I am having some trouble with my garage door opener. The door rises about three feet and then gets stuck. If I manually help the door as it is going up it will go to the top. The door works fine in the down direction.

I received a few suggestions, check to see if the springs are working, check to see if the cable is off the wheels. I don't know how to check the springs, the cable is on the wheels.

Could the weather have anything to do with it? It has been below freezing for some time. I don't know if greasing the track will help for example.

 

The symptoms you give are perfect for a broken spring. If you have coil springs above the door, a close visual inspection (from inside with the door closed, on a ladder if necessary) will show you the broken spring. Get both springs replaced at the same time. It'll run about $150 (look up garage door companies in the yellow pages), and I don't recommend you do this yourself. It's too dangerous.

If the springs are good, it may just be binding up from lack of lubrication or out of adjustment. Disengage the door from the opener using the pull cord, retract the opener to the fully up position, and operate the door manually. This should allow you to see if it is binding up in one spot. If lubrication is needed, make sure you buy the grease specifically designed for garage doors.

And yes, cold weather often exposes any of these problems due to the fact that the door is harder to operate in cold weather. This can cause a weak spring to finally break, or can cause a poorly lubricated door to stop working.