Garage Door Motorisation
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Topics in this section include motorising your existing door, new doors, accessories and safety:
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In most cases, it is possible to motorise a garage door that is currently operated manually. Motorising your garage door can provide a number of benefits, including increased convenience and security.
To motorise your garage door, you will need to install a garage door opener system. There are different types of garage door openers available, including chain-drive, belt-drive, scissor arm and tube motor models. The type of opener you choose will depend on factors such as the weight and size of your garage door, your budget, and your personal preferences.
Motorised garage doors are typically supplied with 2 remote controls but there are a wide range of other accessories available such as internal push buttons, app control, Bluetooth, keypads, key switch and fingerprint scanners to name the most popular.
The installation of a garage door opener system typically involves mounting the motor and other parts either into the door or onto the ceiling of your garage, installing the necessary hardware and wiring, and programming the opener to work with your garage door.
A crucial part is the safety of the installation and all the motors we install have state of the art features to keep you, your family and your possessions safe.
It’s important to note that not all types of garage doors can be easily motorised. For example, some older or custom garage doors may require significant modifications or may not be compatible with certain types of openers. Get in touch today to determine whether your garage door can be motorised and what type of opener is best suited for your needs.
As with all things, garage door motor system prices vary depending on a number of factors – most typically the size of your garage door, whether it is a new installation or replacing an existing motor, the ease of installation and what accessories you might want.
Below are ballpark costs based on the most popular options:
Replacing an existing motor:
Perhaps the simplest, and therefore best value, scenario is where you have an existing garage door motor that has reached the end of its service life and requires replacement. If there is already a socket in place to plug the motor into (all garage door motors come with a sealed plug and need to plug straight into a 3 pin plug, rather than be wired into a spur – see the article ‘What power requirements do I need for a garage door motor’ for more information) then a motor change starts at £400.00 inc VAT including a whole new motor, new rail and 2 new remote controls. Where there is an existing hard-wired push button we can easily reconnect this. For a double sized door which needs a more powerful motor then the cost is typically £550.00 – £600.00 inc VAT. The most powerful motor replacement, which is rarely required, for oversized garage doors can cost as much as £1000.00 inc VAT.
If there isn’t a plug where we need it, or it is a fused spur connection to the old motor, then there may be some relatively small additional cost for the work to bring power to where we need it.
New Motor System Installed With a New Garage Door:
If you have a new garage door motor system installed at the same time as your new garage door then the cost for a simple system would also be around £400.00 inc VAT, with the same additional costs applying to larger motors for larger doors as in the replacement example.
New Motor System to Existing Un-motorised Garage Door:
As long as your garage door is in decent condition – which we would define as the door moving smoothly and easily as otherwise the motors safety system may interpret any jerky door movements or stiffness as an obstacle and it will not work reliably – then it should be possible to add a motor system to it. If your door is ready to be motorised with minimal additional work required then the cost typically starts at £480.00 inc VAT, again with the same uplifts for larger motors for larger doors. If you have a canopy type up and over door (where the door is lifted by cables and has vertical tracks on the back of the frame) then you will require the addition of a bow arm device to the motor system which takes the cost to around £600.00 inc VAT.
Whatever your scenario, we are experts in garage door motorisation and will be really pleased to give you free advice or arrange a survey. For the most accurate information send us a picture of your existing motor or door and we can advise quickly and accurately.
The guarantee period for virtually all motors – whether chain driven, belt driven, tube or drive-shaft – is 5 years. Some motors, such as the LiftMaster LM100, have a 7 year guarantee for extended peace of mind.
Accessories, such as remote controls, push buttons and keypads, have a 12 month guarantee.
As with garage doors, we would advise exercising caution when you are offered a very short guarantee with the option to extend it for an additional cost – quality motor systems are offered with quality guarantees as standard.
Again, as with garage doors, a great way of heading off issues with the motor is to have the door regularly serviced.
The vast majority of motor systems, regardless of the type of door they are designed for, come with 2 remote controls as standard. The remotes typically have at least two buttons to allow control of more than door or device, with most having 4 buttons / channels as standard.
If you have dexterity issues then some of the motor systems, such as the Garador / Hormann motors, are available with a single large push button for ease of use. Or for a more designer look solid aluminium remotes are also available.
Some motor systems, such as those from LiftMaster, come with an additional wireless push button to give you a third way of operating your door from a fixed position – most commonly by a side door into the garage or another position of your choice.
In addition motors systems such as the GaraMatic 10 and 20 and SupraMatic motors include 2 remote controls, but also include Bluetooth control as standard, allowing control from an app.
Automated roller garage doors also have an internal control unit which has up / down / stop controls as well for an additional means of controlling the door from a fixed position inside the garage.
In addition to the included remote controls all the motors we offer have a range of accessories available such as wired push buttons, keypads, key switches and app control to give you complete control of your system. In addition you can have as many remote controls as you need programmed to your system – and the remotes can be programmed with the addition of an external receiver to also control other automated devices in your home such as gates so you don’t need multiple different remotes.
The vast majority of our customers find that the standard offering of 2 remotes meets their needs, with an internal push button being the most popular additional option.
We have almost all the options available to test and view in our showroom.
Get in touch today and we will be pleased to help you specify the motor system to suit you.
Yes! New remote controls are widely available to suit even relatively old motor installations.
If the existing remote controls have become obsolete then we can install a kit to your existing motor – this consists of a new receiver which wires into the motor and will give you a pair of new remote controls for your door.
You can also add a range of accessories to your existing garage door motor system – for information on the range available see ‘How many remote controls come with my motorised garage door?’.
To help us identify the remote you need you can simply send us a photo and we will identify it. Where it isn’t possible to identify it (as some remote controls from low cost motor systems are very generic) you can send us photos of the motor itself or ultimately we can visit ourselves.
Get in touch today for friendly advice or to arrange an appointment.
In almost all cases it is possible to add a new remote control system to your existing motor – this is normally required if the remote controls have become obsolete.
The process in this case is to install a kit to your existing motor – this consists of a new receiver which wires into the motor and will give you a pair of new remote controls for your door.
You can also add app control to virtually all existing garage door motor systems.
Get in touch today and we will do all we can to help!
In short, there is a huge range available!
Whatever type of garage door you have there is a motor system available and a multitude of ways to control it.
As standard all the motors we supply come with 2 remote controls as standard. The remote controls all have a number of channels which means that you can control more than one garage door, or other motorised devices, independently from one remote control.
The most popular add-on is a fixed position button within your garage, or in another position such as your porch, to give control without needing the remote controls.
Where you don’t want remote control you can opt just to have the fixed position push button or for more security you can have a key switch – this is a box which requires a key to be turned to open or close the door.
Increasingly popular is the option to control the door by means of an app – either as a standalone or integrated into a home automation system. Lots of modern motor systems have this functionality built in ready to be used and where they don’t we can supply and install a bolt-on system that wires into the motor to allow app control.
Some of these systems also have the option to install cameras, humidity sensors and other monitoring devices which can all be overseen from the app. By the use of prompts these systems can then also be controlled by voice assistants such as Alexa. For ultimate convenience you can even set up geo-fencing so that when you enter a programmed location close to your motor system the door will automatically open without you having to do anything.
Garador and Hormann garage door motor systems also have an innovative system for Bluetooth control which is standard on the GaraMatic 10 and SupraMatic level motors and above.
Where you have other automated systems in your home – most typically gates – we can supply an external receiver which then attaches to your gate motor system to allow you to control more than one system from the same remote control. If you prefer, you can install receivers to the garage door motor to allow you to control the motor with your gate remote control too.
For additional security then motorised up and over garage doors can have a kit known as ‘de-latching’ installed which allows the motor to control the doors manual locking, or a standalone floor lock if the doors own locks can’t be used. This means that the first thing that the motor does when you push your remote control is to retract the mechanical lock before opening the door – and then when the door closes it then releases the lock at the end of the closing cycle.
For additional lighting in your garage you can upgrade the courtesy light – the LED light that comes on when you operate the motor – to be brighter and / or larger to better illuminate your space.
Finally, some modern cars have the HomeLink system integrated – which typically takes the form of a button on the rear view mirror – so that you can control your garage door motor from your car without needing to carry an additional remote control with you. It is worth mentioning that there are a fairly narrow range of motors that are compatible with this system.
Get in touch today and we would be pleased to answer any other queries you might have – we also have a wide range of garage door motor options available to view in our showroom.
Garage door motor systems have come a long way in recent years to make the security of the system extremely robust.
A far cry from the early days, when the garage door remote controls would had 10 dip switches to set the code – and which unfortunately were capable of being cloned – the modern garage door systems use the same rolling code technology found in car keys which means that the remote is synced to the motor and the code changes after each use, with over a billion potential codes.
In addition virtually all remote controls are now on their own dedicated frequency band of 868MHz which means that they are not blocked or accidentally triggered by other frequencies.
In very rare situations (we have experienced it maybe a handful of times in over 40 years) the garage door motor frequency can be blocked by other external factors – most typically by living adjacent to an emergency services location or other digitally saturated area such as an airport. In these cases it is possible to specify a motor, such as the LiftMaster motors, which are able to operate on two different frequencies so you can change the frequency to one that will work.
Whatever garage door motor system you specify, you can rely on all the systems we offer to give you peace of mind.
Get in touch today for more information.
As long as your garage door is motorised then yes, integration into a Home Automation system is possible. If it doesn’t already have the functionality integrated then as long as your motor has some spare inputs then we can supply and install a retro-fit system to upgrade your motor system.
If your door is not currently motorised then as long as the door is capable of being motorised reliably then we can specify a system with Home Automation options integrated into it.
It’s worth mentioning that virtually all Home Automation systems require you to connect a device to your router or to connect to your WiFi which requires your involvement but we can happily talk you through the steps required.
Get in touch today and we would be pleased to help!
Almost certainly!
If you are after a new garage door motor system then we can specify it so that the motor has the functionality built in and if you want to upgrade an existing motor then that is usually possible too. For more information on this see our article: ‘Is my existing motor compatible / upgradable to work with a Home Automation / App control system?’
It’s worth mentioning that virtually all app control systems require you to connect a device to your router or to connect to your WiFi which requires your involvement but we can happily talk you through the steps required.
For friendly advice or to arrange a home visit, get in touch today.
HomeLink is an innovative system integrated into some cars that means that there is a remote control built in.
From our range, the LiftMaster range of motors is best suited to work with HomeLink as they are a development partner of the technology. There is a LiftMaster motor suitable for almost all garage door types and they also offer the longest guarantee as well as the most powerful domestic garage door motor available.
HomeLink has been around for quite a while so some older vehicles aren’t compatible with modern garage door motor systems.
To find out if your car is compatible, and which motors will work with it, please follow the link below to the HomeLink website:
Virtually all motors, even very old ones, are capable of being upgraded to work with a home automation system.
As long as your motor has ports to wire in additional devices, which they nearly all do, we can install a device that will enable you to control your garage door motor from an app and integrate into a Home Automation system.
In the rare case where this is not possible then we can recommend a new garage door motor system – and as the motors are almost always separate to the door itself you can change just the motor, not the door itself – that suits your needs.
If in doubt as to the compatibility of your motor then the simplest option is to send us images of your motor, or arrange for us to come out and take a look for you.
Get in touch today and we will be pleased to advise.
Yes!
Different suppliers offer different remote controls which are designed specifically for their own motor systems – virtually all of them are similar in style and size to a typical modern car key.
For the widest range of remotes available then we would specify a Garador / Hormann motor system. They offer remote controls in a range of colours (as standard they are Black), sizes and styles. These include designer solid aluminium remote controls, remote controls that fit into the 12V socket of your car, multi-channel remotes than can tell you the open / close status of your door and if you find the buttons of the standard remotes too small then they offer a remote control with one large button to make life easier.
As well as remotes, there is also a huge array of other ways to control your garage door motor – for an in depth explanation of what’s possible take a look at our article ‘What garage door motor accessories are available?’
Whatever your requirement, get in touch today and we will be pleased to match you to the remote control that is right for you.
All modern garage door motor systems have a sealed plug which needs to plug into a standard, domestically rated 3 pin socket. The motors pull around 3 amps so are not energy intensive.
Wherever possible we ask for a socket to be provided for us to plug the motor into – either to one side of the garage opening for roller door motors or ceiling mounted for overhead motors on up and over and sectional garage door installations. If this isn’t possible then we can bring power from the nearest socket which we will neatly house in conduit.
On older motors it used to be the case that they can wire straight into a spur but legislation has changed meaning that this is no longer compliant. It is measurably safer to plug the motors in as it makes it much simpler to isolate them for maintenance purposes by simply removing the plug, rather than having to disconnect the motor from a hardwired connection.
The plugs are also complete with a manufacturer specified fuse to suit the load of the motor for peace of mind. This fuse also protects the motor in all but the most extreme situations from power surges or other events that might impact the motor – it is 100% cheaper and easier to change the fuse than to change a fried motor!
Whatever type of garage door you have there is a motor system available and a multitude of ways to control it.
As standard all the motors we supply come with 2 remote controls as standard. The remote controls all have a number of channels which means that you can control more than one garage door, or other motorised devices, independently from one remote control.
The most popular add on is a fixed position button within your garage, or in another position such as your porch, to give control without needing the remote controls.
Where you don’t want remote control you can opt just to have the fixed position push button or for more security you can have a key switch – this is a box which requires a key to be turned to open or close the door.
Increasingly popular is the option to control the door by means of an app – either as a standalone or integrated into a home automation system. Lots of modern motor systems have this functionality built in ready to be used and where they don’t we can supply and install a bolt-on system that wires into the motor to allow app control.
Some of these systems also have the option to install cameras, humidity sensors and other monitoring devices which can all be overseen from the app. By the use of prompts these systems can then also be controlled by voice assistants such as Alexa. For ultimate convenience you can even set up geo-fencing so that when you enter a programmed location close to your motor system the door will automatically open without you having to do anything.
Garador and Hormann garage door motor systems also have an innovative system for Bluetooth control which is standard on the GaraMatic 10 and SupraMatic level motors and above.
Where you have other automated systems in your home – most typically gates – we can supply an external receiver which then attaches to your gate motor system to allow you to control more than one system from the same remote control. If you prefer, you can install receivers to the garage door motor to allow you to control the motor with your gate remote control too.
For additional lighting in your garage you can upgrade the courtesy light – the LED light that comes on when you operate the motor – to be brighter and / or larger to better illuminate your space.
Finally, some modern cars have the HomeLink system integrated – which typically takes the form of a button on the rear view mirror – so that you can control your garage door motor from your car without needing to carry an additional remote control with you. It is worth mentioning that there are a fairly narrow range of motors that are compatible with this system. For more information visit our article ‘What garage door motor systems are compatible with HomeLink?’
Get in touch today and we would be pleased to answer any other queries you might have – we also have a wide range of garage door motor options available to view in our showroom. Visit our garage doors Bristol showroom today to view our range and speak to a member of our friendly team.
Beyond the convenience of motorised doors, the most important thing that the system needs to do is keep your family and possessions safe. As such, all the motorised garage door systems that we install use state of the art technology to ensure safety and compliance for your peace of mind, and ours.
Safety should not be an option and all motorised garage door systems legally have to be installed with safety features to ensure that they are safe, reliable and compliant to industry and national standards. If you are offered a motorised system without an explicit safety system then beware. Most typically this is the case on cheap roller garage doors where the systems are described as ‘hold to run’ which means you have to press and hold the remote control button to get the door to operate with the theory being that you need to remain in sight of the door to ensure that nothing is in the way of the door closing. In reality you can still ‘hold to run’ the system out of sight of the garage door and as such the risk of the door closing on an object, damaging the object and the door, is high.
The minimum required standard for up and over garage doors and sectional garage doors is a sensitivity system which is a system where the motor monitors how much power it needs to use to operate the door and if the power spikes – normally due to the door encountering an obstacle – then the motor stops and reverses.
For roller garage doors the minimum requirement is a safety edge system which takes the form of a monitoring system in the leading edge of the door. If the door encounters an obstacle then the safety edge will let the door know, and the door will stop and reverse. There are a number of different types of safety edge systems – for more detail please see our article ‘What are the different types of safety edge available for a roller garage door?’.
In addition to these systems the safety can be further improved by adding photo-cells to the door. These are light beams which cross the garage door opening. When the beam is broken by someone or something crossing the beam, it causes the door to stop and reverse. Due to the limitations of photo-cells – which is the fact that they are in a fixed position, typically at ankle height, and are therefore not as dynamic as safety-edges and sensitivity systems – they are not adequate as a standalone system.
For more information about safety features please get in touch.
There are occasions where having your garage door motorised would be extremely helpful but unfortunately you don’t have power in the garage.
The good news is that this needn’t stop you from having a motorised garage door.
A number of the larger garage door motor manufacturers – Marantec and Hormann most notably – make motor systems that are powered by batteries rather than mains electricity. It is worth mentioning at this point that these motor systems are only really suitable for single doors, up to around 3000mm wide. This is because more powerful motors require much more power and greatly reduce the meaningful time between charges of the batteries.
The systems are typically supplied with just one battery but we would normally supply a pair of batteries so that you can use one and have another fully charged battery waiting. The batteries are lithium ion and are supplied in a small case that can be hung on the wall, and which connect to the motor with a simple bayonet fixing. For extended life there is the option for a solar panel which then trickle charges the battery, extending it’s life – it is not however powerful enough (yet!) to negate the need to charge the battery intermittently by plugging it in.
In common with all battery powered items, the batteries retain their charge better when the weather is warmer. The typical lifespan of the battery is 30 days, based on 2 cycles a day (one cycle being the door opening and closing) before it will need charging again. The need for charging is indicated when the LED courtesy light in the motor unit starts flashing on and off – when this happens you should still have around 10 cycles before the battery runs out of charge.
It should be noted that the batteries are a consumable so they will lose the amount of charge that they can hold over time but they can be replaced at intervals – normally we would expect you to happily get a couple of years use from the battery, based on typical usage.
In common with all other motor systems, they are supplied with 2 remote controls, have a sensitivity safety system, internal emergency release and an LED courtesy light.
Due to the additional components supplied with the battery motor systems – in particular the batteries – they are more expensive than other motor systems, typically around £800.00 inc VAT supplied and installed.
For friendly advice or if you have any other queries get in touch today.
If you have a motorised garage door and there is a slightly mysterious bow shaped device attached to the back of your garage door then this is the bit of kit which enables your canopy door, which opens vertically, to be opened by a motor which wants to pull the door horizontally. The bow-arm synthesises this movement, enabling canopy up and over garage doors to be motorised.
These devices are used on both modern and existing garage doors – as long as your garage door runs smoothly then it doesn’t really matter what age the door is, it can be motorised using a bow arm motor kit.
As these devices slide over each other whenever the door is operated then they do take a fair amount of wear. As such, it is a good idea to keep them lubricated with a silicone based spray oil – if you use a thick grease, which used to be popular, then this can cause more problems than it might solve as in colder weather the grease can become very stiff and impact the functionality of the bow arm system.
In addition, if the bow arm is not installed square then over time this can cause uneven wear and ultimately failure of the part.
If you are having some issues with your bow arm motor system or would like to arrange for a service to check that it is running as smoothly as can be, and will continue to do so, then get in touch.
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