Motorized garage door openers became popular in the 1970s and have expanded into a massive market with a wide variety of different kinds of electric overhead door openers for residential and commercial garages. Automatic garage door openers took the trouble out of needing to get out of the car to manually open up the garage door. Many garage door openers can be mounted by experienced do-it-yourselfers, but for most, installation should be entrusted to the experts. When basic safety is such an important issue, as it is with garage doors and garage door openers, it's simply much better to leave it to the professionals.

There are four kinds of garage door openers: chain driven, belt drive, screw drive, and jack-shaft. Every type operates in different ways and your specific needs will lead you to the very best opener for your garage door.

Things to think of when searching for an opener:

Do you want more safety functions for your opener? If you have young children, this is extremely important.
Are you searching for a very quiet opener?
Do you live in an environment with harsh temperatures (in which a screw drive opener may be the very best choice)?
Do you need to have remote access?
Does your garage allow ceiling setup of the opener, or do you have cathedral ceilings (which would make a jack-shaft the most suitable choice)?
What is your budget? Chain-drive garage door openers are the least expensive of the four choices.
Chain Drive
Chain-drive garage door are the most favored of the four types of garage door openers. They are the least pricy. Although they are the noisiest of the four kinds, they are incredibly durable and are a good here garage door opener option.

Belt Drive
Due to the fact that they use rubber belts, belt-drive openers are quieter than chain drives. They cost a little bit more than chain-drive openers and are best for those with living rooms on top of or next to the garage. There are also reduced vibrations associated with this opener type.

Screw Drives
This overhead door opener kind is often used in environments with extreme temperatures since they are designed to withstand temperature changes. Screw-drive openers will not suffer from iced over chains or other weather-related problems. The tracks are plastic-lined and there is very limited servicing involved.

Jack-shaft
Jack-shaft drives are excellent for eliminating that large garage door opener box on the ceiling of your garage. Jack-shaft openers are mounted on the side wall of your garage and are ideal for garages with high ceilings. Another perk is that they are incredibly quiet.

Find a local garage door expert who can help you make a decision if you are unsure about whichever garage door opener is best for your garage.


Automatic garage door openers became popular in the 1970s and have evolved into a huge market with a plethora of different kinds of automatic garage door openers for commercial and residential garages. Automatic garage door openers took the inconvenience out of having to get out of the car to manually open the garage door. When safety is such an important issue, as it is with garage doors and garage door openers, it's simply better to leave it to the experts.