Best Type of Garage Door Opener For My Home – Differences

Looking to install a new garage door opener but not sure if you should choose screw drive, chain drive or belt driven garage door openers? If the answer is yes, awesome, you have made it the right place. In this article we will discover the advantages to each type of garage door opener to help you make your decision a little bit easier. So let’s get into it.

Screw Driven OpenersWhat are screw driven garage door openers? Screw drive openers rely on a trolley to move along a steel rod, which connects to and rotates with the motor to open and close the door. It doesn’t need similar pulling and pushing force that chain driven and belt driven openers do. Screw drive openers are known for smooth, quiet operation. Also, this type of opener doesn’t rely on a chain or belt that can break and wear out over time.

Pros: Screw driven units have very few moving parts and are easy to maintain.

Cons: Screw drive openers are sensitive to temperature shifts and should only be used in places where there are not dramatic shifts in temperature. Also, they are more noisy than belt driven units and cost a little more to install than either of the other types.

Chain Driven OpenersWhat is a chain driven garage door opener? Chain driven garage door openers are the most common style of opener that uses a track to run along. They use a bicycle-like chain to force the trolley into the J-arm which pushes and pulls the garage door up and down.

Pros: These are the most common types of openers and are very affordable. Also they are being made with new technologies that make them quieter as time goes on and technology develops further.

Cons: They are more noisy than screw driven or belt driven units and have slight vibrations with metal-to-metal noises. Most popular with homes that have detached garages. Although some owners of these types of units like the noise because it lets them know when someone is entering the home. Chain driven units are a very economical option for nearly any home owner.

Belt Driven OpenersWhat is a belt driven garage door opener: Belt driven garage door openers are basically exactly like chain driven openers except they use a belt instead of a chain which greatly reduces the noise levels and vibrations throughout the home during operation. The belts are made from steel-reinforced rubber, fiberglass or polyurethane.

Pros: Quietest garage door openers available on the market.

Cons: Cost more than chain driven garage door openers.

In Conclusion: Belt Driven openers have the lowest noise, Chain driven openers are the least expensive and screw driven openers are the most reliable with the least moving parts. In this case we would choose screw driven garage door openers as the best type of garage door opener for your home.