The case shroud for the mechanism was filled with snow white powder. The motor ran with its usual hummmm but the door and hardware were immobile. First generation automatic garage doors had a belt drive which would have been simple to renew but the latest iteration use a roller worm and nylon gear arrangement. Compact but somewhat more expensive when they wear and spectacular when they self destruct as did mine. The snow flakes in the cover shield were the finely ground remains of the sprocket’s teeth. A google search returned a part identification and now the replacement bits are on their way via UPS ground.

• parts – $30
• sweat equity – ??
• elbow grease – ??
• grease on Levis – $50