What's the Best Garage Door Opener?
Today, most major brands extend long warranties, especially on integral parts such as belts and motors.
These manufacturers are able to extend these warranties because the openers they make have a higher level of reliability. By law, the openers are also required to be manufactured with certain safety features, like auto-reverse and photo eye sensors.
Ultimately, the best garage door opener for you is going to be the one that comes with the features you need.
The following is a quick breakdown of the main features that are available on new garage door openers. You will likely want to consider which of these optional features suit your needs best when picking out the right garage door opener for your home.
Battery Back-Up Unit (BBU): A garage door opener with a BBU will open and close your garage door up to 20 times when your home loses power. Having a BBU means you or your car won’t be trapped inside or outside of your garage during a power outage. This is one of those features that is most convenient to have in those less-than-convenient situations. In fact, in the fall of 2018 California passed a law that requires all new openers installed in the state to have a BBU.
Smart Phone Connectivity: A garage door opener with smart phone connectivity will connect to your smart phone, tablet or other mobile-device. It provides you with the ability to know whether your garage door is open or closed at any given time, and you can open or close your garage door with just the tap of your finger. This feature provides the user convenience and peace of mind.
For example, have you accidentally left your garage door open after you left your home? Have you settled in for the evening in the comfort of your bed and you aren’t sure if you remembered to close your door for the evening? Do you have a need to give someone access to your home with the touch of a button? Would you like to receive an alert each time your garage door opens? The uses for smart phone connectivity can go on and on.
Wireless Keypad: This optional feature can be conveniently installed outside of your garage. It will allow you to operate your garage door with a four-digit code. This feature is most often useful if you have kids and they enter through your garage after school or otherwise. This feature is also useful anytime you may want to enter your garage and do not have your remote handy. For example, if you go out for a morning jog, then you won’t have to carry your remote or key.
Lighting: If you choose a garage door opener with an ultra-bright LED bulb, you will surely see the difference. Your garage will be well illuminated when you arrive home, no matter the time of day. LED lighting can also help to illuminate your garage for any evening projects you may be working on.
Quiet Technology: There are two primary features that are offered which will make your opener super quiet: DC motor and belt drive. This technology is whisper-quiet compared to an AC motor, and/or chain drive. This feature is great if you have living space above your garage or small children in your home.
Wall Mount: These openers are mounted on the same wall as the garage door. This option can help to free up more of the ceiling in your garage.
Remote Control: Remote controls come with single or multiple buttons. It is often ideal to get the same number of buttons as you have garage doors and to get a remote for each driver in your home.
Choosing the right features in your garage door opener based on your needs will provide the most value for you and your family over the long run.
