Solution for a garage door issue

My garage door opener is almost 8 years old. Last year, we couldn't use our garage door for one month. This year was the same thing. I called the manufacturer and they were useless. I couldn't even get this person on the phone. Once Diane looked up the error code, we were able to get the thing fixed.

I used scrap wood and two nuts and bolts to make this makeshift solution. No one would know that my garage door wasn't working (from the outside), but we were glad that the door was locked and no one could get into our home.