Looking to upgrade my garage door opener to one that has battery backup. We've had a ton of power outages in my area lately and it's annoying AF when I can't open the garage door.

I don't have an exterior panel, so I want one that includes that. I'm also seeing models that allow you to track your door status with an app. That sounds interesting, assuming it works well.

Quiet would be a bonus, as my current opener is loud.

Any recs on brands? Genie? Chamberlain? Something else? Hoping to keep it around $200, give or take a few.

Any thoughts on hp? I'm looking at a Genie on sale at Lowe's and it's 1.25. Most of the Chamberlains (that don't have the LED light) seem to be 0.5-0.75. That seems to be a big difference.

Liftmaster/Chamberlain are the same. Those are the best brands. Like Deboss said, get the belt drive, as they are vey quiet. You can also look at the wall mount openers. Those are nice, but more expensive.

.5 hp or more is fine. If your door is balanced and the springs are tensioned correctly, you don't need a lot of hp.

OP I installed the Genie belt drive about a year and a half ago. Battery backup and wifi enabled. I'm guessing it's the one you're talking about. It is my second Genie (also installed one in previous house) and I have zero complaints.

I upgraded to a jack shaft style that mounts on the wall when I had my door replaced. LiftMaster 8500W.

It has a battery backup and is very quiet. The kit also came with an automatic bolt that locks when the door is down.

I like my current setup vs an center mounted opener, but it was only practical because I was already having the garage door replaced.

+1 on Liftmaster/Chamberlain

Southpaw, why would you say it was only practical since you were having the garage door replaced? Was your old door not using a torsion spring because I know that is a requirement? I ask because I am probably going to upgrading to the wall mount option in the near future. I know it is more expensive but the convenience of not having a center track is totally worth the add.

I've been looking at a replacement in addition to insulating the door (SW facing - gets really hot). WIth the added weight of insulation, I'm searching for a 1.25+ HP opener motor. Those wall mounted ones are interesting - seem "cleaner." Does anyone here have any DIY experience with those? I have no desire to monkey with the door spring.

Our garage faces south so when it was time to replace the door we went with fully insulated plus the weather stripping along the sides and top of the frame. Huge difference. Worth the $.

Springs are not adjustable, they are sized for the weight of the door. If your spring is appropriate you should need a 0 hp motor. Making a spring tighter just means when it gets to the end of the travel it will still be in tension, but not any more capable of lifting the door at the bottom end.
So unless your insulation is very light new springs are on the list. Even additional cross bracing requires upgraded springs.

https://reachbarrier.com/
had no idea they're in home depot now. was just a small business in Dallas back when I bought from them.

also this

Marvin_Zindler said:

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Liftmaster/Chamberlin all the way. The MyQ app is awesome.

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That looks like tin foil. Does it work?

To be honest I've never really checked before. Happened to just buy a infrared thermometer to see before/after window replacement.

Outside: 51 degrees
Uncovered garage panel: 55.7
Covered garage panel: 68

UmustBKidding said:

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Springs are not adjustable, they are sized for the weight of the door. If your spring is appropriate you should need a 0 hp motor. Making a spring tighter just means when it gets to the end of the travel it will still be in tension, but not any more capable of lifting the door at the bottom end.
So unless your insulation is very light new springs are on the list. Even additional cross bracing requires upgraded springs.

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IMHO I don't think this is the case with Torsion springs. When I installed new torsion springs at Dad's place about 6 months ago, we had to adjust the spring tension during install, based entirely on the door weight. It even specifically mentioned so in the manufacturer directions. So saying springs are not adjustable is not true in this sense. Adding weight to the door would mean adjusting the spring to be at higher tension to help carry the load when raising and lowering the door.

Maybe I am mis-understanding your point. I don't think anyone expects the travel distance to change with the same exact door in place, just the spring tension needed to lift it.

ETA...I guess if you are already at the max limit of the torsion springs you have installed before you add weight to the door, you would need to change them out. When we put them in, we were about in the middle range for the springs we had. They could have definitely been loaded more.

This is absolutely true for torsion spring. Balancing a door is only possible with the correct size springs based on the door weight. A properly balanced door will stay wherever you place it. It will stay closed, half open or all the way up without any external force. If you springs are over or under sized it will not do at least one of these. If you have proper size springs and add weight to the door people wind it more. This makes it possible to lift but it will require force to hold it closed and when its all the way up it will still have tension and not be relaxed like supposed to be. It is only possible to achieve this door balance with properly sized springs which is based on its weight. Also garage door openers are not designed to push/pull on a door that is not balanced. Many of them have fiber gears or sheer joints to keep you door for exerting to much force.
So you might be able to cheat a little and overcome a small amount of additional weight but this will make the door unstable at fully closed and partially open cases.
Where is Physics Clown when you need him.

Update…had my new Chamberlain opener installed today. It's great…so much quieter, and I love the app function.

Installation cost an additional $165 by a company here in The Woodlands. He did everything, including set up the button in my car (which has a trick to it, and he knew exactly what to do) and take away the old motor.

I only wish I'd done this sooner.