Do you know much about the garage door opener that you are using? Most people only know that it works when they want it to work. They tend to take it for granted and are only concerned when it is not working properly. It helps to have at least a basic understanding of just what goes into the door opener and how it works.
Check out the fundamentals of your electric garage door opener, so you can get a better overall understanding of what they are and what they do. It will help you look at your door opener differently the next time that you have to use it, which is several times a day if you are like most people. When you know more about the opener, it can help to give you more respect for all of the work that it does.
Door Opener Types
Did you know that there was not just one type of door opener? There are several, and the most common one seen in North America today is the central opener, which means that a trolley pulls the door open, and it is driven by a motor. This opener is located on the ceiling at the center of the door.
Over the past several years though, there have been quite a few changes in garage door designs, at least in terms of height. The ceilings are higher than they used to be, and that has necessitated a different type of opener called Jackshaft opener. These are installed on the side of the door.
How Do the Signals Work?
One of the other questions you might have is about the way the remote works with the door. The remote is a radio transmitter and there is a receiver that is built into the opener. When you press the button on the remote, it will send a radio wave to the receiver in the opener, and this is what will cause the door to open or close. If this system suddenly stops working, it might mean that there is a power outage in the area, or that the batteries in the remote need to be changed.
Signal Pirating
One of the problems that some people worry about with garage door openers is having a plane passing over their house and open up their door. Fortunately, this is not going to actually happen – this is nothing more than a myth, thankfully. Think about it. If this were a real problem and airplanes were opening up garage doors all across North America, people would not be using the openers.
If you have an older model door opener, meaning one that wasmanufactured before 1993, then there is a greater chance of tampering, even though it still tends to be minor. With these older openers, the technology used was DIP switches. The switches would each have a +, -, and 0 position. Your garage would have a special code that worked with the opener.
The doors and openers today tend to be extremely secure. The company Chamberlain, which encompasses the Craftsman and LiftMaster brands have used the SECURITY+ system since 1993. This system offers a billion codes and every time you open or close your garage door, the code is going to change.
In 2013, the company added the MyQ system, which has helped to make the garage doors more convenient than ever. Those that utilize this system give you the ability to open and close the garage no matter where you might be with your phone, tablet, or laptop. In 2017, Chamberlain also added a WiFi feature to the door openers.
Drive Types
One of the other things to know about garage door openers is that there are several different drive types available. The chain drive is the most common of these, and is similar to a bicycle chain. Another type of drive is the rubber belt, which is reinforced with steel. A third type of drive is called the screw drive.
Strength of Motors
Many of the motors in use today are alternating current, or AC. These will generally have ½ or ¾ horsepower motors. There are also direct current motors, which are measured in Newtons. These DC motors are also variable speed. This means that they are going to start slowly, ramp up to regular speed, and they will slow down before they stop.
It is very important to remember that the doors are calibrated so that they can lift up to 225lbs, but they can also push down with the same amount of strength. Therefore, you need to make sure that the doors arewell balanced. A door that is balanced properly should be able to be lifted with just one hand.
The Reversal System
In North America, all garage door openers that have been manufactured since 1993 are required to have two automatic reversal systems. One of the systems is mechanical. When the door closes, and it encounters any type of resistance, it is going to reverse direction. The other system that is in these doors utilizes photo eyes. These are small units placed on the side of the doors about six inches off the ground. There is an invisible beam of light and if this beam is broken, the door will reverse direction.
Learn More
Contact us by calling 613-547-4566. We know about garage doors and openers, and we can let you know more about them, we can email you a quotation.
You might also want to take a few moments to stop by the showroom and see some of the doors and options that are available. If you want to see how some of the different designs might work for your own home, you will certainly want to check out the Design Centre. In addition, you can check out the image gallery to see some examples and to get some inspiration.
Add new comment