Belt drive garage door openers are similar in design to chain drive but instead of a hard metal chain the motor drives the carriage using a toothed belt.
How to determine hp for garage door opener.
A minimum of 3 5 to 4 5 is required on either side of the door opening.
This size opener is the most popular out of the three and is recommended for single or double garage doors with average weight ex.
What horsepower garage door opener do i need for my garage door.
Ratings ranging from 1 2 horsepower to 1 1 2 horsepower are typical for residential models.
Look for horsepower hp ratings to compare the lifting power between garage door opener models.
The most popular out of the three choices this opener works best with single and double garage doors that have an average weight such as a carriage style door.
This is the area available immediately adjacent to the door opening.
The main consideration for a garage door opener is the drive type which refers to the actual chain belt or other mechanism that moves and lifts the door.
However choosing the right opener can be confusing.
An opener with at least 1 2 horsepower is common for residential use.
If you have a sectional double car garage door a 1 2 horsepower motor should be sufficient but a higher power model will operate with less effort and less.
Many people believe more horsepower is better and in a majority of cases that is true but not always.
Extra garage door opener remotes come in handy.
Look for an opener that has the horsepower necessary for your garage door size based on size and weight.
This is a very important measurement that determines if you will need an extension kit when purchasing your diy operator.
Doors between eight and 12 feet in width are no problem.
Garage door openers are designed to replace the human force to open and close a garage door and if your garage door is properly balanced then it should only be lifting 8 10 pounds.
The height of the garage door opening is the distance from the floor to the top of the garage door opening.
Again this opener will only be efficient when the door is properly balanced and an opener with more horsepower will last longer.
In some circumstances the horsepower output of the motor should be considered as well but typically in commercial or industrial settings.
Use of the belt alone would make the belt drive opener quieter than a chain drive but additionally belt drive garage door openers typically employ dc powered motors as opposed to the ac motors used by chain drive openers.