If this is a sometime thing you probably need to adjust the 'up force'. It is near where all those white wires go. Turn it a quarter turn. This could also be an indication that the door springs are getting tired or the door needs a little maintenance. Try releasing the opener and lifting the door by hand. If it is heavy you need new springs.

We moved into a new home recently. The opener works perfectly from the control panel inside the garage, but the two remotes are not working, and we were not provided with the code to operate the outdoor keypad. The previous owner said the remotes were working before he moved out, and he never used the outdoor keypad (doesn't recall if he ever programmed a code, or doesn't remember it if he did).

Note: I changed the batteries in both remotes (thinking this was the reason they were not working), and if it makes a difference, the power to the house was shut off temporarily before we moved in.

Could anyone provide instructions on 1.) how to program both remotes, and 2.) the external keypad? It is a Craftsman 1/2 HP, model number 139.53681B. It was installed new in 2/2000. Thank you for any assistance you can lend!

CCNA -

I had pretty much the same situation. This is how I handled it. PROGRAMMING THE KEYPAD: Press the LRN botton on the back of the unit and release IMMEDIATELY. Within thirty seconds, go to keypad and enter four-digit code then press ENTER; the GDO will blink to let you know that it "learned" your code and you should be all set.

PROGRAMMING THE REMOTES: PRESS AND HOLD the button on the remote that used to operate your GDO, WHILE HOLDING THAT UTTON, press the same LRN button on the GDO unit, and then release. You will get a "confirmation" serier of blink to let you know that your remotes have learned the code. LET US KNOW IF THIS WORKS.

CCNA -

I had pretty much the same situation. This is how I handled it. PROGRAMMING THE KEYPAD: Press the LRN botton on the back of the unit and release IMMEDIATELY. Within thirty seconds, go to keypad and enter four-digit code then press ENTER; the GDO will blink to let you know that it "learned" your code and you should be all set.

PROGRAMMING THE REMOTES: PRESS AND HOLD the button on the remote that used to operate your GDO, WHILE HOLDING THAT BUTTON, press and release the LRN button on the GDO unit, and then release the button on the remote. You will get a "confirmation" serier of blink to let you know that your remotes have learned the code. LET US KNOW IF THIS WORKS.

I recently replaced drive gear in my 1/2hp craftsman opener. Teeth were sheered off (worm gear was fine). I got force and up/down pressures set properly. The door still seems to be laboring going up and especially down. The guide on the t-rail seems to move back and forth and up and down a lot. Chain is adjusted as per manual 1/2 inch above rail. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

jlederer it sounds like you have a door problem. Disconnect the opener from the door and open and close it manually. That should give you some idea.

That's the weird thing Don. I did that and it operates very smoothly. It almost has to be in the rail guide or the brace that goes from guide to door.

How does it act when you release the door and run the opener? It sure sounds like the door is excessively heavy. When this happens and the door is going down, the trolley does a lot of bouncing around because the door tries to go faster than the chain and of course the chain stops it temporarily. The sequence happens again and again. This doesn't happen so much when the door is opening because the door keeps weight on the chain almost to the top.

I'll try running it disconnected and see. Adjusting the up and down foce will not help any will it? Appreciate the info.

The down force involves the ability of the opener to sense an obstacle. It should only be adjusted enough that the opener will close the door consistently without reversing. If you would like I will post the manufacturers instructions for adjusting the open and close force. They do a better job than I do.

Door closes opens very easy detached from guide, closing requires some effort. Right now I have down force adjusted to where it will reverse when hitting 2x4 on ground per instructions. Are the springs doing anything at all when door is detached from rail.

The springs help counter the weight of the door. It sure sounds like yours are out of adjustment.

I have an old Sears door opener where I recently replaced a gear sprocket. After reattaching and tightening up the chain and reconnecting the door, when running it does not fully close the door and stops about 1/4 from the floor. During the opening, it pulls the door up fully but too much to where the release plate where the door connects bangs into the opener itself and reverses and stops again 1/4 from the floor. It didn't seem like adjusting the open force has any effect.

I released the door and closed it, loosened the chain and pulled it manually so it reattached to the door while it was closed, thinking it would adjust the cycle. But running it again causes the same problem.....stopping 1/4 cycle short and banging into the opener when opening. Any ideas on how to fix this?

Please disregard previous post. For anyone else's benefit, I took off the cover of the main unit and there is a threaded bolt that has two thick plastic adjustment washers on it which adjust the distance of the up or down cycle.

I hear the motor turning but the sprocket does not engage and turn the chain. Is this a gear problem that I can fix myself?

Yes, take the cover off and you will most probably find a white nylon gear that is stripped. The part number is 41A2817.

We recently replaced our Craftsman garage door opener. We want to install the new key pad, but can't figure out how to get the old one off. I've removed all the visible screws, but there seems to be another toward the top covered by a solid "cap" rather than something a screwdriver can turn.

We just moved into our new home. We have a craftsman 1/2 HP model 139.53995SRT We have had problems with the remotes and key pads working one minute and the next minute it is as though it freezes up. We don't have a manual but have followed the directions on the keypad to change the code and the learn button on the light controller to try and resolve this problem. One of our remotes use to work but no longer does we have had to pull the red "rip cord" to get our cars in and out of the garage. Please help. Is it possible to get a manual...or something. Thank you

You can order a manual from Sears parts but it won't help much especially with your intermittent problem.

I just purchased a home and it has a Chamberlain opener that I now know lots more about thanks to this forum. One thing I could not find the answer to is why it only has a sensor on one side. The back of the remote says it was built in '99. The light blinks 10 times so I know it is a sensor problem. Is it supposed to have two or maybe a reflector on the other side? I just cant imagine why someone would have removed only that one sensor and there is no sign that it ever existed. Did someone play a cruel joke on me? Where can I get a replacement if thats what i need?

It must have 2 sensors. One is a sending unit and the other is the receiving unit. The designation is usually printed on the sensor. Find a Chamberlain or Liftmaster dealer in the yellow pages and explain your problem. They may have some old parts laying around that they will sell or you just might be better off buying a new opener. Someone wasn't honest with you to say the least.

My Model 139 Series 10/98m1/2 HP Screw Driven opener recently required a replacement drive belt which I ordered from Sears and successfully installed.
Now my door, when in the open position, will close completely and then immediately completely open again.
Is this the downforce issue that some posts above have referred to?
I cannot find my manual and am uncertain which adjustments I should make.

This is usually caused by the door hitting the floor and the safety senses the door hit something and reverses it to the open position. Find the 'down limit' (not down force) and turn it 2 or 3 turns in the direction opposite the arrow printed on the cover. You may have to tweak it a bit to get it just right.

I just changed the drive gear on my opener and now it will only function in the up position. The manual says something about the motor being out of phase but I can't get it the drive gear to turn clockwise. I've checked the limits and cycled it a few times but it wont change directions.

Try this. Loosen the chain and remove it from the sprocket on top of the motor. Run the opener until that sprocket goes in the counterclockwise direction and stops. Then with the door in the open position replace and tighten the chain. Now everything should be in phase. You may have to adjust the limits a bit.

Would it make a difference with the chain on? I can run it until it goes to the top limit and then press it again but it won't do anything. The led on the board blinks 5 times but the light does not. I'm afraid the logic board may be fried.

You can't do it with the chain on. I'm not even sure I understand your question. You have to get the chain off the small sprocket and follow the instructions I gave above.

Sorry, my point was that I didn't want to reconnect the chain after it is in the open position. I have the chain off now and it will run tho the up position. Then when I press the remote again it does nothing except click once.

My problem is a Craftsman 1/2 HP 41A5483-2 that won't open. When I press any button (wall or remote), it only goes up 3 or so inches then closes again (the sensors are not obstructed). If I take the sensors out, I can open the door 3-6 inches at a time, with the lights flashing 10 times. When the sensors are in place (one is green and the other yellow - not sure if both should be green), the door opens 3 inches then closes again.
The unit is not locked on "vacation mode".
Bad sensor or bad logic board???

toolgeek are you sure the door isn't opening? Your problem sure sounds like the door isn't closing. The sensors are completely out of the picture and the lights would never flash 10 times when the door is opening and that is why I am questioning. Anyway, if it is an opening problem check the springs above the door to make sure one of them is not broken. This can cause the opening problem you are describing but not the light flashing. If it is a closing problem and the light is flashing 10 times it is a sensor problem and usually is caused by them not being properly aligned.

Thanks, Don

What happens when I first try to open is the door opens 3 inches. The next time I press a button, the door closes then opens 3 inches again. I have taken one sensor off and held it directly in front of the other with the same results. If the door is completely open, it has nop problem closing.

Okay it is not your sensors. If the springs are not broken you should take the cover off and look at the drive gear. This is a white nylon gear in front of the motor. This can cause your problem when it starts to wear. You will see white 'saw dust' and some tooth wear. If the springs and the gear look okay then you can go to the rear of the opener near where all those white wires go and you will find two controls. One is the 'down force' and the other is the 'up force'. Increase the 'up force' and see if that improves things.

Hi, I have a sears craftman 1/2 HP garage door opener, and after a huge thunder storm, it does work. It has a green light that blinks, but all remotes, main control or key pad does not work. I tried to unplug it to reset, NOPE. All it does when you try it is make a tick sound and the green light blinks.

I need a manual or some help.

thanks

The odds are the lightning got to your logic board. Pretty common. On the end where all those white wires go you will find the part number. It starts with 41A has 5 more numbers and a dash number. You can call around to your local opener service companies and see if they have a used one. The dash number doesn't have to match but the rest of the numbers do.

I have Model #41A5483.2 where the entire unit just shuts off. It isn't the power outlet that its connected to but the thing just shuts off and on randomly. I can't get it to stay on so we've had to manually open the garage door for now. It is the logical board or sensor that needs to be replaced? If so, where do I get one and is it easy to install? Thank you.

my craftsman 1/2 is going up and down only a few inch's
even with the door unhooked from the opener.
the led light is flashing 5 times .
can u help me ?

That LED flashing 5 times is the code for RPM sensor or motor overload. I doubt it's the motor.

ok now for my problem.... we currently moved into a new home that has a craftsman 1/2 hp GDO. Model number 139.53647srt.1 and seriel number 37162c00570. It came with Chamberlain openers however. When I looked at the instructions with the openers it says that you can only use them with GDO's that have Orange buttons on the back of them.

My craftsman has a green button on it. Is this why I can't program it and is all I have to do buy a different opener?

thanks

I have a Craftsman 1/2 hp model 139.53995SRT mfg in 10/2001. I've owned this home about a year and have had intermittant problems the whole time. A spring finally broke a month or so ago and I had both professionally replaced. I know he also set the down and up limit parameters. He said my problems could be that on hot days (live in the south) that the board could over heat after a few uses.

Problem will occur both closing and opening...it will go part way and then stop. Sometimes it will reset quickly and if I hold the button down it usually will go all the way. Sometimes it won't reset for a few hours and I have to use the red rip cord release. By reset I mean the green light on the wall button relights.

The last few days it has not reset at all. The one sensor is constant yellow. The green sensor is dark. I can move it around a bit and get it to light, but only for a moment as it will flicker then go dark. Jiggling the wire seems to have no effect. Help!?...new sensor? New board? New everything?

I just bought a new remote and matched the switches to the back of my opener on the wall. When I turn the security off the remote works once then doesn't work anymore. This happened with my old remote as well. Is it possible my wall opener is stuck in the security "vacation" mode even though I turned it off? How would I test or fix this?

Help... please!!!
My eight year old child thought it would be a good idea to pull the red rope on our opener today.
I don't know how to get it back to working again. I'm sure there is probably a simple fix, but I was too frustrated to deal with it this morning.
Any help?
Thank you so much!!

Pull straight down on the rope and then push or pull the door until the two halves of the trolley meet. Sometimes you can just run the motor. They should connect automatically.

Hi... My Chamberlain opener stopped working.. the light flashes five times. I tired to unplug to reset but that does nothing.. any advice would be greatly appreciated! thanks...

My Craftsman GDO moden 139.53645SRT2 has stopped opening & closing correctly. The motor seems to be working fine and the door itself glides easily on the track. What's happening is when closing the door, the piece coonecting the door to the track doesn't stop & goes all the way to the wall, causing the track to bow and then bounce back as the door goes all the way back up. It won't stay closed unless you push the button to stop it before it gets to the fully closed position. Neither of the force adjustments are helping; I have the downforce as low as it will go on both settings. HELP!

'96 Craftsman 139 53648SRT model
1) problems closing....go down a lil a come back up. RPM sensor I suspect ???

2) LED flashing 5 times.....RPM sensor ?

3) while researching above problems...now when the remote or wall unit (no pad) is engaged, there is nothing but a slight/quick "humming" noise..and nothing happens. Light flashes 10 times...This is a new symptom.

4) I have checked/tired to align the infra red sensors.... this model has both lights on constant, regardless of whether they are in sync or not. I checked the wiring from the sensors back to the motor/unit. I'm not sure how to align them now.

QUESTIONS: which do I address first ? I'm not sure I can align the infra red sensors with the "humming" and no activity when I engage the opener. Should I look at the RPM sensor first ? Is the gear stripped ??? causing the humming and non activity ? Must I assure the sensors are aligned ? If so, best way to do this ? we do not have the manual. The opener was opening (at times...or when we bypassed the sensors and held down the wall unit button. before I started looking atit.

Thanks to anyone and everyone who has advice on this.

The LED flashing 5 times is the code for RPM sensor.

The main light flashing 10 times is the door sensors.

If the light on the receiving sensor stays on when the sensors are not aligned you most likely have a logic board problem.

It sounds like you are adding problems to what you already had. The door will not close if you bypass the sensors.

DON: HELP!

My Craftsman GDO moden 139.53645SRT2 has stopped opening & closing correctly. The motor seems to be working fine and the door itself glides easily on the track. What's happening is when closing the door, the piece coonecting the door to the track doesn't stop & goes all the way to the wall, causing the track to bow and then bounce back as the door goes all the way back up. It won't stay closed unless you push the button to stop it before it gets to the fully closed position. Neither of the force adjustments are helping; I have the downforce as low as it will go on both settings.

The control you should be adjusting is the 'down limit'. This is on the side of the motor unit and you need to turn that control in the opposite direction of the arrow printed on the cover. I would remove that cover and take a look at the limit switch assembly. If you watch it you will learn how it operates and see if there are other problems. I'm curious about what started this problem.

Thanks for the reply Don. I have the down limit set as "low" as it would go, and even turned it to the complete opposite side when that didn't work and it seems to have no effect whatsoever on how far down the door goes. Not really sure what started the problem. We moved into this house less than a year ago, and one day I was trying to close the garage door and one of the bolts on the track popped out & the track folded inward. I put it back together, put the bolt in & got the chain back on the gear and since then it hasn't closed. I have the cover of the opener off and have spent literally hours adjusting the controls on the side and the back in all diff. combinations with no success.

You say you have the down limit as "low" as it will go. I don't understand this. I think you are still adjusting the 'down force'.