Garage door opener installation

[RedNeckRacin]

If you get some bar stock the size of the holes on the 4 sided clamp its not that big of deal. Get them about 18" long and you should have no problem winding the spring up. (Granted I am 6'2" and 220lbs and have pretty good upper body strength!) When you get close, let the bar rest against the door or the header and you dont have to worry about the spring. I have a small 8'x'8 access door in the barn and the cables came off twice in one day due to some ice on the cable pulleys. Not a fun day, but def not worth a service call to a garage door repairman. Take your time and realize the stored energy that your dealing with. Make sure the bars are seated full as well.

 

[KennyG]

Winding torsion springs isn't that big a deal IF you understand the process. As long as you stay out of the path of the winding bars, you should be safe. However, this should be considered a two man job for amateurs. When you accidentally drop one of the winding bars or the wrench you tighten the set screws with, you need a helper. Don't ask how I know that.

 

[s219]

I agree, the springs are a doable job, but they are one of the few jobs I am *mega* careful about (another being working in a breaker panel close to live main lugs). It's a very low tech job, but could become extremely dangerous. I use two cut off pieces of rod stock (1/2" I think, 18" long) with the ends chamfered lightly, and keep two 1/4" wrenches handy for the set screws (if I only had one I'd lose it somehow). Stand on a 4' ladder and go slow and careful.

One thing I have found helpful is to paint horizontal stripes on the springs before adjusting them, so that later on you have a reference to work with when re-tensioning everything. Makes it easy to get back to where you started. Springs usually have some sort of factory striping but it's hard to see after some years and it's not always helpful for an already tensioned spring. Also make sure the door doesn't stick for any reason (paint, friction, etc) as that can really trick your tensioning work. I remember doing one door for a neighbor that was sticky the first 1-2 feet and then launched itself with too much force (actually shot back and up and rammed into the stops on the end of the track). We backed off the spring a little, but then had to fix his door gaskets to make it easy enough to raise without sticking.

 

[Bird]

All the garage door springs I'd seen in the past were black, but when I had one break and had them replaced on December 2, 2011, the guy asked if I wanted the galvanized springs, so I paid more but have them. I think he said the other springs had a 10 year warranty and the galvanized a lifetime warranty.

 

[murphy1244]

Yep, Lift Master calls it "Wall Mount". https://www.liftmaster.com/For-Homes/Garage-Door-Openers/Elite-Series/model-8500

View attachment 404106

Any one know the cost of his?

 

[aczlan]

Any one know the cost of his?

Amazon says $325 for a 8500 kit Liftmaster 8500 Wall Mount Garage Door Opener - - Amazon.com or $275 for just the 3900 opener: Amazon.com: LiftMaster 3900 Light Duty Commercial Jackshaft Operator: Home Improvement

Aaron Z

 

[s219]

Look on eBay -- they are cheaper there. I bought a "two-pack" of new 8500 openers from a dealer for $540 last summer, so $270 each. Shipping was free.

 

[ultrarunner]

I have normal openers on my other two doors same series though. Battery back up, belt driven with soft start and stop. Awesome really. Good match with the horman doors.

I put in Hormann Doors in Austria... well made and insulated with pinch point protection and quality ball bearing rollers.

Also put in Horman branded openers.

Did not know Hormann was available in North America.

 

[yelbike]

I put in Hormann Doors in Austria... well made and insulated with pinch point protection and quality ball bearing rollers.

Also put in Horman branded openers.

Did not know Hormann was available in North America.

I didn't go with hormann openers only because the install was from friend and didn't recommend them, can't really remember why. The doors have been great. I really love like my liftmaster openers with battery back. Soft start/stop belt and drive makes for a really quiet operation.

 

[countrybumpkin]

Looks interesting , so does it rely on the door weight to actually close the door?

 

[Xfaxman]

Looks interesting , so does it rely on the door weight to actually close the door?

Yep, it rotates the shaft the other direction to close. The door is held up by the cables wrapped around the cable drums and as it rotates, the weight of the door pulls it down. The overhead track has to be higher at the back (not level), to get it started going down.

 

[s219]

Looks interesting , so does it rely on the door weight to actually close the door?

Yes, pretty much. All it really does is counteract whatever difference exists between the spring tension and the torque from the door weight -- basically, it sees the same resistance your arm would, but at the jackshaft axle in a rotational/torque sense rather than a linear force sense. Kind of an interesting way to think about it.

So when going down, it basically allows slack on the side cable drums and the door starts going down taking up the slack. There is a cable-tension sensor (simple switch with an arm and roller that touches the cable) that stops and reverses the motor if any excessive slack is detected, for instance if the door hits an obstacle on the way down. That will prevent the drums from unwinding and causing all he!! from breaking loose (happened to me on an older door with a different style opener once, and it was a train wreck when the door became cockeyed in the tracks).

 

[bigtiller]

With gravity closing it, when the door is down, can it be opened by hand or is there a way to lock the door?

 

[ultrarunner]

I didn't go with hormann openers only because the install was from friend and didn't recommend them, can't really remember why. The doors have been great. I really love like my liftmaster openers with battery back. Soft start/stop belt and drive makes for a really quiet operation.

The Hormann openers are very compact, super quiet and have soft start.

So far it's been 12 years with light use..

The doors are also very quiet and I like the safety features.

 

[Xfaxman]

With gravity closing it, when the door is down, can it be opened by hand or is there a way to lock the door?

The opener would prevent the shaft from rotating, so no, not by hand, fork lift, yes.

 

[countrybumpkin]

Thanks, I've never really paid attention to these opens and the way they closed. I will be giving these a close look in the near future, we are fixing to build a 3 car garage and I'll have 3 doors in my shop. I really like the clear over head.

 

[Xfaxman]

Thanks, I've never really paid attention to these opens and the way they closed. I will be giving these a close look in the near future, we are fixing to build a 3 car garage and I'll have 3 doors in my shop. I really like the clear over head.

The one that we had (different brand) would sense the motor current and stop if the door hit anything going up or down.

I tested it by standing under it. When it contacted my shoulder, it reversed and shut off. I felt just a slight amount of pressure.

 

[murphy1244]

Yep, it rotates the shaft the other direction to close. The door is held up by the cables wrapped around the cable drums and as it rotates, the weight of the door pulls it down. The overhead track has to be higher at the back (not level), to get it started going down.

I hear these jam up a lot cause there is very little weight to go down when it starts.

 

[Xfaxman]

I hear these jam up a lot cause there is very little weight to go down when it starts.

After I raised the back of the track, no problem with the 8x16 insulated door.

As you can see, there is no clearance for a conventional opener.

 

[s219]

With gravity closing it, when the door is down, can it be opened by hand or is there a way to lock the door?

As noted, the weight of the door prevents casual attempts to lift, but the 8500 opener also comes with an electric deadbolt lock that mounts to the track and slides a pin through. It is to be placed just above a wheel, so that the door can't roll up.