Old Garage Door Openers>Replace or Not?

We get asked all of the time by our customers if you have to replace a garage door opener if it is old? The answer is yes, if you garage door opener was made before 1992, you have to replace the opener. Then the next question is always, why? For one, old garage door openers do not have safety sensors. The above pictured garage door opener was made in 1962, and it does not have safety sensors to stop the garage door. The safety sensors are for your protection! The safety sensors will stop the garage door when it is in motion is something breaks the light curtain and the garage door will go backup instead of crushing anything underneath the garage door.

In 1992 the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a rule that started January 1, 1993, all automatic garage door openers made after this date has to have safety sensors. This rule went into effect because children were being killed by a garage door that would not stop once it was activated to close. Read the rule for yourself:Rule on Garage Door Openers

The above pictured garage door opener has the safety sensors facing each other! This is unsafe and not recommended, if your garage door opener was installed this way please have it corrected!