When you first get a home with an attached garage, you’ll be amazed at how convenient it is. You can walk right out to your car without ever having to go outside, which is great for carrying groceries and even better for avoiding foul weather. You can even use the extra space in the garage for storage, which is awesome because almost everybody has more stuff than they know what to do with. It’s particularly great for machinery that you have to wheel out every time you use it, like snow blowers and lawn mowers.

There may come a time in every homeowner’s life where a critical component of the garage needs some attention. The most likely (and the most critical component) that will eventually need to be maintained or even replaced is your garage door opener. This is just not something you come across every day, as they work almost 99.9% of the time. When it comes time to buy a replacement, you might not know where to look.

Trusted Brands

When it comes to choosing a brand for your garage door openers it makes sense to go with one of the brands that has been in the game for quite some time already. Chamberlain is well known for their garage door openers, and they make quite a few products with a range of features that are sure to suit your needs. LiftMaster also makes quite a bit of quality products, those are the big two. There are other companies that will be perfectly fine as well, but whenever in doubt stick with a brand that has a good reputation.

Mechanism of Operation

You’re going to encounter a number of different types of garage door openers when you start your search. Let’s give you a quick primer on what all of these terms will mean. Chain drive garage door openers are usually the simplest and cheapest options you can find. The main issue is that they tend to be on the louder side, and they are more prone to requiring maintenance. Belt drive garage door openers are similar to chain drive, except that the chain is essentially a rubber belt. These tend to be quieter than chain drive models, but they belts may also wear out after some use. The best kind of garage door openers are direct drive. They offer both quiet operation and durability, but you’ll have to pay extra for it.

Extra Features

As with all electronics these days, you can find garage door openers with a wide range of features. You can get them with security cameras mounted so that you can monitor your garage remotely. You can get smart garage door openers that can interact with your other smart devices in your home. I’d recommend at least a wifi garage door opener, that way if you ever forget to check whether or not it’s closed you can always take a look.

Hopefully this article was helpful in making you aware of the important things to look for when buying a garage door opener. With any luck, this is a replacement you’ll only encounter once. They tend to be quite durable and last a long time. At any rate, it’s hard to make the wrong decision when it comes to be devices so don’t worry. Eve in the worst case it won’t be that bad.