You’ve had a long day at work and all you want to do is settle in, drink some hot chocolate, and relax. You pull into the driveway, and you can feel yourself beginning to calm down.
You’re so close to your perfect evening in, and you press the garage door opener to open the door... but nothing happens. You press it again. Same result. Something’s gone wrong. You can feel your perfect evening slipping away from your grasp.
You know this isn’t the fault of your door opener remote, since you fixed that just the other day. No, it’s worse than you could have imagined... you have to reprogram your LiftMaster or Chamberlain garage door opener!
Psst! You could really relate to this story but what you’ve really, really liked about it is the picture of these 2 single garage doors? They are in the North Hatley LP Design, Moka Brown color, with 8-lite Orion windows.
It’s a few days later and you’ve bought a replacement LiftMaster Chamberlain garage door opener. You’ve also decided to install it yourself (bold).
Read on to learn the easiest and more efficient ways to install and/or reprogram your new garage door opener.
Do you feel lucky? If not, hire a garage door expert
Before reprogramming your LiftMaster Chamberlain garage door opener yourself, here is life-saving information you must consider:
- Bad or not-precise enough adjustments you make to the garage door travail limits will interfere with the functioning of the safety reversal system.
- If your garage door opener needs too much force to close your garage door (because the garage door tracks are dirty or stuck in ice, for example), it will interfere with the functioning of the safety reversal system.
- If your garage door opener is an old model, you should NEVER EVER use the force adjustments to make up for a binding garage door.
- After reprogramming your garage door opener travel, YOU MUST TEST your garage door opener safety reversal system.
- Make sure your SUV, pick-up truck, or any other high vehicles won’t get damaged. Test your garage door to see if it fully opens and provides all the clearance you need.
If you mess up and accidentally turn off the safety reversal system, you will be putting your family in extreme danger. Whether they’re adults or children, if the safety system doesn’t work, someone can get extremely injured or even die.
Unless you are a skilled and experienced handyman or handywoman, don’t take on this challenge! Don’t take the risk. Instead, contact a certified LiftMaster Chamberlain installer or technician near you.
Never forget that your garage door is the largest moving object in your whole house. It’s a wall that opens and closes! Garage doors’springs are under extreme tension. Furthermore, how much do you really know about motors and how they work?
A certified LiftMaster Chamberlain installer reprogramming a garage door opener.
12 steps for programming a Liftmaster Chamberlain garage door opener equipped with myQ
1. Make sure your garage door is closed but not disengaged and your trolley is near the garage door.
2. Find your garage door opener adjustment buttons. Their place may vary depending on your LiftMaster or Chamberlain garage door opener model. Look at the picture below to help you out.
3. Press and hold the black square button until the UP Arrow begins to flash, or you hear a BEEP > This means your opener can now be set in the OPEN POSITION.
4. Press and hold the UP or DOWN Arrows until your garage door is fully open > This is your desired UP Position.
5. Press and release the black square button > The garage door opener lights will flash 2 times and the DOWN Arrow will start to flash. It means your opener OPEN POSITION is now LOCKED and your door opener is ready to set the CLOSE POSITION.
6. Press and hold the DOWN Arrow until your garage door is fully closed.
7. Press and release the black square button to indicate to your opener that your garage door is in the DOWN position you desire > The garage door opener lights will flash 2 times and the UP Arrow will start to flash. It means your opener DOWN POSITION is now LOCKED and your door opener is ready to set the force programming mode.
8. Press and release the UP Arrow. When the door travels to the programmed UP position, the DOWN Arrow will begin to flash.
9. Press and release the DOWN Arrow. The door will travel to the programmed DOWN position. Programming is now complete.
GOOD TO KNOW
- If the garage door opener lights flash 5 times during the steps to Program the Travel on a myQ Garage Door Opener, the programming has timed out.
- If the garage door opener lights flash 10 times during the steps to Program the Travel on a myQ Garage Door Opener, the safety reversing sensors are misaligned or obstructed.
- After aligning or clearing the sensors, do a complete up and down garage door cycle using your remote control. Programming will be complete.
- The yellow round button is only used to program your garage door accessories. Never-ever use it for programming your opener travel.
10. You’re not done yet! After you do ANY adjustments on your garage door opener, the safety reversal system MUST be tested. Here is how the company US Inspect recommends doing it.
11. Using your remote control, your smartphone, or your keypad, close your garage door.
12. Your garage door must reverse when striking the wood or whatever object you placed to test the safety features.
Maybe it’s time to consider a complete garage door opener replacement. don’t play games with your family’s safety!
Although completely replacing your garage opening might sound extreme, it’s a good idea to do so if you want to keep your family safe. Especially if you have an opener that was built before 1993 or before 2012.
Two scientific innovations happened in those years that increased the safety of garage doors.
If you check on your LiftMaster or Chamberlain garage door opener and find it was made before 1993, you need to throw that out.
We cannot stress this enough. You must replace your garage door opener because it is a really big safety hazard for your family!
Back in 1993, garage doors started to be equipped with two safety systems that significantly cut down on the amount of injury and death garage doors could cause. Many kids’lives were saved thanks to these innovations!
2 life-saving garage door opener innovations
● The 1st one is mechanical: if the bottom section of a descending door hits an object, the motor detects the resistance and the door reverses.
● The 2nd one is photoelectric: it consists of 2 units installed about 6 inches from the floor, on each side of the door. One unit emits an infrared beam, invisible to the naked eye. The other unit is a receiver. If something breaks the beam while the door is closing, the opener motor automatically stops and then reverses direction and opens the door.
These little girls are having so much fun they forget about safety. Even though their parents keep repeating themselves. How strange, how unusual, wouldn’t you say? Thanks to the garage door opener photocell safety beams, when the big sister breaks the beam while entering the garage as the garage is closing, the garage door opener stops on spot and reverses its direction to open the door. No injuries. No drama. Just kids being kids. You’ve got to love technology!
If you somehow think you’re exempt from getting a replacement, keep reading to learn more about:
● urban legends about planes opening garage doors that were proven true
If you check your LiftMaster Chamberlain garage door opener and find it was made after 1993, you might think you’re safe.
However, not quite. There was another large innovation that was made in 2012 that increased how safe garage doors were! If you have a garage door that was made before 2012, you should strongly consider replacing your opener.
To make sure your garage door opener has rolling code technology, look for the label on your Chamberlain, LiftMaster, or Craftsman garage door opener.
Back in 2012, Chamberlain’s garage door openers got another upgrade called Security+2.0. This upgrade introduced a rolling code technology that was meant to increase the security of your house.
How it works is that each time you press the button to activate your opener, your opener will produce a code (out of over 100 billion possible choices). Your opener will sync that code with the garage door and open (or close) the door.
Each press of the button will generate a new code. This means that even if someone steals your remote before it can generate a new code, it’ll be useless to them.
When was your garage door opener manufactured?
Here are the main models of LiftMaster or Chamberlain garage door openers with their sticker locations and the information you can find on them.
When you look closely at your garage door opener (typically on the back or on the side), you should be able to locate a sticker with a lot of important information written on it like the model and serial numbers.
Whether you’re replacing your opener or not, this is very important information to have on hand, especially if you ever need to contact our garage door specialists.
The information on the sticker will also tell you when your opener was manufactured.
Quick note: If your garage door opener is a Chamberlain, but not a LiftMaster model, this FAQ could help you.
You’re convinced – It’s time to replace your garage door opener!
If you’re flying blind when it comes to garage door openers or anything garage-related, we can help you narrow down your choices by asking just a few questions.
Is the ceiling of your garage pretty low or cathedral? Do you want to put storage above your garage door? Maybe your house’s design includes windows over your garage door?
This elegant, modern garage door in the Vog Design has windows above it. That’s why a wall-mounted LiftMaster 8500W garage door opener is necessary. Indeed, this residential Jackshaft-type opener is the perfectly engineered solution to fit your specific garage requirements. It mounts easily on the wall (right or left side) beside the garage door and comes with a remote 1500-Lumen light that can be positioned anywhere in the garage.
Does your garage share a wall with a space that you need to keep quiet, such as a bedroom or the kitchen? Would the noise of the garage opening and closing really ruin the feng shui of the room?
If yes, then you need to make sure that your garage opener is as quiet as possible. If you’re going for quiet, you need to avoid all garage doors that operate with a chain.
Instead, choose a garage door opener operating with a rubber belt.
If you think we’re being ridiculous, just imagine how miffed you’ll be if you fall asleep mere moments before your garage door opens. Then, you’ll be wide awake, tired, and miserable.
Really like this 1-car garage door? It is the Prestige XL Design, Chocolate Walnut color, with Pinhead windows.
If you’re looking for belt-specific openers to consider, there are 2 made by LiftMaster.
This is a replacement for the very popular LiftMaster 8550 and as such, it had very large shoes to fill.
And it filled them!
This garage door opener operates with a rubber belt-drive system, has a battery backup, a built-in camera, 2-way audio, and the myQ app.
That’s a lot of jargon that all boils down to mean that you can use any smart device you own to operate your garage door as well as see (through the myQ camera) what happens in your garage.
With the myQ camera, you can even speak to the people who are in your garage!
If that seems like too much technology for you, that’s okay. You’ve narrowed down your choice by saying, “No”, to the extensive tech.
That’s right – you’re now looking at the LiftMaster 84501 as your primary choice! This opener is also a rubber belt-drive garage door opener. It’s compatible with the myQ app if you change your mind down the road, but keep in mind that it doesn’t include a battery backup.
Discuss with garage door experts before you make your decision
Over the course of your life, you may find that you have to purchase a garage door or opener only once or twice. As such, it can be hard to know what to do, especially as technology continues to grow and change over the years!
So, if you want to make sure you’re making a good choice, but you don’t know where to start, you should reach out to us. We’re experts! We can help you choose the right garage door and/or opener that will last up to 25 years and increase the property value of your house.
Here at Portes Ram Doors, garage doors and garage door openers are our bread and butter. We know everything there is to know about garage doors and openers, so any question you ask, we’ll have an answer for it.
You can give us a quick call and within minutes, our seasoned team will be able to help you make a choice that will enhance your house without going over your budget.
Contact us at 613-749-2138!
If you already know which garage door you want, you can ask us for a quotation by email.
Want To Shop Around?
We’ve got you covered! Check out our residential photo gallery.
You can also use our Design Centre. With your smartphone, you’ll be able to mockup how your garage will look with one of our doors. You’ll be able to figure out the door of your soul without ever stepping foot off your property.
Add new comment