Help a guy get a garage door remote?

[Perd Hapley]

Our new house came with a garage door opener, but no remote. The opener's a Chamberlain AccessMaster 1/2hp, manufactured in 2007. The part number is 41A5021-1H-315. Apparently, the color of the learn button and antenna are a factor. They look purple-ish to me.

waddyathink?

[RocketMan]

Take a look at Chamberlain's remote replacement page.  Maybe they have the info on what you need.

https://www.chamberlain.com/garage-remotes-and-accessories/garage-door-opener-remote-replacement

[Brad Johnson]

If the GDO is pushing 15 years old it might be a better investment to spend a bit more and replace the whole sh'bang.

Also, if you do decide to go the 'replace remote only' route, don't just add the new remote. Do a full deprogram/reprogram. If your house didn't come with any GDO remotes, there's at least some chance there's one of the missing ones floating around in circulation.

Brad

[Lennyjoe]

Our opener bit the dust last week so I replaced it with a 1.5 hp belt drive opener from Lowe’s for ~$189.

[Perd Hapley]

If the GDO is pushing 15 years old it might be a better investment to spend a bit more and replace the whole sh'bang.

Also, if you do decide to go the 'replace remote only' route, don't just add the new remote. Do a full deprogram/reprogram. If your house didn't come with any GDO remotes, there's at least some chance there's one of the missing ones floating around in circulation.

Brad

Thanks. It looks like remotes run ~$20-30, so I might just get a couple of those. Home Depot sells a Genie opener for about $80, but I don't know what else I might need to buy along with that, or if I could install it myself. Or if it's better than what I have.

[Brad Johnson]

Home Depot sells a Genie opener for about $80,

??

Cheapest one I see is $130 (actually 128, but whatever...). Keep in mind that local stock, not what's available to order. It's a Chamberlain 1/2 HP. Resist the urge, though. I've dealt with them and they are too flimsy for a full-width garage door. Okay for singles 8-9' wide but not really tough enough for service on 16' or wider doors, especially insulated ones. Stick with at least a 3/4 hp or larger. More robust internals. The Chamberlain belt drive units seem okay. The Genie screw drives are really nice.

If you already have a garage door opener then replacing it isn't really a big deal if you have some basic mechanical savvy. Mount locations are usually very similar, if not identical, and things like button and safety eye wiring can often be repurposed.

Brad

[K Frame]

HD shows a 3/4 HP SilentMax unit on their website for... $78.

BUT... it's unavailable for delivery, and the note says check your local store for stock, which makes me think it's a discontinued item.

[Perd Hapley]

??

Cheapest one I see is $130 (actually 128, but whatever...). Keep in mind that local stock, not what's available to order. It's a Chamberlain 1/2 HP. Resist the urge, though. I've dealt with them and they are too flimsy for a full-width garage door. Okay for singles 8-9' wide but not really tough enough for service on 16' or wider doors, especially insulated ones.

I was talking about the Genie one that Mike mentioned.

The Chamberlain 1/2 hp is what I have now. It's a one-car garage. The internet seems to be unanimous on openers lasting 10-15 years, so I can see the logic of replacing the opener itself. I like to think an opener lasts longer if it's opening a relatively small door, like ours. Wishful thinking, perhaps.

Amazon had 2 keychain openers for $25, which I just ordered. At least if they don't work, it should be easy to return them.

[K Frame]

"The internet seems to be unanimous on openers lasting 10-15 years, so I can see the logic of replacing the opener itself."

My guess is that the beefier the unit, generally the longer it will last, especially if it's over capacity for the size of door you're opening due to less strain on the components.

But, that's just a theory.

I've never had a garage that required an opener, and when I was a kid I was the automatic opener for my Grandparent's garage door...

Friend of mine has 3 garage doors on 2 garages. Doesn't have an opener on any of them, but doesn't really need them as he doesn't park in the garages.

[Perd Hapley]

Amazon had 2 keychain openers for $25, which I just ordered. At least if they don't work, it should be easy to return them.

Problem solved - for now. Need to grease some stuff, too, probably, and whatever other maintenance is appropriate.

Strangely enough, the latch-bolt-thingy on the door was just a little too high to enter the slot. Maybe someone added beefier weather-stripping on the bottom edge of the door? It was easy enough to fix. I guess I'm the first person to come along that felt like fixing it.