Electric overhead door openers became popular in the 1970s and have developed into a massive market with a wide variety of different kinds of electric garage door openers for commercial and residential garages. Motorized garage door openers took the hassle out of having to get out of the car to manually open the overhead door.

There are four kinds of garage door openers: chain drive, belt driven, screw drive, and jack-shaft. Each kind operates differently and your particular requirements will guide you to the most suitable opener for your garage door.

Factors to take into consideration when shopping for an opener:

Do you need added safety features for your opener? This is especially significant if you have children.
Are you searching for a very quiet opener?
Do you live in a climate with harsh temperatures (in which a screw drive opener would be the most ideal option)?
Do you need remote control access?
Does your garage facilitate ceiling mounting of the opener, or do you have high ceilings (which would make a jack-shaft the best option)?
What is your budget? Chain-drive openers are the least expensive of the four options.
Chain Drive
Chain-drive openers are probably the most preferred of the four types of garage door openers. They are the least expensive. Although they are the noisiest of the four kinds, they are extremely durable and are a good garage door opener choice.

Belt Drive
Due to the fact that they use rubber belts, belt-drive openers are quieter than chain drives. They cost a bit more than chain-drive openers and are best for people with living spaces above or next to the garage. There are also minimal vibrations associated with this opener type.

Screw Drives
This overhead door opener type is oftentimes used in climates with harsh temperatures since they are developed 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 upkeep involved.

Jack-shaft
Jack-shaft drives are good for eliminating that massive garage door opener box on the ceiling of your garage. Jack-shaft openers are attached on the side wall of your garage and click here are excellent for garages with high ceilings. Another advantage is that they are super silent.

In case you read more are doubtful about whichever garage door opener is best get more info for your garage, then choose a local garage door professional who can assist you decide.


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.