UKH

I wonder if anyone's had the same issue. We have a wooden garage, quite a big one. It has an electric opening metal door. Normally works fine but today it didn't open and the internal light was flashing. I tried to open it manually (have never had to try this before) but it won't budge at all. It's been very wet here and I'm wondering if the wood could have seized around the door, but why now after the whole winter? Seems strange. 

Now when I try to open the door the trolley jumps off the chain so it just thinks its opening and then reengages the trolley when the chain "shuts"  I don't really know what to do apart from wait and see if drier weather helps, considering I live in Scotland that could be a while! Any thoughts appreciated!

Are you trapped inside? How much food do you have?

Has the mechanism slumped at all; any sign of rot at the fixing points?

There is a tiny bit of staining around the door, but nothing extreme. It doesn't feel damp either. It's a warm dry day here so hopefully that might loosen it up. Otherwise I think I'm going to have to call someone out. I couldn't get it to budge even an inch manually

The only electric opening metal doors I’ve seen have had their own frame of metal and there was always a gap to deal with the expansion.  I guess yours doesn’t and it’s metal closing directly on wood?

If no metal frame, with a wooden garage I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole garage has shifted say with the high winds we have had, or just water penetration, and that is jamming the door. Check the garage all round as to any change in direction or warping of frame (get your spirit level out as it could be subtle). Check if there are uneven gaps around the frame (or none at all in places). Even if the door has it’s own frame has the garage shifted to twist or put a torque strain the frame?

With wooden structures, depending on type and quality of wood there is scope for significant movement with weather IME. My back door for example expands and contracts and it’s depth changes by some 2mm with weather which makes it tight to lock/unlock at times and loose at others.

With the electric mechanism, are there any locking mechanisms for extra security that may have “tripped” into operation? Mine for example has two extra locking points that normally are always open/not used, but could in theory engage if a fault. I wouldn’t be able ever to open my door if they tripped without using a manual override procedure. The are there for if power goes off and the door needs to be locked securely.

Don't worry, their significant other will be able to get food to them under the door. Cheese slices, crackers, after eight mints, etc

The door has likely expanded. There's no gap. Not even a waffer thin one.

Surely, there's always room for "just one wafer thin mint sir?"

Looking at it in daylight it seems more 'closed' than it always used to be, and it seems absolutely welded at the bottom. I wonder if somehow the ground has raised and it's either been pushed shut further than normal or it's closed itself further than normal. A bit baffling as if that's the case I have no idea how someone would solve it apart from taking the door to bits...

"I just want to stay in the garage all night" (Joe Strummer, 1977)

Hope the OP gets it fixed.

Is the floor slab not also the timber frame foundation?

What type of door and mechanism is it? I'm guessing from what you've said it's a one piece up and over door running in tracks? That shouldn't jam even if it's touching the floor*.

*a canopy hinged up and over might jam like that but they seem pretty rare these days, especially motorised ones.

Check the runners/track for loose bolts, brackets, missing wheels and jams. Also check the counterweight mechanism (usually a big torsion spring with drums to lift wires) looks right, if a wire broke it could be hanging on the piss or just really heavy. Don't mess with the spring while it's loaded!

jk