2026 jackshaft door opener vs conventional

[rattle_snake]

I have a 10' x 10' sectional overhead door that I want to add an opener on.

Currently have a 10' x 18' door next to it has a Liftmaster 8500 from 2016. It has done the job without the common issues discussed in the past. Home garage has liftmaster/chamberland conventional chain drive openers. All are linked on wifi/share remotes so wanting to stay in the liftmaster/chamberland product line for compatibility.

Jackshaft is 2x the price. Same old 8500 vs 98022 vs 8900W or ?

Otherwise thinking a typical 1/2 hp chain with a 10' extension addition.

 

[Real_PhillBert]

I have three 98022s in my garage and really like them. I bought them because it opens a bit of overhead space and doesn't block any lighting compared to a traditional opener. These are also a ton quieter than the traditional opener in my last house but that could be just old opener vs a new one.

With that said, they can be trickier to install if you don't already have power on the wall as opposed to a traditional ceiling outlet.

Personally, I'd buy the wall mount again if I had to do it over.

 

[JohnX14]

I replaced my Liftmaster belt drive operators for the jack shaft models. Night and day difference. Opens up the ceiling whent he doors are down. I have an 18' x 10 door and a 9' x 10. And the belt drives were in perfect condition. I relocated one to a shop I rent which didn't have an operator. The other one sits ready to go whenever I find a place for it.

 

[Overboost44]

I saw the RJ0101 MC Jackshaft on Amazon for $499. I will be needing one myself for a 9x8 door.

 

[rattle_snake]

I wired the building on the wall for two jackshaft style openers.

The 10' chain/rail extension is about $100.

 

[rattle_snake]

Fine print reads that if I buy an '8500', a '98022' will be shipped. So looks like 8500 not an option.

The lower priced 8900W doesn't have the typical accessories like the dead bolt, remote, keypad, light and so on. Can buy them but not a complete solution and would end up at 98022 anyhow.

 

[rattle_snake]

I saw the RJ0101 MC Jackshaft on Amazon for $499. I will be needing one myself for a 9x8 door.

I missed that this is the Chamberland version. Best price a this time is Lowes at $539, so I bought one.

 

[racecougar]

I missed that this is the Chamberland version. Best price a this time is Lowes at $539, so I bought one.

I have two of those (RJO101) and two 8500's; no complaints with either.

 

[Overboost44]

I have two of those (RJO101) and two 8500's; no complaints with either.

Good to know. One of the bay ceilings that I have will be 8'+-. Is the jackshaft a good solution or is it better to go with standard in a situation like that?

 

[racecougar]

Good to know. One of the bay ceilings that I have will be 8'+-. Is the jackshaft a good solution or is it better to go with standard in a situation like that?

Mine are in 11' and 13' ceilings. No issues whatsoever. I appreciate how quiet they are.

 

[rattle_snake]

Got the New opener installed last night. When I put up the first one, I installed only up to centerline to make room for another. Had to cut the torsion bar but plenty of room. Pretty easy pre-wired.

Some things are not perfectly matching have to work on that.... And the door seals are trashed already.

I set the open limit to only 8' instead of all the way up. This leaves some of the door weight vertical to keep tension on the cable. The other door goes all the way up and eventually needed spring loaded bumpers to get the door started down.

 

[larry4406]

Wow the new one on the left is much larger physically than the prior one on the right.

I think I read it here on GJ that if the track rails are set at a slight downward decline towards the torsion bar, it keeps the cable tension proper and helper springs are not needed for jackshaft opener applications.

I want to replace the existing opener at the garage with a jackshaft operator.

 

[rattle_snake]

Yes the new design is larger, even though both have battery provisions.

I hung my own doors, the rails can only be angled up so much. Also depends on the spring tension, roller lube. Worked fine for many years before something slowly changed. Then went springs.

 

[cpakalolo]

I saw the RJ0101 MC Jackshaft on Amazon for $499. I will be needing one myself for a 9x8 door.

I picked one up at Menards for the same.

 

[cpakalolo]

Got the New opener installed last night. When I put up the first one, I installed only up to centerline to make room for another. Had to cut the torsion bar but plenty of room. Pretty easy pre-wired.

Some things are not perfectly matching have to work on that.... And the door seals are trashed already.

I set the open limit to only 8' instead of all the way up. This leaves some of the door weight vertical to keep tension on the cable. The other door goes all the way up and eventually needed spring loaded bumpers to get the door started down.

That's one of the things one might have to do when a jackshaft opener is used. On a regular door, there is always the same tension on the cables. The jackshaft doesn't move the door. It pulls up on the cables. When it gets to the top it will come off the drum if things aren't right. I tends to come loose more just after it starts going down to close. Sloping the rails down toward the room helps. The other thing to watch for is the fact that nothing holds the door down or against the headwall. That's why they come with solenoid locks or automatic deadbolts. I call DDM which I found on this site. (Thanks garage journal) and they set me up with a quasi vertical high lift setup. I have wayne Dalton doors and the whole drum, bar, spring and top brackets don't work with jackshaft openers. If my door is able to follow the Pitch next week I will be very happy.

 

[PhantomEB]

Following as I plan to have my door opener replaced this fall with a jack shaft opener. Miss my 8500 from the last shop and want us both to have door opener on our phones. Pretty sure I will end up with a 98022.

 

[rawen2]

Do any of the jackshaft openers have a built-in provision to open the door to say 8' (for day to day operation) but bypass that stop when needed to open to the full height of the door opening?

 

[racecougar]

Do any of the jackshaft openers have a built-in provision to open the door to say 8' (for day to day operation) but bypass that stop when needed to open to the full height of the door opening?

You could set your upper limit at 8' for day to day and just pull the release to raise the door higher for occasional use.

 

[hampster]

If you haven't seen it, check out the garage door opener system called "tailwind"... Way better than the proprietary junk lift master sells that requires a monthly subscription.

 

[kbuhagiar]

If you haven't seen it, check out the garage door opener system called "tailwind"... Way better than the proprietary junk lift master sells that requires a monthly subscription.

Are you referring to MyQ? It's not the greatest system but I've had it for around nine years and I've never paid a monthly subscription.

 

[hampster]

Ah, I didn't realize that they still offer that. They've been so aggressively shutting down the open source community usage that I'm going with a Genie jackshaft opener next time. For example the latest variant of their remotes Chamberlain intentionally redesigned to not use a communication wire to make it impossible for the ratgdo style stuff to work.