Chamberlain liftmaster LA412, tech advice needed

[nancyk]

"uncomfortable disconnecting the battery to reboot the system" Well, that would not be my first choice of action. If I can get someone out here who has worked w/these systems, I will try that first and if he will not come out or cannot fix it, I will disconnect the battery.

 

[Chris616]

I understand, Nancy. If it's something you haven't done before it can be a bit unnerving.

If you can't get someone out to help and you want to try it, you just need to unplug those two sets of white connectors shown on page 28, then plug them back together.

I'll be curious what the resolution is, when you get to it.

"You're welcome" for the comments in your earlier message.

Good luck,
Chris

 

[nancyk]

The local fencing man will not come out, as he did not install the system. Called another place, they are getting out of working on gate operators, too many problems. Called a 2nd place, same response. The man I spoke with said the boss at times will work on a gate operator but prefers not to. As I am 1 1/2 hr drive, one way, from them I think I can count them out also.
I spoke w/Liftmaster tech support, he was not very helpful or knowledgeable. Nice enough but I expected more. He said the piston arm was broken and needed to be replaced(because I could not get the key to release the arm).
One reason I am not too keen on disconnecting the battery is that the gate also has a remote from the house, 1/4 mile away. I would hate to lose that capability. I did notice in the manual that the battery should be replaced every three years, it has been longer than that with the current battery so if I cannot get anyone to come out I may replace the battery.
Update: the 2nd place(see above) called back and said the owner MAY be able to come out after the first of the year. I ordered a replacement actuator arm(I am learning way too many new terms) and another post bracket. I am thinking positive thoughts for a good outcome. In the meantime I have a manually closing gate. Could be worse. And I have not ordered a new battery.

 

[Chris616]

I was curious how you're able to open the gate from 1/4 mile away, Nancy. I have a fairly good idea that your husband used a setup like described in the following video. If the long range remote that you have in your house looks like that, then that confirms it, but I'm sure that there are other similar products.
Gate Crafters Long Range Pack - YouTube

Losing battery power will have no impact on the long range remote, even if it is not this one. Is is part of normal maintenance to have to replace the battery, so you will not do any damage by unplugging those two "battery to control board" connectors and reconnecting them. That may solve the problem with the board being apparently stuck in programming mode. Rebooting computers/controllers by interrupting their power supply is "standard operating procedure" to solve issues like this. I imagine that a service call with three hours of travel time is going to be fairly expensive.

If you decide to go ahead with that and it looks like you're back at the beginning of the programming process, this video might be helpful to you:
Programing LiftMaster LA4 & LA412 Driveway Gate Openers - YouTube

The actuator arm that you have now with the broken lock on the release mechanism is only a small problem. You can get around the problem easily by doing what you've done - pull the pin from one or both ends to disconnect from the gate. In my gate disconnecting the actuator requires removing bolts, so the unlocking with a key is essential for opening the gates manually. What I'm saying is don't throw the old actuator away. You can use it by doing what I described yesterday (install it with the gate in the open position and start the programming with it in that position).

That manual that I sent the URL for has a 2011 date on it. I found a 2015 version for the same LA412 opener and the control board looked completely different. If your board doesn't match the one in the manual that I referenced, please let me know (if you need any more help, that is).

Chris

 

[nancyk]

Thanks Chris,
The remote may be even longer than 1/4 mile. I know when he initially was looking into installing the gate and having it powered from the house, hard-wiring it was pretty much out of the question because of the power drop. It seemed to take forever for him, a very DIYer, to get the gate installed and powered, and the remote, which is line-of-sight, had to be put on the house roof. Over all the system has worked well although the gate has not closed fully for a few years, I assumed that was perhaps because of the support posts for the gate moving. They can be tightened by two separate turnbuckles.

Nancy

 

[nancyk]

Update- No good news yet. I cannot get a tech to come out. I have been on the telephone w/Liftmaster, they run me around in circles. The diagnostic light blinks continually, pressing the Reset button does not help. I drove out yesterday and the Alarm in the control box was screeching. I unlocked/opened the box and finally had to disconnect the battery to stop the noise. I now have a new post bracket in place and a new actuator arm(in box), but I will not connect the arm as I looked at the current wiring to the box and I'd rather not go there.

 

[Chris616]

Thanks for the update, Nancy. I was wondering how you were getting along. Why don't you plug the battery back in and see what state it's in now. My guess is that will have cleared up the problem with the board and you'll at least know that the arm can be programmed now.

Chris

 

[nancyk]

Oh, I did not mention that I disconnected the battery for just 30 seconds then reconnected it. The screeching stopped but the diagnostic light is still blinking.

 

[Chris616]

Oh, I did not mention that I disconnected the battery for just 30 seconds then reconnected it. The screeching stopped but the diagnostic light is still blinking.

According to the manual, a steady flashing (flash, pause, flash, pause...) of the diagnostic light indicates "Operator is in sleep mode. Normal Operation".

It is only if the diagnostic light is flashing in another pattern that a fault is indicated. For example, (flash, flash, flash, pause, flash, flash, flash, pause...) indicates a low battery condition.

Chris

 

[nancyk]

(flash, flash, flash, pause, flash, flash, flash, pause...) indicates a low battery condition.

Well, that 3 flash pattern was what it was doing. I pressed Reset and now there is a steady flashing. The battery more-than-likely is the original battery so it would not hurt it to be replaced. I have a neighbor who could help me do that. Will disconnecting from the battery change any settings, etc?