Which opener to buy?

[pbc]

Am buying a house with a 3 car garage (3 DOORS). None of the doors have ever had an automatic or electric opener. The doors are heavy wood. How do I determine which type of opener to buy? (screw, chain, belt, 1/2 hp, 1 hp)

[gdoorpro]

Screw drives are fine but if you read my previous posts, I recommend them only for certain situations, and then only the genie version or equivelant. They start out rather quiet but get louder over time and need to be cleaned and lubed regularly to maintain quiet operation.

Chain driven is the most widely used and longest used type of system. They are fine. Chain tension plays a key part in how long it will last before requiring service. If you tighten the chain too much the collar holding the drive sprocket will wear ever so slowly towards the door till either operation becomes rough or the chain falls off. This doesn't happen quickly but can happen as soon as 5 years especially if door is not balanced appropriatly.

Belt Driven operators are really starting to outperform the above mentioned operators. They are quiet, very quiet, in fact in a number of installs the door makes more noise than the motor on these belt driven operators.

Motor choice really should be the deciding factor.

An AC Motor operates at one speed start to finish. This means there often is a decided jerk at the start and end of a cycle. And over time this will wear down your door, especially cheaper steel doors that are not adequately reinforced with a strut that runs horizontally the entire length of the door and is shaped like a U with fasteners on the top and bottom sides of the strut at each hinge joint. An Operator Bracket Should also be installed on most doors (This runs the entire hieght of the top section).

A DC Motor can more easily adjust travel speed. So usually this type of motor will start slowly and speed up, then slowing down again near the end of travel. As you can imagine this if far less hard on a door than the jerky AC Motor.

Last but not least their is a new Jackshaft Operator, run by a DC motor from liftmaster the 3800. It mounts to the spring shaft (torsion springs only, not the side springs that strech). If you don't have room for a traditional style opener this should be an outstanding option. It works best on commercial type applications but has many safety features built in to solve the problems associated with jackshaft operators from the past.

1/2 Horse Power should be adequate for most residential doors, the only difference is that the guts of the opener (especially Liftmaster) are more durable and better lubricated than their 1/2Hp counterparts)

At Trademark Door we like the Liftmaster Brand models 3850, 3585, 3800, & 3280. Please email for additional specifics. We will be glad to help.