Can a safety sensor be added to an old garage door opener without a sensor? (installation, code)
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Correct - there's no retrofit kit, as the sensors are connected to the logic board; it's the only way it can react and quickly reverse the motor. Since garage door openers vary so much, there's no universal product that'd work.
If it's a pre sensor unit, it is probably on its last legs anyway. Make sure the sensors are placed low enough. They should be no higher than 6" from the floor.
By the way, the control button should be NO LESS than 5' from the floor, to keep little ones from being able to reach it.
Its all in the installation instructions, but they seem to get thrown away without reading a lot of times.
I have a 1987 Garage Door Opener from Sears Craftsman. It is compatible with a sensor even though I had an 'expert' garage door repair guy come out and tell me it is not. He wanted $500 to install a whole new opener. I was a bit leery of his advice and decided to research it myself. It was pure bull****! I looked up the manual for the GDO and it did have an optional hook-up for a IR sensor.
2. If this was not available and did not accept a GDO safety beam sensor, it is trivial to control the opener with an Arduino, and end stop switch(to let the Arduino know that the Garage Door is in the down position), and a Relay to trigger the door open/close.
So here are my points:
1. Read/find your manual for the garage door opener, most likely it will be online somewhere.
2. Do not necessarily accept the advice of so called 'experts', do your own research, it could save you a lot of money!
[quote=Barking Spider;15541545By the way, the control button should be NO LESS than 5' from the floor, to keep little ones from being able to reach it.[/QUOTE]
That's all great until your kid drags a chair out to reach the button. Or so I've heard...
Just buy a new opener. Yours is so old it wouldn't have a rolling code remote. And it wouldn't be compatible with the Homelink in your vehicle. I just bought a new house and my openers are belt driven, so they're very quiet. And they have MyQ technology, so I was able buy a gateway so I can open it from anywhere I have cell service, through the app I downloaded.
That's all great until your kid drags a chair out to reach the button. Or so I've heard...
The manufacturers can only do so much in the name of safety. They have no way to control parenting skills, or supervision. I've heard that duct tape and Velcro can do wonders in this area.
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