Garage Door Openers are Now a Necessity...

BUT Every Opener Can't Open Every Garage Door

Garage doors, even if they are made of the thinnest grade of steel, still can be excessively cumbersome and heavy to open for the average individual. Add insulation to the door and it becomes heavier. Compound that weight with an arm full of children or groceries and a very inconvenient experience is about to unfold.

Garage doors come in all widths and heights. The weight can vary significantly also, depending upon the type of material and construction of a garage door. Heavier garage doors will need a more powerful garage door opener than the basic uninsulated aluminum garage door. Which type of motor will be strong enough to lift a particular garage door is a question that any professional installer or manufacturer will be able to answer.

Every garage door opener is not created equally. There are predominantly three different types of drives available for garage door openers, chain drive, screw drive, and belt drive. Each of these openers has benefits that the others lack. A fourth type of drive called a torsion drive is also available, but can be finicky if not installed precisely, so is best left to a professional installer.

The most basic type of electric garage door opener is the tried and true chain drive. Much like a bicycle chain, this particular drive requires periodic lubricating oil and will need adjustment as the gears and chain ages. Chain driven garage door openers produce the most noise out of all types on the market and are available with different sized motors for heavier or larger doors.

Screw drive door openers are considered to be the most durable or maintenance free type of opener due to the design of the drive. While the installation process is almost identical to chain drive systems, the carriage of a screw drive opener "rides" along a spiraled screw type rod. This system has the fewest moving parts of any of the main three garage door openers and does not produce as much noise as the chain driven units. The cost of screw drive openers are approximately $30 to $50 more expensive than that of their chain drive counterparts. Perhaps the most appreciated benefit of screw drive systems is that many open at twice the speed of other drives cutting down on the wait time to enter the garage.

The quietest model of garage door opener is a belt driven opener. These units use a steel reinforced rubber belt to lift the door. As a result, there is no metal on metal contact between the lifting mechanisim and drive gear. While there will be some noise from the door rollers inside the tracks, belt drive openers are missing the bulk of the noise associated with standard door openers due to drive style and motor. Belt drive openers are the most expensive of the three types, but produce almost no noticeable noise. If a garage is located next to a bedroom, it is doubtful that the occupant would hear the garage door opening at all. In fact, the average homeowner will be acutely aware, initially, of the belt drive motor because of the absence of excess noise.

While the average handyman may have the skill to install a garage door opener, it can be an exceptionally frustrating procedure due to the reinforcement that may be required to the header of the garage opening, the ceiling of the garage itself, and any adjustments which may be necessary to the torsion springs.

Torsion springs should NOT be adjusted by the average homeowner or handyman. Proper specialized tools are required to adjust torsion springs safely. An experienced and knowledgeable professional should be hired to adjust the torsion springs safely and properly. Serious injury or worse can occur if the torsion springs are worn or not adjusted properly.

For more information and guidance about selecting the right garage door (and to see samples of available doors), visit http://www.premiumgaragedoorservice.com. Premium Garage Doors specializes in custom and high-quality door components to complement any home's exterior decor.