I have an external garage, with a manual overhead door (no powered opener). There is no side access door.
After the recent winter, I tried opening the garage again, and the handle will not turn. I believe the lock is disengaging, as I hear a 'click' when I turn the key. The lock is below the handle, separate from it. I tried tapping the handle with a hammer lightly, but didn't want to strike too hard for fear of breaking my only possible entryway.
Is there reasonable any way to get in, or do I need a professional? And if I need to call someone–does it make more sense to call a locksmith or a garage repair company/specialist?
Best Answer
If the lock is separate from the handle and turns freely, my guess is the handle is the issue, not the lock. Overhead garage doors almost always latch by extending pins through the tracks on either side of the door. It is likely that one of these just got bound due to expansion, contraction, ice lifting, or whatnot. I'd try a couple things before doing anything with the lock itself. First, grab the handle and alternate between jerking the door up and down while you try to turn it. If this doesn't work, you may be able to carefully remove the trim on either side of the door. Usually there will be enough of a gap to slide in a flatbar or something similar to tap on the latching pins. If they're stuck, knocking them up and down a couple times will usually free them.