Electric overhead door openers became popular in the 1970s and have evolved into a massive market with a wide variety of different kinds of electric garage door openers for industrial and residential garages. Automated garage door openers took the inconvenience out of having to get out of the car to manually open the overhead door.

There are four kinds of garage door openers: chain driven, belt drive, screw driven, and jack-shaft. Every type works in a different way and your specific requirements will direct you to the very best opener for your garage door.

Details to take into account when searching for an opener:

Do you want added safety functions for your opener? This is especially significant if you have kids.
Are you shopping for a very quiet opener?
Do you live in a climate with extreme temperature levels (in which a screw drive opener will be optimum selection)?
Do you need remote control access?
Does your garage facilitate ceiling installation of the opener, or do you have high ceilings (which would make a jack-shaft the best option)?
What is your budget? Chain-drive openers are the least pricey of the four options.
Chain Drive
Chain-drive openers are probably the most preferred of the four kinds of garage door openers. They are the least expensive. Although they are the noisiest of the four kinds, they are extremely durable and are a good garage door opener option.

Belt Drive
Because they use rubber belts, belt-drive openers are more quiet than chain drives. They cost a little bit more than chain-drive openers and are best for those with living areas on top of or next to the garage. There are also reduced vibrations associated with this opener type.

Screw Drives
This overhead door opener kind is oftentimes used in climates with harsh temperatures since they are developed to withstand temperature changes. Screw-drive openers will not suffer from frosted chains or other weather-related issues. The tracks are plastic-lined and there is very limited maintenance required.

Jack-shaft
Jack-shaft drives are fantastic for abolishing that huge overhead door opener box on website the ceiling of your garage. Jack-shaft openers are set up on the side wall of your garage and are most ideal for garages with tall ceilings. Another bonus is that they are very silent.

In the event that you are unsure about whichever garage door opener is best for your garage, then locate a local garage door contractor who can assist you decide.


Automatic garage door openers became popular in the 1970s and have evolved into a huge market with a plethora of different kinds of automatic garage door openers for residential and commercial garages. Automatic garage door openers took the inconvenience out of having to get out of the car to manually open the garage door. When safety is such an important issue, as it is with garage doors and garage door openers, it's simply better to leave it to the experts.