Garage Door Opener info needed....

[Joe Grippo]

So it’s time to replace the garage door openers. Any advice on brand, HP, chain or belt or any other ideas? Some info…currently I have Genie 1/3 hp chain drive openers which are about 20 years old, one just stopped working and the other isn’t far behind. By the way, my doors are 10’ wide and 8’ tall and are aluminum. I have looked at all the usual suspects Sears, Lowes, Home Depot but I was wondering if I would get a better product through a specialized installer. Any suggestions?

 

[AHotRod]

Why not go with New Genie units ?

That's what I put in the house garage and my shop when we built 7 years ago. They are been trouble free and have work great. Both doors are 16' wide and are HEAVY because of the steel Hurricane bracing required by code here in the Sunshine state.

 

[nova65ss]

If you are going to do it yourself get a Chamberlain or Sears. If you want someone to do it get a Liftmaster. Genies in my opinion are kind of hit or miss. Sometimes they last forever sometimes they don't. The screwdrives require lubrication on the regular to keep them quiet. If you DIY no matter which one you choose will need an extension to get it up the full 8'.

Jimmy

 

[bmwpower]

No openers (yet) for me, but everyone I've talked to has aways said go with a belt drive unit.

 

[kbuhagiar]

So it’s time to replace the garage door openers. Any advice on brand, HP, chain or belt or any other ideas? Some info…currently I have Genie 1/3 hp chain drive openers which are about 20 years old, one just stopped working and the other isn’t far behind. By the way, my doors are 10’ wide and 8’ tall and are aluminum. I have looked at all the usual suspects Sears, Lowes, Home Depot but I was wondering if I would get a better product through a specialized installer. Any suggestions?

You might want to look into something like this...

http://www.wayne-dalton.com/DirectDrive.asp

These openers look pretty trick. I have heard very favorable comments on some other discussion boards about this style of opener; besides eliminating the overhead hardware clutter, they are also quieter.

My wood roll-up garage door and opener are 22 years old and are ready for replacement. After seeing these openers I'm thinking of upgrading sooner rather than later.

Funny how that happens...

 

[Rickster]

I have the Genie screw drive, it's noisey and only quiets down after a lube which it then proceeds to drip all over the floor for weeks, then is noisey again. My brother has the belt drive and it's very quiet and has been trouble free for him. When this screw drive fails, and it can't come soon enough, I will be replacing it with a belt drive unit.

 

[BowtieNut]

Seems like most of the pro's around here use Liftmaster, but I don't have any personal experience with those. I've always used Genie and never had a problem with them. Had 2 screw drives at my old house, and moved into a new house a couple years ago. I put two Genie Excelerators on the attached garage since they are right below my daughters' rooms. They are screw drive but much quieter than the regular screw drives, and open/close faster too.

I put up a regular screw drive in the detached since I don't care about the noise, and will get another one in there soon.

 

[Joe Grippo]

Thanks for all the replys. I will probably go back to Genie's, although I might try the belt drive. About the HP, the old ones were 1/3 is it worth it to step up to the 1/2 HP units? The 1/3's seemed to work OK, but I am a big fan of overkill. Thanks again...

 

[ads47]

In my rental I have a cheap Chamberlin it was easy to install and never had a problem. The house I live in has a new belt drive we put in last year its very quiet and trouble free. I looked into the Wayne Dalton and decided against it after googling it and reading lots of problems. It also mentions on there website to not use it if your near an airport which we are.


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