liftmaster range

[bjblessinger]

We have the LiftMaster 8500W and the range is terrible. The installer and the company say there is nothing to be done since the antennae is not extendable.
Does anyone know a way to attach a wire to the circuit board or other work solutions? I have 4 of them and the furthest we can open a door is 10 feet!

Would a Liftmaster 855lm Chamberlain OEM Homelink Compatibility Bridge repeat the signal from the regular remotes or from the homelink in our vehicles? I could plug that in and run an extension to extend the range.
Thanks

 

[cspcrx]

Do you have LED lights that may be impacting it? Mine works from over a house away.

 

[bjblessinger]

I do have LED lights in the garage. The range is bad even when they are powered off if that matters. I don't see changing the lights as an attractive option if there is another work around.

 

[mark-ski]

Try contacting "Liftmaster"
Support contact info:
Liftmaster.com

 

[Hot Rod Grampa]

The type of siding material has impact on range.Not sure what your building construction is. A metal sided pole barn with a steel liner will give issues. 2 items that may help are an external antenna system designed for commercial structures are available from Liftmaster or create a break in the liner. A window, or such so the radio waves can travel through easier.

 

[BigGarage]

We have the LiftMaster 8500W and the range is terrible. The installer and the company say there is nothing to be done since the antennae is not extendable.
Does anyone know a way to attach a wire to the circuit board or other work solutions? I have 4 of them and the furthest we can open a door is 10 feet!

I don't know what model I have (it's for a single door) but I can open mine from about 6 houses away without a clear line of sight. I wish I could help you.

Dennis

 

[bjblessinger]

They are in an attached garage with stone exterior, foam insulation, LP smart side interior. All push buttons are located together at the back of the garage. None of the remotes work further than 10 feet from the jack shaft openers which is 40 feet from the receiver buttons.

Lift master sent us a new receiver for the worst one. I replaced it and it made no difference.

 

[ky-mike]

Do you have wi-fi in the garage? If so, look into the LiftMaster MyQ control panels and app. I rarely use my opener now that I can open from my phone.

 

[MJK]

Sounds to me like you have some interference, given that all 4 are behaving similarly. It is my understanding that all Sec 2.0 models including the 8500w you mention have triband remote - opener communication, and that upon pairing them it selects the strongest signal as the primary.

Some LEDs and CCFL can cause interference. That seems to be down to bulb manufacturer. I too have Led bulbs in the garage (lots of them), but after some trial and error the source of my interference were some CCFL bulbs in the carriage lights outside my doors.

I would see if I could find the source of the interference first, and then wipe and reprogram the remotes.

Mine will now work from 150-200 feet away no problem, but we are out in the sticks.

The homelink bridge you mention merely takes the newer encryption protocol from the 8500w (triband Sec+ 2.0) and translates it into something capable of being controlled by the older protocol (315mhz Sec+ 1.0). Given that 315 is one of the 3 bands in the newer protocol, I doubt it buys you much range. I could be wrong though.

Edit: ^^ and yes, wifi is an option too.

 

[pattenp]

There are ways to extend the antenna, just search the web.
https://garagedoorguide.com/top-5-w...e-door-remote-signal/#Maximum_Remote_Distance

 

[rburke65]

There has to be a way to get more than 10’! At that point ya may as well just get out and open the door yourself!

 

[ItsNemo]

With homelink in my vehicle, I can open my liftmaster door from around 100 yards away. The regular remotes, only about 30 yards.

 

[bjblessinger]

Sounds to me like you have some interference, given that all 4 are behaving similarly. It is my understanding that all Sec 2.0 models including the 8500w you mention have triband remote - opener communication, and that upon pairing them it selects the strongest signal as the primary.

Some LEDs and CCFL can cause interference. That seems to be down to bulb manufacturer. I too have Led bulbs in the garage (lots of them), but after some trial and error the source of my interference were some CCFL bulbs in the carriage lights outside my doors.

I would see if I could find the source of the interference first, and then wipe and reprogram the remotes.

Mine will now work from 150-200 feet away no problem, but we are out in the sticks.

The homelink bridge you mention merely takes the newer encryption protocol from the 8500w (triband Sec+ 2.0) and translates it into something capable of being controlled by the older protocol (315mhz Sec+ 1.0). Given that 315 is one of the 3 bands in the newer protocol, I doubt it buys you much range. I could be wrong though.

Edit: ^^ and yes, wifi is an option too.

I have the Wifi option through our control4 but to be honest its a pain to find your phone, open the app, navigate 3 layers deep and then select which door to open while driving up my drive way. Better option is a I push an action specific button that for the last 40 years people have been able to use from 100 yards away!

The problem with this specific opener is that there is no way to extend the antennae wire like the older units. I might take these things out and put the commercial units I have in my barn just because they have the ability to place a remote antennae.

 

[MJK]

Standard 8500 (non W) has the receiver in the wall control if memory serves. With the 8500w, I believe it is on the main board in the motor head. You'd probably void the warranty, but you could solder in something shielded like the center wire of coax and relocate the antenna.

If you have not done a test for RF interference, I would. Unless you have a spectrum analyzer, I would unplug EVERYTHING (bulbs, battery chargers, radios, etc) and see if it makes a difference. If it does, then reconnect one at a time until you find out what is causing it.

As for Wifi, you can integrate the myq with Google home or some such thing. But, I do not use it much for the reasons you mention.