Replaceing Garage door opener, need to fit current rail and chain??

[stran...@gmail.com]

Hello I have a sears crafstman garage door opener 1/3 horsepower. I guess it could be 20 yeas old, i think the motor died. The door stopped half way up.
It just makes a grinding noise and doesn't move the chain so I think the motor and housing need to be replaced. The chain and rails seem to be fine, they will move if i pull them, so not jammed.

I looked up the model online and it looks too old to get replacement parts.
So i'm happy to buy a new garage door opener, but I really just want to replace the motor and housing and use the existing chain and rails. Otherwise its a bigger job.
-Are garage door chains a standard size?
-Would It be best to stick with Sears Craftsman brand to get a proper fit?

Thanks

[Rick]

<stran...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:0346a7c7-493b-40f4...@googlegroups.com...

Take the cover off and see if has a plastic worm gear that has failed. Easy
to replace, parts are available on line.

[DerbyDad03]

Take a look at how the current opener is installed. If it's anything like
mine, the only real differences between a motor replacement and a complete
replacement are the 3 lag bolts where the rail attaches to the header and
the 4 bolts used to connect the 3 rail sections, making it one long rail.
Everything else will need to be taken apart anyway, so there is not very
much worked saved by replacing just the motor, assuming you could even find
one to match.

In addition, I doubt you'll get a warranty if you mix and match parts.

Finally, look at the newer options available (belt drive, screw drive,
etc.) GDO's have improved significantly in 20 years. I suggest a complete
replacement to ensure that there are no mix and match issues.

Here's a trick that I used when I hung my GDO. There is a room above my
garage and the noise from the GDO was transmitted through the joists when
it was hung directly from the angle iron that spanned the joist opening. I
hung the GDO from 2 pieces of conveyor belt material to isolate it from the
joists. It cut the noise by about 75%. It used to wake my kids up but after
I added the rubber hangers they slept right through the noise. It's been
hanging that way for more than 20 years.

[Rick]

<stran...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:0346a7c7-493b-40f4...@googlegroups.com...
>
>

Liftmaster, Chamberlain, Craftsman..pretty much the same thing parts wise

[k...@attt.bizz]

On Sat, 7 Dec 2013 07:37:47 -0800 (PST), stran...@gmail.com wrote:

>
>
>Hello I have a sears crafstman garage door opener 1/3 horsepower. I guess it could be 20 yeas old, i think the motor died. The door stopped half way up.
>It just makes a grinding noise and doesn't move the chain so I think the motor and housing need to be replaced. The chain and rails seem to be fine, they will move if i pull them, so not jammed.

It's probably the nylon gear in the motor unit. They should be fairly
easy to find.

>I looked up the model online and it looks too old to get replacement parts.
>So i'm happy to buy a new garage door opener, but I really just want to replace the motor and housing and use the existing chain and rails. Otherwise its a bigger job.
>-Are garage door chains a standard size?

If you go for a replacement, replace the whole thing. It's easy -
probably easer than cobbling something together out of two kits. There
are only a couple of screws holding the other end of the track and a
couple more holding the arm to the door. All of the work (not much)
is assembly and mounting the motor end. You need to do that, anyway.

>-Would It be best to stick with Sears Craftsman brand to get a proper fit?

I'd go with Sears. I've never had trouble with them. They're
Chamberlain, IIRC. But pick one with the features you want. These
things last almost forever so that shouldn't be a major concern.

[Art Todesco]

As others have said, check for parts on-line. Many sell a baggie of
"frequently stripped" gears. My son did that for his unit and we had it
fixed in about an hour. Also, if you replace the unit, some of the new
units have extra feature goodies, like auto down, if you forget and
house light controls.

[bob haller]

first disconnect the opener and make certain the door moves easily with the drive unit disconnected.

one time i found a bolt had dropped out of the cieling somehow and jammed the door.

be aware new openers are much safer with detectors so a child or vehicle cant get crushed......

ignore those who suggest you disconnect them, as a neighbors kid or pet can get hurt

[cl...@snyder.on.ca]

Mine is fastened to the wall above the door with the pin and bracket
supplied with the unit, and hung on 2 chains at the motor end.
Replacing the whole thing was a whole lot easier last time than it
would have been to replace the motor or even repair it. Just unhooked
2 chains, pulled the pin, pulled out the old one, lifted the "pin" end
- stuckin the pin, lifted the motor end, connected 2 chains, connected
the link to the door and plugged it in. Less than half an hour total.
Went from an old Stanley chain drive to a Genie Tape Drive - or ribbon
drive.

[cl...@snyder.on.ca]

On Sat, 7 Dec 2013 11:22:15 -0500, "Rick" <itsno...@gmail.com>
wrote:

Craftsman was made by Chamberlain for decades.

[Tony Hwang]

Hi,
Ditto since motor is OK. Or Call Sears or original manufacturer to see
if there is direct replacement current model.

[woodchucker]

On 12/7/2013 10:37 AM, stran...@gmail.com wrote:
>
>

It's probably not the motor if it is grinding. They probably have
plastic gears. Open it up, and order them....

I have a different brand but $10 was better than replacing the unit.

--
Jeff

[Daring Dufas : Hypocrite TeaBillie on welfare]

Get a better motor.

[Oren]

On Sat, 7 Dec 2013 07:37:47 -0800 (PST), stran...@gmail.com wrote:

>I looked up the model online and it looks too old to get replacement parts.

Look for an exploded view of the unit. As stated check for a nylon
gear(s) that may have broken teeth. (by design, perhaps)

>So i'm happy to buy a new garage door opener, but I really just want to replace the motor and housing and use the existing chain and rails. Otherwise its a bigger job.

You can do that with some research.

>-Are garage door chains a standard size?

Good question, but not if the door heights are different...?

>-Would It be best to stick with Sears Craftsman brand to get a proper fit?

Where do you live?

[Oren]

On Sat, 07 Dec 2013 12:15:04 -0500, k...@attt.bizz wrote:

>I'd go with Sears. I've never had trouble with them. They're
>Chamberlain, IIRC. But pick one with the features you want. These
>things last almost forever so that shouldn't be a major concern.

I'd go with martindoors.com, never look back.

A private company which now has products in HD and Lowe's.

[Oren]

On Sat, 7 Dec 2013 09:55:12 -0800 (PST), bob haller <hal...@aol.com>
wrote:

>be aware new openers are much safer with detectors so a child or vehicle cant get crushed......
>

One private company made a GDO without the wall eye sensors. The tech
is built into the motor unit.

>ignore those who suggest you disconnect them, as a neighbors kid or pet can get hurt

...attractive nuisance...$

[k...@attt.bizz]

It's the features. I've not seen any others with the features and
models that are available from any local Sears. It's about the only
thing I'd recommend from Sears, anymore.

[k...@attt.bizz]

On Sat, 07 Dec 2013 13:06:27 -0800, Oren <Or...@127.0.0.1> wrote:

>On Sat, 7 Dec 2013 07:37:47 -0800 (PST), stran...@gmail.com wrote:
>
>>I looked up the model online and it looks too old to get replacement parts.
>
>Look for an exploded view of the unit. As stated check for a nylon
>gear(s) that may have broken teeth. (by design, perhaps)

Yep. They're designed to be the weak spot; sacrificial.

[The Daring Dufas]

On 12/7/2013 2:35 PM, Daring Dufas : A Sock Of Killer Loon wrote:
> Get a better motor.
>

Killer Loon, living proof that human women should never have sex with
farm animals. ^_^

TDD

[cl...@snyder.on.ca]

Lots have current sensors instead of "magic eyes"

[cl...@snyder.on.ca]

On Sat, 07 Dec 2013 15:01:16 -0500, woodchucker <nos...@nospam.com>
wrote:

I've replaced several of them over the years for friends and
customers. They can be a pain, but if the rest of the unit is good,
it sure beats the heck out of buying a new unit.

[Meanie]

Still is. Liftmaster makes Chamberlain and Craftsman openers.

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