An opener reverses only after pressing hard against an obstruction. What does this indicate?

Entrapment protection is meant to reverse the door on light contact, because the person or object it is protecting may be a small child or a pet. An opener that reverses only after pressing hard has protection that technically operates but at a force threshold high enough to cause harm before it triggers. Two causes account for most of it: the force setting has been turned up, often to overcome a door that binds, or the mechanism itself binds so the opener must exert more force before the resistance registers as an obstruction. The second cause is the more revealing, because it means the door hardware needs attention and the raised force is a symptom of someone compensating for it. Either way the finding is reported as a safety defect with a recommendation for adjustment and evaluation of the door's balance and travel.

Reversal only under heavy pressure means the force threshold is set too high, or the door and mechanism bind so the opener must push hard before resistance registers. Either condition leaves the protection ineffective against a light obstruction.

Automatic openers include a force-reversing mechanism and, on modern installations, photoelectric sensors. Force settings are adjustable and are sometimes increased to compensate for a binding or unbalanced door, which defeats the protection the setting exists to provide.

Light Touch, Full Reverse. If you have to lean on it, the setting is protecting the door instead of the child.

Check the door's balance separately by disconnecting the opener and lifting manually. A door that will not stay put at mid-travel is why the force was turned up.

• •Accepting eventual reversal as passing the test
• •Attributing high reversing force to the drive type
• •Adjusting the force without investigating why the door binds