Working 100% again. It seems to me this problem could easily and cheaply be resolved by gold plating those 4 contacts. Yes, gold plating is cheap and would stop this damage. Having been involved in component level electronic repair for years, I know it would only add less than a few dollars to the price.
Genius! I had redone all the electric connections and couldn't figure it out at all until your video. Other problem is my contacts were pushed down, bent them out a bit - could put a piece of sponge in there next time.
Second time I've referred to your video to fix my opener. The first time I missed the part about cleaning the contact on the bottom side of the shaft. Thanks again.
I had the same problem. Sommer actually sent me a "redesigned" part that was supposed to be an improved contact. I am guessing less electrical resistance and / or more heat resistant. The "main" black component started to melt and shows bubbling on mine also. Keeping current draw to a minimum is obviously key to longer life. Cleaning and lubing the rail and perhaps cleaning those contacts annually seem to be a good idea.
Yes this is very good and is the first thing to try. If cleaning the mentioned contacts does not work then remove the trolly, clean the contacts on the trolly, clean the inside of the rail and clean the chain. Both the inside of the rail and the chain are part of the circuit.
thanks for posting up the video bud, I have the same garage door opener, so far i have had no issues with it, works great , its one of the quiet openers out there,
I had the same problem with a lot of corrosion and arcing. I just bypassed the entire system by soldering on two new wires and drilled two holes in the front of the unit and pushed the wires out towards the rail. I added two wire lugs. One connects to the rail frame and one connects to the electrically isolated chain. I connected the added wires to the new lugs and it works perfectly.
Well it's 2024 and my opener developed the same symptom. In my case it would stop and then next day operate ok only to stop again. So I looked at the section you showed and that was the problem as well. I'm assuming the damage is from sparking???? Anyway, I cleaned both contacts and it's working good now. Very good opener except for this flaw in the design. I plan to see if these contacts can be purchased and replaced without too much effort. Thanks much!!!!
It's 2024 and my brother's unit is giving the same problem....guess i found the solution !!!! Thanks I also need to change the emergency cord as his own has dry rotted and broke off 😔😔😔
This problem is not unlike the corrosion on a car battery. The Sommer uses 24v DC. DC current flows in one direction. Have you ever noticed for the most part, the corrosion on a car battery terminal is almost always on 1 terminal? Cars use 12c DC; same one way current flow. Thank heavens the Sommers does not use a chemical battery for power!
thanks a million!! Your video saved 2 service calls, did you ever had to replace the contacts or the unit after the initial fix? Coz mine has pitting, erosion of contacts, wonsering if should start looking up to replace the unit or part of it?
Hey, Kirk. Thanks for providing this video. Just curious, did you ever replace the actual contact clips on your main unit? After almost 10 years owning my unit, I am just now having this problem. I sanded it down as much as it could be, but the pits were too deep, causing bad or no contact. The unit is still just making that "clicking" noise.
Thanks Kirk, I have had my Garage Door guy come out three times in the last 3 years, approximately 7 to 10 months apart and THIS was the problem each times, ($70 each time). He told me what the problem was and how to fix it, but this last time was when I was out of state and the wife couldn't get back in the garage, so I called him, but he didn't charge me this time, however he asked me to check the connections before I go out of town next time. I wonder if there is a gel or paste that could be used to seal the contacts against moisture, such as electrical engineers use on other 'contact type' electronic connectors? I'll try to call SOMMER direct and see if MrStrizver's suggestion (below) of 'Dielectric Grease' might help solve this problem. Other than this single recurring issue, my SOMMER has worked exceptionally well, and quieter than ANY other type opener I have had, for the 10 years that I have had it. Even the bedrooms directly above the garage are not aware of the up and down movement of the garage door.
Any idea how to program to cars garage opener button? Mine is not working. Its picking up the signal i can tell by the little lights flashing. But nothing.
I inherited a Sommer operator when I bought my home. Please take a look at all these comments, each expressing a problem. Why would anyone buy one of these? The documentation is terrible, and the product support is lackluster at best. Unfortunately, my issue isn't covered here.
I'm glad I checked your video before I started taking the motor apart. The contacts had build up just like yours. Weak design! Looks like arcing that occurs as control unit vibrates the contact point back and forth.
sear i need help please my problem is when i swith the lock auto to manual is doesn't work i dont know how ti fix it there is someone has the same problem ?!
Thanks Kirk! 6 years later and your gift keeps on giving :) You provided the exact diagnosis and resolution to the Sommer DirectDrive garage door opener corroded contact problem. It is a simple to fix, but not obvious to diagnose problem. It's people like you who take the time to share solutions like this, that makes the internet go-round.
You described, diagnosed and repaired the bad contact problem. That was exactly the symptom with my Somer garage door opener and the problem was exactly as you showed: corroded contacts. After cleanup the opener is back to working. Thank you Kirk! What is surprising is that this problem, apparently fairly common does not show up at all in the Somer Troubleshooting checklist table. Of course if it did then you might not have this small slice of fame and gratitude!
After a crooked garage door repairman told me "it's the mother board and the motor" and offered me a new "better brand" for $575, I watched your video. It was dead-on correct. After 5 minutes on a ladder with a screwdriver and some sand paper, all is well! Thanks so much.
You have saved me so much $$$$ over the years with this video! Thank you!!
I left this morning to work all frustrated that the garage door stopped working. Came home, Google search led to your UA-cam video. Did what you showed and now working flawlessly. Thanks so much!
Thank you a thousand times !!!!!! My Sommer opener stopped working last night. The manual was of no help. I would have never thought of this fix. I was preparing to have to replace it. Tried your fix, 5 minutes later and bingo, a working opener again! May your name live among the stars forever.
Well...I have to tell ya, I thought this won't work for me. Especially after I looked at perfectly clean metal contacts. I wiped them with sandpaper anyway and TA-DA! My garage door works again!! Thank you Kirk for taking the time to show us all this simple method that saved us all an incredible amount of time and money. This literally took less than 5 minutes.
Bingo! Kirk - thank you so much for taking the time to post this. I called my garage door company and they came and told me they no longer sell this brand so I should buy a whole new operator. He left and I found your video. After sanding away the corrosion (yep, looked just like yours after 10 years) I put a penny wrapped in electrical tape under the contacts and that did the trick!
Your video just saved me a lot of money. My garage door would not open when I got home. I went through the trouble shooting list in the manual and it stated if the power was on but the door would not work at the wall or remote to call a technician. I watched your video and my problem was that the long screw you take out to check the connections had worked itself out of the proper position. All I had to do was turn it a quarter turn and bam, I was back in business! Thank you!
Thanks a million for this video! Went to pull out the garage today and no-go, door wouldn't go up, just the head unit was clicking. After a search on youtube yours was the first hit and it described my problem exactly. It's -20c (-4F) today so I didn't feel like having to trouble shoot in that kind of weather, so thanks for posting the video. As a temporary fix until it warms up a bit and I can pull it apart, I just wiggled the head unit a bit and it seemed to make proper contact again with the rail and the door will now go up and down.
Thank you so much!!! Years after you posted this video - you saved me hundreds, hundreds of dollars. I got my garage door opener 10 years ago from Costco - and when it quit working, I figured I'd need to replace the entire unit. I was considering a new door as well - so you likely saved me thousands. I looked in my owner's manual and found nothing that was of any help and then I came across your video last night. I went to bed without any worries because I was convinced that it would be an easy fix in the morning - and it was. I went out this morning and fixed it in minutes! Requested new contacts from Sommer too, and they are on the way. You're a rockstar!
Thanks Kirk! I can't imagine how long it would have taken me to figure this out without your help.
Just saved me a bunch of time and frustration! Thanks for taking the time to make this!
Thank you. 6 years later, still saving us all from repair call out and allowing us to to fix ourselves. thank you, thank you! For pursuing the cause, resolving, then not stopping there but taking more of your time to make and post an excellent video!
My SOmmer is 10 years installed and just started with the symptoms, described in your video, today. In my case the metal strip on the head unit actually melted the plastic surrounding it at one end and the strip was embedded low and not making any contact. I used a blade to cut back the plastic then to raise the metal strip and then used a sliver from a shim as a wedge. Works fine now which I was relieved, as cleaning the strip only at first, did not work.
Kirk, thanks for the walk thru on this, it worked perfectly after cleaning the contacts as instructed.. For added insurance, I applied a small dab of dielectric grease to the contacts to help inhibit any future corrosion.
Thank you! Saved my life right before ordering a new motor!!
This is a lifesaver. Wish I watched last year. One thing to add, if the top of the console is too close to the ceiling, you can use a flathead screwdriver to pry out the roller bar from the bottom of the tip.
Thanks Kirk, I wished I found your video earlier before I pissed away 4 hours doing continuity and meter checks. So much for German engineering.
Wow, should have gone to UA-cam first and saved hours of screwing with this opener. GREAT video and public service .Thank you. I did put a penny under the contact as a viewer mentioned to increase contact tension. Opener works great.
After 2 hours of trial and error this video finally ended my struggles. Thanks man!
Thank you Kirk!
I also had corrosion. I cleaned the contacts with contact cleaner and then scrubbed the contacts. Once done, I added dielectric grease. However, I still had issues getting the door to open. That's when I noticed that the main assembly wasn't parallel. Holding the front of the main unit allowed the contacts to engage and the door opened. Next stop, hardware store for something to hold the unit parallel to the rail.
Thank you for the excellent vid. I cleaned the head and rail contact with emery cloth until smooth and then coated both contacts with dielectric grease. Shimmed the rail contact with the penny covered in electric tape as recommended in the comments. Will also get the manufacturer's replacement fix sent to me for possible future repairs. Thanks again!
Kirk, I will add my sincere thanks to all the others on this page. I had the exact same problem. It turns out my "hot" contact (the one that energizes the chain) had done some overheating and was slightly melted / sunken into the body of the control unit. A little prying out and cleanup of all four contact areas with some 220 did the trick. (Whoever suggested dielectric grease below has s good idea also.) Such an easy fix!
Spot on. Thanks for posting. I really do like the concept of direct drive and both of mine have been trouble free for 10 years, but this was obviously a weak spot.
Thanks a bunch. Have had mine since 2015 and this issue finally popped up today. Your vid solved my problem.
Thanks Man! I installed my Sommer 10 years ago and it just gave me the same symptoms as yours did. Thank you for the information, it worked just as described.
This video made my wife think I was amazing husband. Thank you
Exact same problem as I was having...seems to be an issue with these models. I cleaned the contacts as Kirk suggested and all is good now....thanks Kirk.
Well, Thank You, but mine needs parts. I talked to Sommer when mine suddenly stopped. After removing and re-inserting the wires to sensors and wall unit into the block in the unit I got it to go up and down twice, but when I tried to program remotes it stopped again. Next a tech came out from a local company. They adjusted my springs they installed 7 years ago. They needed it, he also adjusted and lubed the door. He declined to work on Sommer as his company didn't have much luck with them. I again removed and reinserted the wires, programmed the remotes and all was well, wall unit-green light and operated the door with the flashing lights to sense door, then all 3 remotes worked. Great, done. Next day back to not working. After your video my unit came off differently, two lg. bolts (veritcal) on top of unit. One contact was burned some, the plastic below melted and the plastic was broken that held the contacts in place. The first time I contaced Sommer they said lifetime warranty (parts only) but two years on send/receiving units, sensors...whatever. It's Sunday so I guess I will contact them and see if they send a new unit that has all the electronic parts, that's where the contacts broke off of. My unit is 4 years old and is direct drive. The motor seems to work when I had it working. Next time I will buy a unit that is more mainstream? Thanks for the heads up, at least I have a shot at getting parts I need?
Thanks for this video! I had the same corrosion and pitting on my contacts. After cleaning the contacts up I still had intermittent issues and found that the contact which connects directly to the rail was still not making a good enough connection. I ended up prying the contact upwards a bit and that solved the issue.
Big thanks from Canada. This solution is so simple and you saved me a pile of money. You are Captain Kirk in my eyes!!!🤩
Thank you so much Kirk, worked like a charm. my contact was arching as well. I put a penny under the contact.
This was so spot on and we had success after doing exactly what is shown here. Thank you so much! My spouse thinks I am a genius
Thank you. I couldn’t get mine to work and this fixed it. Exact same problem except for my metal contact melted into the plastic more than yours. I not only cleaned it, but also popped it out with a flat head. Thanks again.
Thanks Kirk! Your video is still helping people! I'm heading out to the garage to fix my contacts now.😀
Thanks, while this didn't fix my problem, it did lead me in the right direction. Turns out the inside of my rail was extremely dirty. It would go down but not up. I ended up using a scrub pad and wd40 to clean it. It works fine now.
Kirk, This worked perfectly!! Thanks for the video!
I even put electrical tape around a penny and slide the penny under the contact.
OK, a year goes by, contact problem again. Here is the full story. The torsion spring on the dual garage door broke. Suddenly the door gets "heavy" and doubles in weight. The family does not know that the door is now too heavy for the Direct Drive Motor to lift on its own and keeps pressing the open button. I call a garage door place to fix / replace the spring. The repair goes just fine, no problem. But now the Direct Drive will not work. It just flashes the light bulbs. I pull the motor and look at the contacts and yes, they are very "burnt". Using a very gentle touch and my variable speed Dermal, I clean off the contacts. Put it back together and bingo, everything works, back to normal. My take on this is, when the spring broke there was no home garage door opened on the planet that was going to lift that amount of weight. Not knowing what was happening, the family kept pressing and power button causing the latest round of high electrical resistance at the contacts to burn them again. I get home, I see the broken spring and immediately see it needs a fix. It gets fixed, but the "damage was done" and the contacts scorched causing so much resistance, the motor would not move anything. A few minutes of cleaning allows full voltage, and it works again. UPDATE: It has been 6 or so weeks and the contacts burnt again. To their credit, Sommer did honor the "lifetime warranty" and sent me both parts (both parts that have the contacts). It consisted of the control housing (contacts) and a rear bracket (also contacts). Had to transfer light bulbs, doors, top of housing, etc. Then reprogram the wireless keypad and remotes... all easy to do. Working 100% again. It seems to me this problem could easily and cheaply be resolved by gold plating those 4 contacts. Yes, gold plating is cheap and would stop this damage. Having been involved in component level electronic repair for years, I know it would only add less than a few dollars to the price.
Thanks! This was my exact problem and it solved it in 5 minutes. I really appreciate you posting this helpful tip.
Big thank you Kirk! This fixed our garage door opener that was installed 5 years ago.
Kirk thanks for the YT. You diagnosed my problem and the fix.👍👍
Thank you so very much for making this video! It was the perfect help that we needed. We really appreciate what you did!
Thanks, this fixed ours also! You saved us from calling a repair man or buying a new one! Much appreciated!
Genius! I had redone all the electric connections and couldn't figure it out at all until your video. Other problem is my contacts were pushed down, bent them out a bit - could put a piece of sponge in there next time.
Second time I've referred to your video to fix my opener. The first time I missed the part about cleaning the contact on the bottom side of the shaft. Thanks again.
I had the same problem. Sommer actually sent me a "redesigned" part that was supposed to be an improved contact. I am guessing less electrical resistance and / or more heat resistant. The "main" black component started to melt and shows bubbling on mine also. Keeping current draw to a minimum is obviously key to longer life. Cleaning and lubing the rail and perhaps cleaning those contacts annually seem to be a good idea.
Can you send me a link to the redesigned part?
Perfect fix!!!! Exactly as you described! Thank you thank you!
Yes this is very good and is the first thing to try. If cleaning the mentioned contacts does not work then remove the trolly, clean the contacts on the trolly, clean the inside of the rail and clean the chain. Both the inside of the rail and the chain are part of the circuit.
And it works with you ? I do all and keep clicking , don’t move
Thank you for taking the time to post this
Great Video, you saved me a service call $$$$. One suggestion would be to add DIELECTRIC GREASE to the concactor strips.
THANK YOU Kirk, this was the exact problem I had. You saved us!
thanks for posting up the video bud, I have the same garage door opener, so far i have had no issues with it, works great , its one of the quiet openers out there,
I had the same problem with a lot of corrosion and arcing. I just bypassed the entire system by soldering on two new wires and drilled two holes in the front of the unit and pushed the wires out towards the rail. I added two wire lugs. One connects to the rail frame and one connects to the electrically isolated chain. I connected the added wires to the new lugs and it works perfectly.
this totally worked! Awesome! It took about 10 minutes. Thank you!
Great video. I had the identical problems. The repair you showed worked like a charm. It's curious this fix is mentioned in the manual.
This absolutely works and this video is very well done! Thank You !!!
Thanks Kirk, this helped me fix my garage door which was driving me crazy.
Rob Brooks very helpful. Thanks!!!
Thank you so much for this video, This was my exact issue thank to you I got my opener working again.
Well it's 2024 and my opener developed the same symptom. In my case it would stop and then next day operate ok only to stop again. So I looked at the section you showed and that was the problem as well. I'm assuming the damage is from sparking???? Anyway, I cleaned both contacts and it's working good now. Very good opener except for this flaw in the design. I plan to see if these contacts can be purchased and replaced without too much effort. Thanks much!!!!
Sir, you just saved me a TON of frustration. Thank you!!
Well done explaining and showing thanks
Some dielectric grease might be the way to go to prevent corrosion on those contacts.
It's 2024 and my brother's unit is giving the same problem....guess i found the solution !!!! Thanks
I also need to change the emergency cord as his own has dry rotted and broke off 😔😔😔
Thank you! Worked just like you said!
Thank you very much it has solved my problem👍🏻
Thanks for the video, this video saved my butt. I had no idea about the contact points.
This problem is not unlike the corrosion on a car battery. The Sommer uses 24v DC. DC current flows in one direction. Have you ever noticed for the most part, the corrosion on a car battery terminal is almost always on 1 terminal? Cars use 12c DC; same one way current flow. Thank heavens the Sommers does not use a chemical battery for power!
Great video. Had exactly the same problem. Thank you.
Thank you, Kirk! Had the same issue, and your video saved me time/money
Perfect. Solved my problem!!
Thank you for helping me fix my garage door.
Thanks! Did you discover if the contacts are replaceable?
That was exactly my problem, thanks for the video.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. It was exactly as you said. We’re grateful!
thanks a million!! Your video saved 2 service calls, did you ever had to replace the contacts or the unit after the initial fix? Coz mine has pitting, erosion of contacts, wonsering if should start looking up to replace the unit or part of it?
I have not had a single problem with mine since I made the video a year ago.
that was the problem I fixed it thanks for the tip
Thanks Kirk 👍👍
Thanks for the video! My Sommer did the very same thing
Awesome thanks saved me lots of time.
Excellent.....THANK YOU!
nice, i'll give it a shot this week
Hey, Kirk. Thanks for providing this video. Just curious, did you ever replace the actual contact clips on your main unit? After almost 10 years owning my unit, I am just now having this problem. I sanded it down as much as it could be, but the pits were too deep, causing bad or no contact. The unit is still just making that "clicking" noise.
They don't answer and don't return calls. This company is a fraud. No wonder big box stores and Amazon no longer carry this brand.
Kirk... you da' man. Thank you so much!
Thank you very much my friend. Mine had the same thing.
So glad you made this video it is really helpful.
Thanks Kirk, I have had my Garage Door guy come out three times in the last 3 years, approximately 7 to 10 months apart and THIS was the problem each times, ($70 each time). He told me what the problem was and how to fix it, but this last time was when I was out of state and the wife couldn't get back in the garage, so I called him, but he didn't charge me this time, however he asked me to check the connections before I go out of town next time.
I wonder if there is a gel or paste that could be used to seal the contacts against moisture, such as electrical engineers use on other 'contact type' electronic connectors?
I'll try to call SOMMER direct and see if MrStrizver's suggestion (below) of 'Dielectric Grease' might help solve this problem.
Other than this single recurring issue, my SOMMER has worked exceptionally well, and quieter than ANY other type opener I have had, for the 10 years that I have had it. Even the bedrooms directly above the garage are not aware of the up and down movement of the garage door.
Thanks so much....helped me with my opener!
Any idea how to program to cars garage opener button? Mine is not working. Its picking up the signal i can tell by the little lights flashing. But nothing.
I inherited a Sommer operator when I bought my home. Please take a look at all these comments, each expressing a problem. Why would anyone buy one of these? The documentation is terrible, and the product support is lackluster at best. Unfortunately, my issue isn't covered here.
I have the same issue, but no corroded contact. Checked all wires and they’re good, exhaust all means and email support and see what they have to say.
That did it! THANKS!
Lifesaver! Thank you sir!
I have the exact same symptom on the exact same opener & this didn't work. I cleaned the track and chain super good too. I'm at a loss. 😣
Thank you so much
Thank you !!!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you 😉
I'm glad I checked your video before I started taking the motor apart. The contacts had build up just like yours. Weak design! Looks like arcing that occurs as control unit vibrates the contact point back and forth.
sear i need help please my problem is when i swith the lock auto to manual is doesn't work i dont know how ti fix it there is someone has the same problem ?!
It works!!! Thank you
I did that, no succuss. Once the contacts are scorched, it's over.
Thank you very much!!!!