Remote control garage doors are now the most common option for UK homeowners upgrading their garage doors. Remote control garage doors offer the convenience of opening and closing your garage door from the passenger seat without getting out in the rain. Remote control garage doors have come a long way and understanding what you are buying will ensure you get a good return on your investment.
How Remote Control Systems Work
Electric garage doors need three components: a door, an electric motor placed either above the opening or to the side, and a radio receiver located inside the garage. When the receiver receives a signal from the remote, it sends a command to the electric motor to either open or close the door.
Most reputable remote control systems use a rolling code technology where the receiver creates a unique code for each signal. This prevents people from recording a signal to open your garage door. Most garage door openers older than 15 years use a fixed code technology. These are a security risk and need to be replaced.
Types of Garage Doors that can be Electrified
There are a variety of garage doors that can be electrified, including in the more common garage door designs such as:
Very compact and quiet and ideal for garages with low clearance or headroom and when space is limited above.
Motor Options
Ceiling Rail (Screw or Belt Drive)
This mechanism is the most common for up and over and sectional doors. The motor unit mounts to the ceiling and pulls or pushes the door via a trolley arm with a carriage mounted to a rail. Belt drive motors are the best choice if there is a room above the garage as they are a lot quieter than chain or screw drive.
Side-Mount Operators
These are installed on the wall adjacent to the opening and are a good alternative for ceiling mount rail installations especially when clearance above the opening is limited. Hörmann, Marantec, and Nice offer reliable side-mount operators for residential use.
Tubular Motors
These are exclusively for roller doors and are very quiet and space efficient. They are the most commonly used motors for all roller door installations.
Remote Options
Standard systems come with two handheld remotes. The following are important considerations:
- Range: Residential remotes reliably operate around 20 – 50 metres. For a remote control that is softly mounted, it is advisable to test the range in a real world situation instead of relying on line of site tests.
- Multi-channel: With a remote containing multiple channels, you can utilize one channel to control your garage door and another to control your electric gate; you only need one fob for both.
- Key fob vs card: The slim card remotes are great deposits if you would rather not carry a fob.
- Smartphone control: If you want to control your garage door from your phone, having a motor unit that supports Wi-Fi is a good option. Whether you want to have more control or have the ability to operate your garage door from a distance, this option is worth considering.
Safety Features to Check
The UK requires all automatic garage doors to have specific safety features:
- Auto-reverse: Within reason, the sensor must be able to detect an obstruction and reverse. Test this at installation by placing a 40 mm block under the door; it should reverse.
- Entrapment protection: Photo-electric beams or pressure-sensitive edges that stop the door if something breaks the beam or contacts the moving panel.
- Manual release: A quick-release cord or mechanism that allows the door to be operated by hand in the event of a power cut.
Running Costs
A typical residential garage door motor uses around 100–200 watts while operating, which at current electricity rates amounts to roughly 2–4 pence per cycle. For a household opening the door four times a day, this adds up to under £10 per year. The standby power draw (the motor remaining on to receive remote signals) is negligible on modern units — usually under 2 watts.
Choosing a Supplier
Buy from a supplier who can provide the door and motor as a matched system and who will commission and test the installation.
An online purchase of a low-cost motor that an amateur fit to a door usually leads to overspending and accelerated motor wear. Worse, the installation may lack proper safety measures and, as a result, be without warranty. In the long run, a purchased motor system from a reputable supplier will run for a minimum of 10-15 years and requires routine servicing.