Ray66

I want to replce my existing garage door opener. Mine is loud and very slow. I went to LOWES the other day and saw demo and it appears the newer door openers are much better. I have a chain drive and it's about 5 years old. LOWES(and Home Depot) have a 1/2HP "screw" drive and it's 50% faster going up and normal coming down but it's very, very quiet. It's called a "Genie Excelerator" and it's $250.00. I don't have a remote kepad outside my garage and this comes with one. Is installing the remote kepad difficult? Here it is.....

http://www.geniecompany.com/Products/excelerator.htm


I then checked out Sears and their best is a 3/4HP chain drive part number 953990 at $230.00. Sears says this is quiet and 50% faster like the Genie but no demo to prove it. This is a CHAIN drive so I don't know how it could be quieter. The opener itself looks big with 2-100 watt bulbs and you can adjust the bulb off/on time. I saw a belt drive opener too at Sears but the salesperson didin't know much about it! Sears also offers a "75th Anniversery" screw drive opner at $169.99. Here .....

http://www.sears.com/sr/product/summ...id=00953991000

Here is Sears "top of the line" opener......


http://www.sears.com/sr/product/summ...id=00953990000

Does anybody here have experience with Sears garage door openers or how they compare to the Genie Excelerator?

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

500AMG

When we built our house about 4 years ago, genie was regarded as one of the better garage door openers...so that's what we got. I can say it's pretty quiet and does a good job. Just make sure and get it installed properly. I haven't used the Sears models, but I do know Genie is a well-knowed name for screw drive.

Steph

....I have the Genie Excelerator and would not recommend it if you have a heavy garage door..ie.. solid wood. I bought mine almost a couple of years ago and have replaced the gearing 4 times.....granted it was under warranty but you still have to remove the rails to do it and their customer service sucks!!!! It is very fast and I suppose relatively quiet but the torque is way too much for the cheap gear that grabs onto the screw. If you have a metal door......then go for it.

lars

I have a screw drive type, which I prefer to the chain drive as it looks tidier and runs quieter than my last chain drive. However, I think that the rubber belt drives can be quieter than either one and are recommended for applications where someone lives above the door opening mechanism.

The other consideration is that whatever system you buy should be compatible with Homelink.

avlis

I replaced an old Sears opener with a Genie Excelerator. Much faster and quiter. It works with Homelink.

As for noise, you can insulate the opener motor from the ceiling by hanging it from heavy rubber strips instead of metal strapping. On the other end, make a rubber pad to go between the opener rail and the wall. "Ask This Old House" had a segment on this a while ago.

nellee

I have the Genie and it worked very well the first week I got it.

Too bad my freakin dog chewed up the safety sensors where if you walk pass the sensor while the door is closing it will automatically open back up so it won't close on anyone.

I called Genie customer care and explained what happened and the person was laughing histerically, she couldn't help it. I had to laugh with her because it was funny.

But the Genie is a very highly respectible garage door company and works great.

I would not use the outside keypad because if someone steals it, they can use it for their own door opener, unless you screw it on very well or conceal it.

new2mercedes

I have a Sears chain drive (well 2) with an outside keypad on 1. Keypad is invaluable and EXTREMELY easy to install. I would not worry about anyone stealing them, the effort is not worth it for them The chain drive WILL BE noisy, put it this way guys dont expect to sneak in at night if your MBR is near the garage

I installed these myself like 5 years ago and while time consuming, especially with 11' ceilings its not difficult. Its virtually impossible to eliminate or really deaden the noise to any perceptable level without alot of work. Belt drive seems the way to go as I have seen some shops doing just that but that belt would have to be pretty durable for you single wood door folks...Did Consumer Reports do a review?