Rant: Got sold on a $1500 'premium' garage door opener that's way worse than my old chain drive

I paid a local Atlanta outfit $1500 for a fancy belt drive opener with wifi and all that. My old chain drive from 2004 was loud but never failed in 15 years. This new one gets confused by humidity and makes a grinding noise every few days. The tech said it's 'normal break-in' but I'm not buying it. Has anyone else had better luck sticking with the old tech?

3 comments

3 Comments

anna71711d ago

Must be that new "smart" technology where it forgets how to work when the weather changes... I swear my old 1993 Craftsman chain drive could survive a hurricane and still open. $1500 for a fancy grinder with wifi seems like a deal, especially if you enjoy calling repair guys every other month. Maybe try feeding it some WD-40 and see if it magically forgets its premium status.

the_drew11d ago

Tbh @anna717 I get loving old reliable stuff but that Craftsman opener was probably $500 in 1993 which is like $1100 today and at least the new ones don't sound like a dying elephant every time they open.

ben_fisher11d ago

Wait, hold up - $1500 for a garage door opener? That's more than what I paid for my first car. I knew belt drives were pricier but that's like buying a used Honda Civic just to open your garage door. The humidity thing is wild though, electronics these days are so finicky compared to the old stuff. My buddy runs a small contracting crew and he still swears by the basic chain drives from Home Depot, says they just keep going no matter what. That break-in excuse sounds like total BS to me too, grinding noise after a few days isn't normal for anything at that price point. You probably got upsold by a smooth talker who knew the basic model would last too long to make a commission.