Your recent repair? 2013 - 2020

[John Galt III]

Sprayed the nut real good and then made a "bowl" by tieing plastic bags around the valve. Filled the "bowl" with white vinegar and let it soak an hour or so. Came off fairly easily after that!


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Excellent!

 

[travelover]

Replaced my garage door opener today. It was installed by the original owner in 1976. I have the manual and the Sears receipt for $187 - that is $780 adjusted for inflation. This did not include installation.

I replaced it with a Chamberlain from Home Depot for $150. The new unit was defective right out of the box. But of course, I didn't know that until I had it all installed and ready to program.

 

[aja8888]

Replaced my garage door opener today. It was installed by the original owner in 1976. I have the manual and the receipt for $187 - that is $780 adjusted for inflation.

I replaced it with a Chamberlain from Home Depot for $150. The new unit was defective right out of the box. But of course, I didn't know that until I had it all installed and ready to program.

Curious, but what was wrong with it out of the box?

 

[travelover]

Curious, but what was wrong with it out of the box?

I could not program the open and closed positions. I called tech support and they said the flashing code indicated a bad internal component, which they offered to send me. I declined and just bought another at Home Depot and swapped the head unit and remotes. Sucks to not have a door opener and if that was not the problem, I'd be even more inconvenienced.

 

[aja8888]

I could not program the open and closed positions. I called tech support and they said the flashing code indicated a bad internal component, which they offered to send me. I declined and just bought another at Home Depot and swapped the head unit and remotes. Sucks to not have a door opener and if that was not the problem, I'd be even more inconvenienced.

Yeah, fun stuff. I just keep rebuilding my 1999 unit when the nylon gearing fails. They are pretty simple units although some of the fancy newer ones have more electronic features.

 

[travelover]

Yeah, fun stuff. I just keep rebuilding my 1999 unit when the nylon gearing fails. They are pretty simple units although some of the fancy newer ones have more electronic features.

Ironically, my 1976 model still worked perfectly though the remotes looked pretty rough and were huge. The new one weighs half as much as the old one, less steel in the track and less copper in the motor.

 

[aja8888]

Ironically, my 1976 model still worked perfectly though the remotes looked pretty rough and were huge. The new one weighs half as much as the old one, less steel in the track and less copper in the motor.

The only thing I have left from 1976 is our original General Motors refrigerator, which has become the garage unit (still running). Lots of heavy wire and relays in that monster compared to todays computer controlled, low amp units.

 

[Keim]

The only thing I have left from 1976 is our original General Motors refrigerator, which has become the garage unit (still running). Lots of heavy wire and relays in that monster compared to todays computer controlled, low amp units.

Left from 1976... Hmm. Wonder what major items I have.
House from the 50s.
Console radio from 1958.
Car from 1976.
Spouse and self...

Perhaps I best stop here.

 

[aja8888]

Left from 1976... Hmm. Wonder what major items I have.
House from the 50s.
Console radio from 1958.
Car from 1976.
Spouse and self...

Perhaps I best stop here.

Well, most everything else went in the divorce.

 

[M Paquette]

Replaced my garage door opener today. It was installed by the original owner in 1976. I have the manual and the Sears receipt for $187 - that is $780 adjusted for inflation. This did not include installation.

I replaced it with a Chamberlain from Home Depot for $150. The new unit was defective right out of the box. But of course, I didn't know that until I had it all installed and ready to program.

Ha! This sounds awfully familiar. Our 1987 Sears GDO just burned out a winding in the motor. I just picked up a Chamberlain at the local box box store, and have it assembled and mounted. It got dark, so I'll finish the waiting and setup in the morning, assuming the thing works...


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[Ronstar]

Heater wasn't working in my workshop this morning. I took it apart and found some corroded and disconnected fittings. But since it was a real mess, and 12 years old, I didn't try to fix it. Just went out and bought a new one. Had to do some re-wiring, but the new one is running fine.

 

[M Paquette]

Ha! This sounds awfully familiar. Our 1987 Sears GDO just burned out a winding in the motor. I just picked up a Chamberlain at the local box box store, and have it assembled and mounted. It got dark, so I'll finish the waiting and setup in the morning, assuming the thing works...

I ran new wiring for the sensors and switch, as the old wiring had been nibbled on and spliced a few times. That had me cleaning out 30 year old cobwebs in the roofline corners. Yuck. Anyway, the GDO worked, so I went through all the usual trip point and calibration work, and now I'm done.


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[travelover]

I ran new wiring for the sensors and switch, as the old wiring had been nibbled on and spliced a few times. That had me cleaning out 30 year old cobwebs in the roofline corners. Yuck. Anyway, the GDO worked, so I went through all the usual trip point and calibration work, and now I'm done.

Glad it worked out. I took back the bad unit that I had bought and they refunded my money without even looking in the box.

 

[zinger1457]

I also installed a new Chamberlain (whisper drive) garage door opener a couple months ago and pleased with it so far, very quiet. My new pickup truck barely fits in the garage so I also installed the Chamberlain Laser Garage Parking Assist accessory. It's wired into the garage door head unit and turns on for a couple minutes when the door opens, it shines a small red light on the hood of your car and makes it easy to gauge when the truck is in far enough for the garage door to close. Well worth the $17 cost.

 

[travelover]

....... I also installed the Chamberlain Laser Garage Parking Assist accessory. It's wired into the garage door head unit and turns on for a couple minutes when the door opens, it shines a small red light on the hood of your car and makes it easy to gauge when the truck is in far enough for the garage door to close. Well worth the $17 cost.

I have a pair of these and love them - so superior to a tennis ball on a string.

 

[Walt34]

I'd never heard of the laser assist thingys. We're doing well now, but when we first bought the house DW had a hard time positioning the car in the garage. I could tell when she came home by the crunching of the galvanized trash cans behind the car.

Then she got mad at me when I called it "parking by sonar". You know, back up until you hear crunching noises....

 

[travelover]

..........
Then she got mad at me when I called it "parking by sonar". You know, back up until you hear crunching noises....

Those couches can be lumpy to sleep on, can't they?

 

[braumeister]

We use these rubber mats. Very effective. The first rise tells you you're close to perfectly positioned, the second one keeps you from going any further.

https://www.pepboys.com/product/details/8958965/00288

 

[Ronstar]

I'd never heard of the laser assist thingys. We're doing well now, but when we first bought the house DW had a hard time positioning the car in the garage. I could tell when she came home by the crunching of the galvanized trash cans behind the car.

Then she got mad at me when I called it "parking by sonar". You know, back up until you hear crunching noises....

I use "sonar" to park my car and truck. Our garage is so packed with stuff that I need to park within a few inches of the correct spot or I'll hit something, I know the car is ok if the laser beam hits the "T" in the windshield radio antenna.I have a similar spot for the truck to shoot for.

 

[ERD50]

I have a pair of these and love them - so superior to a tennis ball on a string.

OK, a laser is cool and everything, but what makes it superior to the tennis ball on a string trick (which I've never bothered to do, so I'd probably never, ever get around to mounting a laser, wires and all).

Cool is a good enough reason though!

-ERD50

 

[samclem]

OK, a laser is cool and everything, but what makes it superior to the tennis ball on a string trick (which I've never bothered to do, so I'd probably never, ever get around to mounting a laser, wires and all).

Cool is a good enough reason though!

-ERD50

The tennis ball works very well because you get both fore-aft and left-right cueing (mine just touches the windshield directly in front of the driver). I guess the laser could do the same. The downside to the tennis ball is that it is in the way when the car is out and you want to use the garage--bonk. But--it's "solid state" and no batteries.

 

[Sunset]

I have tried a tennis ball, but the issue I'm having is I think I need a mark on the windshield to line it up with as I have literally inches to spare.

I also use a 4x4 beam for 1 car and that seems to work fine, but a 2x4 or 2x6 is a bit too small as they seem to move when hit by the car.

 

[travelover]

OK, a laser is cool and everything, but what makes it superior to the tennis ball on a string trick (which I've never bothered to do, so I'd probably never, ever get around to mounting a laser, wires and all).

Cool is a good enough reason though!

-ERD50

I use my garage as a shop when I have a project going on. Stops on the ground or hanging balls are a nuisance to stumble over or run into. Also an inconvenience when sweeping the floor, which is frequently necessary as we live on an unpaved road.

 

[zinger1457]

The tennis ball works very well because you get both fore-aft and left-right cueing (mine just touches the windshield directly in front of the driver). I guess the laser could do the same. The downside to the tennis ball is that it is in the way when the car is out and you want to use the garage--bonk. But--it's "solid state" and no batteries.

The Chamberlain laser light comes in 2 models, one plugs into a 120V outlet and the light is on all the time, the other is wired into and gets it's power from the opener unit and is only on when the door opens. No batteries in either case.

 

[travelover]

The Chamberlain laser light comes in 2 models, one plugs into a 120V outlet and the light is on all the time, the other is wired into and gets it's power from the opener unit and is only on when the door opens. No batteries in either case.

I bought some off brand laser locator at Harbor Freight. It has a motion sensor and either battery operation or can be run off a wall wart. It has worked great for years.