[DETRoadster]

Does anyone have any recommendations on garage door openers? I currently have 2 Chamberlain “Ultra Quiet” or some BS marketing term like that. They are belt drive and are “smart” meaning I can hook them up to the Chamberlain IQ app and hub to remotely monitor and actuate them. I’m looking to replace both of them, even though they are barely 5 years old. My gripes:

1) They periodically open/close on their own. I’ve come home to an open garage door that I know I closed. I’ve been home alone and heard the garage door open, run downstairs to find it either open or in the process of closing back down.
2) The IQ wifi “smart” hub is garbage. Loses contact with the router. Stopped working entirely with one of the openers. Produced 20 to 30 false alarm alerts per day of the door opening.

I want a simple, reliable opener that’s quiet and dependable. Both my doors are modern, metal doors, that are well balanced and pretty light. I don’t need a massively powerful motor. The wifi connectivity is a nice feature but not a must. Seems I have Genie, Chamberlain, and Craftsman to choose from. Any other brands out there that are worth looking at?

[El Cheapo Loco]

Isn't the MyQ hub a separate module? Sounds like the issue is not the opener but is with the MyQ hub. Why not try removing the MyQ hub and see if the random opening/closing continues? They are most likely simple and reliable without the MyQ hubs.

[DETRoadster]

Originally Posted by El Cheapo Loco

Isn't the MyQ hub a separate module? Sounds like the issue is not the opener but is with the MyQ hub. Why not try removing the MyQ hub and see if the random opening/closing continues? They are most likely simple and reliable without the MyQ hubs.

Ah, yes, MyQ not IQ. Thanks. I had the name wrong.

Yeah, that MyQ hub stopped working with one opener about 6 months after I bought it. It still works with the other door, but, it gives dozens of false alerts each day. I unplugged it last summer. The phantom openings / closing continue, mainly in the summer months. So far it's only on my wife's side of the garage. Something is heating up and short circuiting, I suspect. I discovered that the door actuation panels on the garage wall function via completing a simple circuit. Two wires run from the opener to the button/panel on the wall. If you electrically connect those two wires, the door opens. After discovering this, I ran all new wires from the openers down to the buttons on the garage wall, thinking I might have put a staple through one of them, causing a short that shows up when the garage heats up and things expand.

Bottom line I just dont trust the openers anymore.

[tdott]

While still owned by Chamberlain, my side mount LiftMaster 8500 has been great, MyQ is not built in but I have the gateway.

I got it because I needed the room to fit my lift in the garage, but noticed it’s quieter than any belt driven unit I’ve ever heard, all you hear is the door making noise, has to lube everything up and it’s super quiet. Because it connects directly to the shalf, there are less moving parts.

MyQ has never given me issues with it, never had any false opens in over 2+ years so far. My unit is hardwired to my router so maybe that is why.

[tdott]

Originally Posted by DETRoadster

I discovered that the door actuation panels on the garage wall function via completing a simple circuit. Two wires run from the opener to the button/panel on the wall. If you electrically connect those two wires, the door opens.

Sounds like you have the older type unit.

MyQ 2.0 units might be more reliable, not sure about all the technical details but I think it’s more secure. It also doesn’t work with HomeLink in my M3 anymore because the M3 system is older.

[MKSixer]

Originally Posted by DETRoadster

Ah, yes, MyQ not IQ. Thanks. I had the name wrong.

Yeah, that MyQ hub stopped working with one opener about 6 months after I bought it. It still works with the other door, but, it gives dozens of false alerts each day. I unplugged it last summer. The phantom openings / closing continue, mainly in the summer months. So far it's only on my wife's side of the garage. Something is heating up and short circuiting, I suspect. I discovered that the door actuation panels on the garage wall function via completing a simple circuit. Two wires run from the opener to the button/panel on the wall. If you electrically connect those two wires, the door opens. After discovering this, I ran all new wires from the openers down to the buttons on the garage wall, thinking I might have put a staple through one of them, causing a short that shows up when the garage heats up and things expand.

Bottom line I just dont trust the openers anymore.

Your wife's is beginning to fail. You will have to replace soon. I had this problem and began tracing at the safety sensors all the way back to the unit and the circuit board was overheating which caused a short. I never found out what caused the overheating. After losing an hour it became cheaper to start all over.

Good luck and let us know what you decide to purchase.

[El Cheapo Loco]

I've read a lot of the 'pros' prefer Chamberlain/Liftmaster. But I have personally installed and used 6 garage openers, both Chamberlain and Genie, and never had problem with any of them. I prefer Genie but only because of the smaller remotes.

You might want to research Sommer openers. Made in Germany and have lifetime warranty. I didn't go that route because I like having parts readily available at local stores.

[BayE30]

i worked for 2 years as a commercial garage door contractor. We installed MANY LIFTMASTER belt drive openers. The problem with these is not in the design, but in the installation. This is true with ALL openers. Also there is a huge difference between the models that are for sale in retail stores, VS the models that contractors buy from the supplier. The retail openers are garbage. The rails are not 1pc, and are a huge weak point. Then there is installation, most people can install and make it work, but will it function reliably long term?

Also the wall mounted openers are only as good as the wall they are mounted to. I have seen countless examples where the wall mount is mounted into sheet rock, and while i may have lasted a year or so, it will fail. they must be mounted to studs. General contractors are notorious for installing garage door openers incorrectly, i have cleaned up dozens of faulty contractor installs.

My advice is to find a reputable garage door specific contractor in your area, and have them come out to either tweak the current installed opener, or recommend a better suited model for your application. Make sure they warranty their work, so if you have issues you can rely on them to make it right.

[DETRoadster]

Great suggestions, everyone. Thank you! The Sommer units look interesting. I think I'll do a little research on those.

[Alfisti]

I'd pay a lot of attention to button pad, avoid anything with virtual buttons or soft buttons. Virtual or flush you know will fuck up and the soft ones give no tactile feedback and i have had huge issue with them not working in the winter.

OT but in general i find buttons, on anything from a toaster to a remote, absolute shit with a few exceptions. The Amazon fire stick buttons are excellent, a hard "click" ... you know it worked ... most are shite.

[DETRoadster]

Originally Posted by Alfisti

I'd pay a lot of attention to button pad, avoid anything with virtual buttons or soft buttons. Virtual or flush you know will fuck up and the soft ones give no tactile feedback and i have had huge issue with them not working in the winter.

OT but in general i find buttons, on anything from a toaster to a remote, absolute shit with a few exceptions. The Amazon fire stick buttons are excellent, a hard "click" ... you know it worked ... most are shite.

I hear ya! Damn hard to find a button these days that's actually an honest to goodness button. And I thought I was the only one who was super annoyed by crappy soft buttons.

[King Rudi]

Sub'd. Been wanting to replacing my Genie screw drive since I bought my house but just haven't pulled the trigger yet.

[Qulel]

I don't like my Liftmaster 8500s. They are slow and the remote reception is very limited. To use the openers with my GM cars I had to buy an additional repeater to translate from one system to the Liftmaster.

I wanted to get their remote door monitors. No problem for the 8500 and they told me the MY-Q Garage would adapt the monitor to my Genie. Wrong and that was about $90 wasted.

I had a problem with one of the lights. A call was handled quickly and professionally and a new light kit was in the mail, no proof of purchase or returning of the old light needed.

I love my Genie Xlerator like this https://mechanicguides.com/best-garage-door-rollers/ - fast and quiet. Lifetime warranty on the whole thing.

[stevenvillatoro]

In three years of heavy use, I've never had a single problem with my Chamberlain system (same model/setup as the OP), including zero MyQ connectivity or operational faults. Really like the setup.

Great thread...I've had no problems with my Genie units, but always figured I'd "upgrade" to side mount units if they ever went south. Neat to hear experiences form both sides of the coin here.

[upstatedoc]

so my "Overhead Door" garage door openers are almost 30 years old, had them serviced once since i've owned the house. they work great but its time for an update. the boys are getting older and i want them to be able to use a key pad to open the doors and my system is just too old. i had overhead door come by to give me an estimate. $795 installed tax included for two units, outdoor keypad and inside the garage pad. oh and 2 remotes. i looked on Lowes website and their comparable units installed was approximately the same price. thoughts?

[DETRoadster]

Originally Posted by upstatedoc

so my "Overhead Door" garage door openers are almost 30 years old, had them serviced once since i've owned the house. they work great but its time for an update. the boys are getting older and i want them to be able to use a key pad to open the doors and my system is just too old. i had overhead door come by to give me an estimate. $795 installed tax included for two units, outdoor keypad and inside the garage pad. oh and 2 remotes. i looked on Lowes website and their comparable units installed was approximately the same price. thoughts?

Do the install yourself and save $400. I don't know your situation though. A Saturday afternoon in the backyard with your boys while someone else does the hard work might be worth $400.

I've always installed these myself. The first one will take you about 3 hours. The second one will take about 1 hour. Lol. So start at 8, your done by noon, and you can go enjoy your $400.

If you decide to have it professionally installed I'd go with a local company. I NEVER use Lowe's of Home Depot for any installs as they simply contract out and you have no control over who shows up at your place.

[upstatedoc]

Originally Posted by DETRoadster

Do the install yourself and save $400.

If you decide to have it professionally installed I'd go with a local company.

yeah, i'm all thumbs

Overhead Door is a national brand but they have a local office here

[DETRoadster]

Originally Posted by upstatedoc

yeah, i'm all thumbs

Overhead Door is a national brand but they have a local office here

Then I'd go with them over Lowe's any day!

[hooligan_G01]

Originally Posted by upstatedoc

so my "Overhead Door" garage door openers are almost 30 years old, had them serviced once since i've owned the house. they work great but its time for an update. the boys are getting older and i want them to be able to use a key pad to open the doors and my system is just too old. i had overhead door come by to give me an estimate. $795 installed tax included for two units, outdoor keypad and inside the garage pad. oh and 2 remotes. i looked on Lowes website and their comparable units installed was approximately the same price. thoughts?

Overhead Door units are proprietary, as a heads-up. You might already know that, but I didn't when mine broke 4 days before my wife and I were moving several states away. So, no other garage door repair folks could get the parts to fix the opener. The Overhead guy couldn't get there until the same day the movers were there. The opposite of stress free.