PDA

View Full Version : Double duty opener.



Richard Stanley
02-26-2010, 04:47 PM
Toodays inspection - 1 garage door opener cleverly configured to open 2 doors simultaneously. Not seen before by me. Unit is 1/2 hp. Doors are both older, heavier type, single width. My take is that it is not installed to comply with manufacturers intent and installation instructions. It did work just fine. If it was a double wide door, I would not have paid any attention to it - but, it was obviously home made fabrication. There was no way to operate only one door at a time.
Comments please.

Jerry Peck
02-26-2010, 06:28 PM
Unit is 1/2 hp. Doors are both older, heavier type, single width.

If the doors were properly balanced and the tracks properly installed with little friction and binding of the rollers ... 1/2 hp is more than sufficient.

It is not the weight of the door which requires larger motors, it is the improperly counter-balancing of the doors which requires larger motors - a properly counter-balanced door is easy to move.


My take is that it is not installed to comply with manufacturers intent and installation instructions. It did work just fine.

Comments please.


How can "It did work just fine." when it was not intended or designed to work that way? Did "it work" that way? Sure, probably, but "just fine"? Nope, no way. ;)

John Kogel
02-26-2010, 06:58 PM
If the doors were properly balanced and the tracks properly installed with little friction and binding of the rollers .
How can "It did work just fine." when it was not intended or designed to work that way? I agree, it is wrong for a new owner to have to put up with a cheapskate installation by a previous owner. Who wants two doors to open every time you use the garage?
Call for repair, installation of separate openers, as per manuf''s instructions..

Rod Butler
02-26-2010, 08:25 PM
I would love to see pictures of this.

Stacey Van Houtan
03-01-2010, 09:09 PM
This was common in our area up to the 80s. The issue is that it is very hard to set the the safey reverese to a low enough sensitivity. This is due the side pressure of the opener and not center pressured. this causes more strain and you have too sent the safety pressure too high, A install such as this is usually older that the safety eye requirment. I would call it a safety issue and recommend a upgrade to curret standards.