Garage Door Battery Backup - SB969

[justsam]

As of July 2019 all NEW or REPLACEMENT residential garage door opener installs in California will require a battery back up. I already have this on my main garage door that sees daily use, and I am considering adding it to the two other garage doors on my shop. All the openers are Liftmaster 3800.

The one unit I do have is typical lead/acid technology, charged via it's connection to the 3800. Before I invest in additional back up units I was wondering if Liftmaster might be considering moving to more modern battery technology. Any one here have any insight on this? I do realize existing charging circuitry may not be ideal for other battery chemistries but that could be handled by active electronics in the back up unit.

Clearly I am not mandated to have the back up, since the SB969 is not retroactive. This bill was a result of people not being able to get to their cars during the California wild fires, especially those physically unable to open door manually.

 

[ericlar80]

I would just buy one of those backup units for a computer rather than something special for a garage door. I can't see them using that much power, really. You can get them in whatever chemistry you want.

 

[justsam]

Excellent suggestion! That industry segment tends to be a little more "state of the art". In my particular application it would work well since I have two openers that are adjacent. So one could supply both. The factory unit is two 12V batteries as the 3800 operates on 24VDC and has a transformer and rectifier.

 

[orangeblood]

I would just buy one of those backup units for a computer rather than something special for a garage door. I can't see them using that much power, really. You can get them in whatever chemistry you want.

That wont provide too much backup time at all.....minutes?

The Chamberlain battery BU units will give you a lot more time. I have only had to use mine once but it was after the power had been off for a few hours. That enabled my wife to her car in the garage without getting out of the car when there was no power, it was late at night, the weather was bad and no one else was home.

 

[ericlar80]

That wont provide too much backup time at all.....minutes?

The Chamberlain battery BU units will give you a lot more time. I have only had to use mine once but it was after the power had been off for a few hours. That enabled my wife to her car in the garage without getting out of the car when there was no power, it was late at night, the weather was bad and no one else was home.

Not true. The garage door only operates for 45-60 seconds and mostly remains in a low power mode until you use it, so no power draw down. I bet you that the battery backup for computers have more capacity than an actual door backup. If you have ever picked one up, they have heft.

 

[Worsedog]

The problem with using a computer style UPS is as soon as the power goes off it starts operating regardless of whether or not the door is loading it. The average UPS will only operate its own load for a hundred minutes or so depending on it's capacity.

Imagine the power goes off and hour after you leave for work and is still off when you get home 9-10 hours later. That UPS is going to be long dead.

Since the door back-up only has to operate low power electronics until the actual motor load turns on, it will last much longer. Unlike the UPS which as stated above begins sucking down the batteries to make the AC current as soon as the power is off.

 

[Captain Spaulding]

Seems like a ridiculous waste of money to me. I pull the red cord and open the door. Free and works at no cost.

 

[Worsedog]

Seems like a ridiculous waste of money to me. I pull the red cord and open the door. Free and works at no cost.

For you, it would be a waste, but my 82 year old gramma probably needs a hand opening the door.

 

[justsam]

Seems like a ridiculous waste of money to me. I pull the red cord and open the door. Free and works at no cost.

As I stated in the original post, this bill was a result of California wild fires where several of the victims remarked that they had issues getting their door open when PG&E lost power. I have certainly reverted to manual mode by pulling the cord, but that was due to a broken spring. In the panic mode of fire coming in on me, I am not sure I could deal with it, especially when the "normal" response is to just push the button.

 

[Captain Spaulding]

In an emergency, a garage door isn’t much of a barrier to a car.

My guess is people will spend a lot of money and you’ll hardly ever see one with a working battery after the first year or two.

 

[DGersic]

In an emergency, a garage door isn’t much of a barrier to a car.

My guess is people will spend a lot of money and you’ll hardly ever see one with a working battery after the first year or two.

I agree, but people are funny, and old people can be especially so.

A guy I know has an elderly mother (95+) that lives alone. She fell down the basement stairs one day. Injured by the fall. She has one of those wearable panic button things, and had it with her. She didn’t use it. Worried that the responders would have to damage the front door to get in, she instead spent the rest of the day crawling back up the stairs to reach the phone to call her son to come help her.

So, while I initially scoffed at the idea of requiring battery backed garage door openers, I can see the reasoning for some people who might otherwise be “trapped” and die in a fire. Not convinced that should mean that everyone has to buy them, though.



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[Captain Spaulding]

A guy I know has an elderly mother (95+) that lives alone. She fell down the basement stairs one day. Injured by the fall. She has one of those wearable panic button things, and had it with her. She didn’t use it. Worried that the responders would have to damage the front door to get in, she instead spent the rest of the day crawling back up the stairs to reach the phone to call her son to come help her.

Sounds like several people I know. My neighbor is confined to a wheelchair and got stuck in a soft patch of gravel in her scooter one winter. She was shivering by the time she called me for help. She apologized over and over. I told her if she froze to death in her driveway because she didn't call me, I was going to be pissed.

Independence is a hard thing to give up.

I suspect backup batteries for garages will be like the breakaway batteries on trailers with electric brakes. I wouldn't hesitate to bet 80% or more of them on stock trailers and equipment trailers in non-commercial use have bad batteries. If something doesn't stop working when the battery fails, the same attitude that makes an injured 95 year old woman worry more about the front door than herself will probably keep them from spending the money on a new battery.

 

[was2]

My opener has a battery I have never had to use in an emergency.

My opener caused an emergency when I absent mindedly pulled the power plug before doing some work, thinking it would avoid the door operating when I didn't want it to.

My opener had a battery plugged in and it worked despite my wishes. It is now disabled.

 

[75gmck25]

I would have to do more research about how much current a computer UPS can provide vs. how much standby current is needed for a garage door opener.

When power goes out, the computer UPS would switch to battery, but how long it lasts depends on how much current is being drawn. If stand-by power need is only a few milliamps, I think it could power a garage door opener for quite a while.

Bruce

 

[jdewitt]

What have we become?!

Suggesting that people who physically can't lift a garage door install a battery backup would be great. Forcing all new and replacement doors to have a battery backup in the entire state is ridiculous. What a joke.

What percentage of garage doors in California belong to someone who actually needs the battery backup (old, unfit, etc.) and are in an area at risk for wildfires? 5%? 15%? 25%? Yet our lawmakers think it is a good idea to force everyone else in the state to install something that is irrelevant to them.

Does the law require yearly forced testing by a certified 3rd party tester and replacement if the battery is not up to spec? If not-- it's a complete waste of time as well, as the batteries will likely be dead when you need them most.

 

[zjrog]

I bought a Ryobi opener a couple years ago to replace my old opener that had zero range. The Ryobi has a battery backup, one of their tool batteries. So I rotate that battery with three others. We have had a couple power outages since, and we are the envy of the cul-de-sac.

With respect to disabled issues, my wife is disabled, has one of the buttons. This included a lockbox on the door so emergency people don't need to break a door down. Once again, my Ryobi opener has an additional feature, wifi connection. Yes, if I have a cellphone connection, I can open my garage door.

So, when the medic alert people call to let me know she pushed her button, I open the garage door. Then I check the security camera, to see if I need to find a ride home from work... Unless I felt like something was going to happen and I skipped the vanpool.

Luckily, she USUALLY only needs a hand back into her recliner, and the paramedics are happy to help...

 

[jdewitt]

I bought a Ryobi opener a couple years ago to replace my old opener that had zero range. The Ryobi has a battery backup, one of their tool batteries. So I rotate that battery with three others. We have had a couple power outages since, and we are the envy of the cul-de-sac.

With respect to disabled issues, my wife is disabled, has one of the buttons. This included a lockbox on the door so emergency people don't need to break a door down. Once again, my Ryobi opener has an additional feature, wifi connection. Yes, if I have a cellphone connection, I can open my garage door.

So, when the medic alert people call to let me know she pushed her button, I open the garage door. Then I check the security camera, to see if I need to find a ride home from work... Unless I felt like something was going to happen and I skipped the vanpool.

Luckily, she USUALLY only needs a hand back into her recliner, and the paramedics are happy to help...

Good on you for taking care of your wife like this. You’ve got a nice setup!

 

[pattenp]

So how much involvement did the garage door manufactures have in seeing that this bill passed? Garage backup batteries sales will definitely increase in good ole control your life California.

 

[zjrog]

Good on you for taking care of your wife like this. You’ve got a nice setup!

I rarely DON'T worry when I'm not home... Nearly 36 years ago I said for better or worse, in sickness and health...