The signal from a U.S. government-run land mobile radio (LMR) system in San Antonio is disabling garage door openers of nearby residents.
The Department of Defense (DOD) acknowledged that the signal from its LMR system, a wireless communication system for emergency services providers, was jamming the signal of garage door openers, according to a report Jan. 29 on KEMS-TV.
Both the LMR and the garage door openers operate in the same 380 MHz to 399.9 MHz range, but the stronger LMR signal overpowered the weaker garage door opener signals. Since the openers are unlicensed devices, they can’t be protected from interference under Part 15 of Federal Communications Commission regulations.
The DOD has agreed to shut off the LMR system until March 1 so that homeowners can get their garage door openers fixed to operate on a different frequency.
Besides San Antonio, other garage door opener jamming incidents have been reported near other U.S. military bases and in Ottawa, Can.
