Your typical garage door opener is a motorized mechanism that opens and closes a garage door with the push of a button, but now they can be operated with an app on your smartphone or tablet. Garage door openers were invented in 1926 but didn’t gain popularity until shortly after WWII. In todays society it is almost unheard of to have a garage door that isn’t connected to an automatic opener.

The garage door opener doesn’t actually lift the door, but with the use of torsion or extension springs attached to the door, the garage door’s springs lift the garage door while the garage door opener controls how far the door will close and open.

High-Tech Door Openers

Garage doors have been getting better and better. You can purchase a garage door that looks like wood but is made from metal, doors that are solid aluminum and glass, or doors that are actual real wood. All of these doors provide different types safety, insulation, and energy saving properties. To accompany these fantastic doors, you need to match them with a Trustworthy garage door opener.

New technology makes garage door opening safer and more convenient that It has ever been. Today, most homeowners will use the garage door as the main entranceway into a home. To keep it functioning and secure, you need to ensure proper maintenance is performed twice a year. Check out our 10 Tips  for Garage Door Maintenance for information on what you can do as a homeowner to maintain your garage door.

Liftmaster Garage Door Openers

All of the New Liftmaster garage door openers now come with built in Wi-Fi. Our favorite model is the 8550WLED that operates off of a small battery which stays charged from a power outlet. The best thing about this opener? When and if your power goes out, the opener is still able to work. The opener which is driven by a Lifetime Warranty belt which it can operate up to 20 full cycles on one full charge. These high-tech openers operate anywhere a wireless Internet connection is available. Using your smartphone or tablet, you can operate the garage door opener’s lights as well as open and close the garage door.

The Liftmaster MyQ Smart Garage Hub

If your garage door is older and does not have the built in WiFi features don’t lose hope yet. Another option is the MyQ Smart Garage Hub. You will need to make sure your Wi-Fi signal reaches the garage door opener and Install the Hub following the instructions provided with the product and now your old garage door opener can be operated from your Smartphone or Tablet.

While other companies make products that are similar, we recommend the Liftmaster brand due to its field tested reliability. This particular device has two parts. A sensor is mounted to the garage door itself which detects whether the door is open or closed. The second component is mounted on the garage ceiling above the garage door opener. Once you have mounted both parts, connect the second component to a power outlet and turn on your smartphone app. Push the “learn” button on the opener and follow the instructions.

Safety and Peace of Mind

The smartphone app is easy to use, you just tap the picture of the garage door and the door opens or closes. Program the app to send you alerts if your garage door is left open. This alert system also helps if you need to allow someone access into your home, or if you need to monitor when your children get home from school. An event log will let you know every time the door is opened or closed. This remote and smartphone combination can provide you with peace of mind.

If you have forgotten to close your garage door and you’ve already left your property, the home is left wide open to anyone who wants to enter. But now there’s less worry since the garage door openers of today let you customize certain settings to ensure the door will close after a set period. You are able to  determine how long the door stays open. The timing can be anywhere from 3 minutes to 10 minutes as well as a custom set time.

With the new rolling code technology that is now being installed in garage door openers the code in which your garage door operates on is randomly changed after every use. This technology reduces the chance of someone using a similar remote to access your home or anyone else’s home nearby. The newest Security + 2.0 technology from Liftmaster provides the ultimate protection against “code grabbers” that are used by thieves to open the garage and gain access to your home.

Successful Installation

The garage door is the largest moving thing in any home. An improperly installed door or automatic opener can be a safety hazard, but with a garage door opener installed by a professional you’ll have security and reliability that you can stand behind. Any garage door opener, high tech or not, is still better than operating your garage door by hand.

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