I have no idea what kind of garage door opener I have…but we do use a local company that is remarkably responsive. Ours are post 1995…so are fine. We have had two repairs, the most recent being a broken spring. I called at 8:45 a.m. and the repair was completed by 9:30.
Re: WiFi. We have so much hooked to our WiFi right now…that I would be worried that my garage door opener being also WiFi might also turn on my TV, adjust my thermostat, enable other WiFi things or whatever.
The button in my car works just fine…but then…I don’t order from Amazon ?
We’ve had our MyQ system for 4 years at one house and 3 years at the other - no instances of the doors opening on their own.
I’m looking at the MyQ app and there are ways to set alerts for when the door is opened or closed as soon as it happens. Alerts can be sent by email or push notification. Haven’t ever used that function but may try it.
The app allows you to see the history of when each door was opened or closed. There is also a way to add guests to the account and set schedules. I don’t really know what that means so will have to look into it.
My husband would rather let Amazon open our front door than his garage!! So no go to smart opener. All of our openers were/are Genies. They worked fine.
Chamberlain owns Liftmaster. If you have a pre-1993 opener, please replace it. It is unsafe and many insurance companies would not cover you if they knew about it. The safety features are not there and the risk of death/injury is significant. Trust me on this. As for the poster with the “heavy” door. If the door is balanced properly, it should not feel heavy to life manually. You have to get it started off the ground, but it should take modest effort to lift it.
Our garage door opener isn’t that old. He actually said it has a good motor and should last another 3-4 years. He tuned it up, replaced the broken bracket (a $5 part) and we are good to go… for $99 (their service charge/tuneup cost). He likes the door we have (we may have gotten it at their recommendation a few visits ago) and said the only thing we might want to consider are nylon rollers (no need, it’s quiet enough for me) and if we want we an get a retrofit wi-fi thing for our current opener. We may or may not look into that. Has anyone done that? We have a Genie. He said the newer genie models (after they sold the company) are in his opinion not as good as the slightly older ones, and the warranty isn’t as long either. He said ours has a good motor. When this one dies we’ll get a belt drive, battery backup wi-fi enabled opener, but for now, we are fine. He said the door is well balanced and it all looks good.
Make sure you know how to operate the manual release cord. We have the safety sensors, etc. but just have a remote key pad as our fancy upgrade. They are pretty easy to install and replace as they seem to burn out after about 5 years.
I don’t know what he means about Genie not being as good “after they sold the company.” It was bought by Overhead Door in 1994 so anything before that would not be likely to comply with federal law. Glad you got yours repaired for such a low $$$ amount!
Can someone explain how the battery back up works? Is there a battery installed in the actual opener in the garage? And then would it just open from the fixed opener one normally has attached to the wall of the garage? What about closing it (once outside)? Perhaps silly questions but I am small and really don’t like when the power’s out and I have to open the door manually. Intrigued by the battery back up but can’t visualize how it works.
Hmmm… I don’t recall who he said bought Genie, but I don’t think he said overhead door, as I’d have recognized the name (then again it was 7 o’clock in the morning.) Did some other company start manufacturing their motors when Overhead bought them? All I recall is that the said the one we have has a good motor and should last a few more years. He wanted to sell us nylon rollers to make it quieter. Is there any other reason to have nylon rollers?
@GRITS80 - I would guess you could have a guest access/timer if you had guests staying with your or you needed to let the cleaning people into your house or something.
We had a Genie opener for several years but after paying shipping for an under warranty (5 year, failed in 3) heavy motor replacement, plus labor when it was faulty again we jumped ship. Had bought that one quickly when it broke and window replacing guys were there and able to immediately install that noisier chain drive one. Given our problems within a few years and the noise I will not get another Genie opener.
Did my due diligence this time and got a Chamberlain belt drive- model B970 from Home Depot and had a good local firm do the install a year ago. Could have gotten the slightly less fancy one but the price difference was small. Quieter. There is a back up battery but when it needs replacement can just disconnect it so it won’t alarm. I like the button near the house that shows time, temp and can be changed. The outside keypad is good- don’t need a code to close (had to get neighbor’s once when hers was left open). The Genie one never quite worked- battery placement or something.
The disadvantage- now my 2011 car’s opener button won’t work and I use the supplied remote. H’s older car did not work with the past opener. Extra security in 2012 resulted in coding changes older cars can’t handle easily. Small issue. Regular LED bulbs did work. There are expensive ones specifically made but we have no interference problems.
Regarding the back up battery. It is a supplied big battery that will work a few times- you can read online manuals. (Our old Verizon FIOS box came with one that could not be disabled- actually tried and broke wiring, Frontier replaced for free and chose option not to replace the expensive battery, quit them later). It takes a lot of power so it is a big, heavy battery that is preinstalled (or easy to do so).
Pay attention to the horsepower- undersized and the motor works harder. Went a bit more than needed to to get features.
Thanks, @wis75. If the battery is separate, ours didn’t come with one. And, if your car’s opener button won’t work, look into a home link. We had to have one installed and now our older cars work. I find I do have to hold down the button for longer than expected but it does work.
Knew about that option but not worth the cost since a button on the visor works as well and is as convenient as one on the ceiling. Our cars’ home links are out of date for new security protocols. Like our nice cars- longevity and luxury.
A remote clipped on your visor without a locking option is a security risk if you live in an urban area with a car in your driveway though, the cars with home link won't open a garage door if your car is broken into just for content theft, but a remote on your visor will. IMO a small remote that is on your key ring or person/purse is a better option. Don't leave it in your car. I think cars are broken into for sport in some urban areas.
All of our openers were/are Genies. They worked fine.