Garage Door Openers

There are three basic kinds of garage door openers on the market today, and they include the belt driven version, the chain driven option and a screw driven type (found more in commercial buildings). This page focuses on the belt vs chain driven openers.

Chain Drive Openers

Chain driven openers are popular with homeowners (probably because they are the cheapest choice). Basically a motor drives a chain that rotates around a long horizontal rod and trolley system and in the process opens and closes the garage door.

Chain driven openers are easy to install but are rather noisy. They are also a bit less expensive than belt drive openers.

Over time, the chains can loosen due to wear on the rollers and pins. However, the chain can easily be adjusted, and will probably require a maximum of one adjustment over the life of the opener.

Belt driven openers on the other hand are very quiet, and are ideal for garages that have finished rooms above them. Due to the smooth belt motion, there is less vibration, and less noise.

Belt driven openers are also a little quicker than the chain driven variety, however they are typically designed for one car wide garage doors. They are fairly easy to install, but it is important to take accurate measurements when installing them.

All three types of garage door openers come with a number of control options for opening and closing the doors. These include keychain, remote, car, and externally mounted keypads.

In addition, they include timer lights that automatically turn on when the garage door is open or closed, and even when someone trips the electronic eye sensors.

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