LiftMaster Mega Arm in Fort Lauderdale: Two Barrier Arms Down at a Beachfront Restaurant

What was wrong with the two Mega Arm barrier arms?

The owner called and said he had two barrier arms that did not work right, and one of them did not work at all. Both were the older Mega Arm model.

Why did the first barrier arm stop working?

I opened the first operator and found a lot of live wires disconnected inside. It was like a trap. Touch the wrong one and you get a shock.

I turned off the power first. Then I connected the wires the way they should be and tested the barrier. It worked.

Was the second barrier arm’s board really dead?

The second operator showed me a dead control board. Before blaming the board, I checked the voltage. The board was not getting any power at all.

The cause was the transformer. It was rusted and was not delivering power to the board.

Why not quote the whole repair at once?

I offered the repair and gave the owner a price for the transformer. I also told him straight that only after the board had power again could I check whether there were any other issues. No point quoting parts nobody could test yet.

I sent the proposal. He approved it the next day, right before the weekend started.

How was the second barrier arm fixed?

I came back Monday morning with the part and connected it. The arm came up working well. I fine tuned the open and close limit positions, and everything worked fine.

What if you don’t have a remote for your barrier arm?

To test both receivers I asked the owner for a remote. He told me he did not even know if he had one.

Luckily I had the right remote in the van, one I had saved from an old motor, made for the MultiCode receiver. I set it to the code both arms were already using, and it worked on both. No extra charge for the remote. The owner was happy.

What should you check before replacing a barrier arm board?

A dead board is not always a dead board. If the board is not getting power, it will look dead no matter how healthy it is. Check the voltage first. Here that one check turned a board replacement into a transformer.

How does beach salt air damage a barrier arm?

This restaurant sits right on the beach. That operator lived in salt and humidity every day, and that is what rusted the transformer until it stopped feeding the board.

Are both barrier arms working now?

Two LiftMaster Mega Arm barrier arms working again, limits set, both receivers tested, and a remote the owner did not have before.

Barrier arm stuck, dead, or acting up in Fort Lauderdale or anywhere in Broward and Palm Beach County? Call 954-310-6669. We check the power before we sell you a board.

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