An automatic door starts with the right motor
An automatic garage door is an ordinary door with an opener added, and the opener has to suit the door. ATA sells its Easy Roller Opener for roller doors and its Syncro, Tempo and ATS 1 for sectional doors, while Gliderol's Glidermatic Dual handles larger roller doors up to 16 square metres.
Weight narrows the choice. Steel-Line says a sectional door can weigh close to or over 200kg, and its SD1500 Pro opener uses a belt drive up to 210 kg and a chain drive from 210 to 250 kg.
Wiring an opener in WA
In WA, all electrical work has to be done by someone holding the relevant electrical licence. Most openers plug into a power point on the ceiling, and B&D's Smart Pro manual wants a properly earthed 3 pin outlet within an arm's length of the motor, put in by a qualified electrical contractor.
If that outlet is missing, or the motor is to be hard-wired, a licensed electrical contractor does the work. Look for an EC number on their paperwork, and an Electrical Safety Certificate within 28 days of the job.
Under regulation 33 of WA's Electricity (Licensing) Regulations 1991 it is an offence to advertise as an electrical contractor without the licence, and regulation 45(1) says the licence number must be shown in their ads.
Features to ask about
- Phone control: Merlin says running a door or gate through its myQ app needs Safety IR Beams fitted, and B&D says beams became compulsory with smart openers from 1 December 2020.
- Battery backup: Merlin builds it into its Commander Ultimate and offers it as an add-on for most other Commander openers; in its roller range, only the SilentDrive Elite takes it.
- Rolling codes: B&D says its remotes send a new random code every time the door runs, so thieves can't copy them.
- Wi-Fi: Steel-Line lists built-in F-linX Wi-Fi on several sectional openers and on its roller door opener.
Before the door specialist leaves
B&D's Smart Pro manual says the opener must reverse when the closing door touches a 40 mm high object on the floor. Ask to see that test done. Keep the remotes away from small children too: the Smart Pro remote runs on a CR2032 coin cell, and B&D warns a swallowed button battery can cause severe injury.
Openers around Perth
A model you can't get here
Steel-Line sells German-made Marantec Comfort sectional openers, but says they are not available in WA. If you spotted one online, ask for the nearest equivalent.
Matching the numbers
A WA electrical contractor's licence number starts with EC and a licensed electrician's with EW, so the person wiring your opener can be matched to the business.
Older doors
Steel-Line says its roller and sectional openers fit most popular brands of door, with accessories to suit, so an older Perth door can usually take a new motor.
What we would do
Look up at the garage ceiling before you tell us the job. Say whether there is a power point near where the motor would hang, because in WA a missing one means a licensed electrical contractor joins the job, and the door specialist can plan for it from the start.