The garage door is one of the most operated applications in any home. Whether you’re going out or coming in, you’d need to operate the garage door frequently in a day, and getting out of the car to open or close the garage door tends to be very hectic. Hence, garage door automation comes as a life-saver!
It isn’t worth getting out of the car in the rain to manually open the garage door. With an automated door unit, you can effectively open or close the garage door without even stepping outside.
ImproveNet.com explains the importance of automatic garage doors as such,
In addition to providing an accessible entrance to the vehicles, automatic garage doors also provide added garage door security to houses, aesthetic appeal, and energy efficiency.
However, an automatic garage door becomes a significant problem for many homeowners when the power goes out. You wouldn’t be able to open the garage door with either a remote or wall-mount keypad unless you’ve installed a backup battery. If you live in California, SB-969 law requires all residential garage door openers to be equipped with battery backup to prevent accidents at the time of the fire and natural calamities.
So What Should You Choose?
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Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of installing garage door automation compared to the manual garage door so that you can decide better.
Old Garage Door Become Challenging to Operate With Age
It’s true. Old garage doors often encounter problems with the door opener spring and gearing, making them difficult to operate by hand. Manually opening or closing the door becomes impossible for older people; hence you’d need to upgrade it to an automated unit.
Sometimes you have to consider severe upgrades to the operating gear to make the geometry work, which is only possible by installing a new type of garage door opener. This is where automated garage door takes the lead from manual garage doors that get difficult to operate with age.
An Automated Garage Door Brings both Safety and Convenience
The automated garage door takes into account the safety and convenience of everything else. These garage doors stop and reverse if an obstruction is met during the operation, preventing accidents, including death. The safety feature is standard with all valid CE-compliant modern electric garage doors. You’d know this by the photo-sensor eyes fixed in the garage wall to detect obstruction. It provides balance, accident prevention, and more effortless operation.
This isn’t possible with a manual garage door because you’d need to operate it by hand at all times. Convenience in operating the door is another major takeaway from automated doors. You can easily open or close the door using security devices. In addition, the automatic garage door locks when closed, and no additional locking mechanism is required to secure the door.
Ease with Heavier Garage Door
Not all garage doors are built the same. Many homeowners choose garage doors made from heavier materials like wood, composite, and glass that require a more powerful motor to operate. Similarly, opening or closing a double garage door is difficult by hand. You’d need a garage opener motor with higher Horse Power (1/2 HP and 1 HP or more) to operate heavier garage doors effectively. Moreover, an automated door opener easily syncs with a remote control or smartphone for a touchless operation which isn’t possible with the manual garage door.
You’d seriously need to consider installing an automated garage door if you want efficiently operate a heavier garage door.
Power Outage & Battery Backup
Automated garage doors are good until they have a battery backup. In the event of a power outage, fire, and other natural calamities, you’d need to operate them by hand or use a DC-powered battery to open them. This can be tricky and difficult if the door is made of heavy wood or steel. If you’re installing an automated garage door, you should seriously consider installing a garage door with battery backup.
Why should your automatic opener comply with California SB-969?
SB-969 was introduced in response to the 2017 wildfires that left people trapped inside their garages with no power to operate the garage door. Some were unable to lift their garage doors manually and died.
Cost
Automated garage doors are more expensive than manually operated garage doors. It is because tracks, hinges, and motors require regular maintenance and renovation, including lubrication and cleaning. The garage door motor is also fitted with Wi-Fi or remote signal to operate with garage door remotes that make it slightly expensive.
In Short
However, considering all the features and benefits you’d be getting despite the slightly high price, it’s a safe decision to buy automatic doors over manual doors. With a slightly high budget, you can get automatic doors that work effortlessly for ages without requiring a garage door repair.