All posts in category Technology

Overhead and Garage door related technology

Genie’s Wireless Keypad

Wireless keypads are a great convenience. The keypad is mounted near the garage door. Once programmed, it allows anyone with the code to get into the garage and house without a key. This is great for kids, trusted friends and relatives, and for those of us with a propensity to lock ourselves out of the house.

Genie garage door opener keypads come in two basic formats. Intellicode keypads (see below) are the top of the line (and highly recommended), while keypads without Intellicode are available at lower cost.

Retailers often carry identical Genie garage door openers, with one product including a wireless keypad and one without. The cost difference usually runs about $20-$30. You can also buy a wireless keypad by itself. I think the convenience of a wireless keypad is worth far more than the cost.

The Genie Intellicode System

Genie’s rolling code technology is called Intellicode. The remote controls on older garage door openers worked on a single code, which made it relatively easy for a knowledgeable stranger to capture the code and open the door. Intellicode changes the access code every time the remote control button is pressed (choosing from a whopping 4.3 billion possible codes). If you have an old garage door opener that opens with a single code, you should think seriously about replacing it with a Genie or other product offering rolling codes.

Garage Door Hacker?!?

OH MY! I’ve Been Hacked!

We’ve heard of cyber hackers, but garage door hackers!?! Can you garage door really be hacked?

If you rely on a handheld gadget to be the gatekeeper of some of your most precious possessions can sometimes backfire. If you’ve ever taken a look inside your garage door opener to replace its batteries, or perhaps because you dropped it on the ground, you may have noticed a plethora of tiny wires and contact points. Hackers can easily modify a standard door opener to accept a USB port, and software is readily available on the web to modify how it operates. A number of tutorials can be found online to walk an amateur hacker through the process of hacking your garage door in just minutes.

Thankfully, this vulnerability is typically only an issue for older garage door systems, and newer, more sophisticated openers use a rolling code that changes each time it is used. However, if your opener was made more than 5 years ago, there’s a good chance it can easily be hacked, so consider upgrading if you can.

3 Comments

by Sanford on July 15, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in Garage Doors, Reviews, Technology

Tagged garage door hackers, garage door opener, older garage door systems, standard door opener

Posted by Sanford on July 15, 2012

https://sanforddoors.wordpress.com/2012/07/15/garage-door-hacker/

Garage Door Openers – The Dark Side

When you purchase a garage door opener, what comes to mind? Most likely a device that will help you open and close your garage door. Well not for John Eady, 61, from Sheffield. He discovered that the device used to opener doors could also be used to block police scanners.

Not Just a Garage Door Opener

The device is the Target LT (Laser Track) 400, is used to send a signal to your garage door as you approach to tell it to open. The manufactures of the product though realized that it also will interfere with police scanner. This being said, are people really buying it for a garage door opener? The LT400 is said to be the first device of its kind available in Britain and is sold with the warning that it should only be used for the purposes for which it was designed – opening things. Even the sales reps are quoted as saying “as well as functioning as an automatic remote control system, the LT400 is also an effective counter-measure against police speed laser guns.” The manual does give you a warning “Please be aware that to use it to actively interfere with police laser guns may be deemed an offence.”

8 Comments

by Sanford on March 31, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in Reviews, Technology

Tagged garage door, police, technology

Posted by Sanford on March 31, 2012

https://sanforddoors.wordpress.com/2012/03/31/garage-door-openers-the-dark-side/

Access your Garage during a Power outage

Lightning = Power Outage

I thought I was the only one! Stuck outside of my garage and the power is out. Sure I could go through the front door, but I need access to my garage! Actually 93% of home owners have experienced a power outage in the last year alone.

It is amazing how dependent we have become on our garage doors. A survey was taken that showed 70% of Home Owners rely on there garage door as the main entrance to there home. If many times we will leave the house without a house key to do a couple errands and rely solely on the key pad for the garage. What do we do though if the power goes out? Some have been locked outside of their homes for several days with no access until the power turns on.

Of course if we are already in side that is easy. We can go into our garage pull the cord, to disengage the opener, and tada! We are now free, but there is another problem, with the power out we have to engage the garage door again. Otherwise our house would be insecure.

The easiest option is getting a garage door opener with battery backup. Both LiftMaster and Chamberlain offer garage door openers with such a feature.

The battery back-up openers control only the doors, not the lights. That’s to save power. The opener will operate for 20 up-and-down cycles, which should get people through almost any power outage.

For more information about what to do during a power outage visit: www.getinyourgarage.com

3 Comments

by Sanford on January 4, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in Garage Doors, Technology

Tagged garage door opener, garage doors, LiftMaster, power outage

Posted by Sanford on January 4, 2012

https://sanforddoors.wordpress.com/2012/01/04/access-your-garage-during-a-power-outage/

Liftmaster | MyQ

Technology is definitely making our lives easier. I remember having to get out of the car to open the garage for my Dad when we got home from the store. As I got older and we got an automatic garage door opener we thought “WOW this is amazing!”. Then the usual happens, that little button we push becomes so little that we forget about it. We pull away from the house, get on to the highway and realize that we left the garage door open. Now we have to turn around and fight traffic once again. With the MyQ technology from LiftMaster it now makes up for our forgetfulness. Easily access your overhead doors and see if they are open or closed through any SmartPhone. But not only can you access your overhead doors but you can also access your lights! Giving you that extra peace of mind and security. Learn more about LiftMaster MyQ on their website.

2 Comments

by Sanford on December 27, 2011 • Permalink

Posted in Technology

Tagged LiftMaster, MyQ, open the garage, overhead doors

Posted by Sanford on December 27, 2011

https://sanforddoors.wordpress.com/2011/12/27/liftmaster-myq/

Open my Garage with my Iphone?

To say that our lives would fall apart without our cell phone is probably the biggest understatement of the year. Planner, work schedule, family outings, music player, sleep monitor; you name it, our phone does it. But now, when it comes to your garage door *dramatic drum roll*, theres an app for that too! I was looking for some gadgets for my iPhone and I came across this, “Open your Garage Door with your iPhone”. The MyDoorOpener app is a hardware/software solution for turning your iPhone into a garage door opener.

That’s right, to replace one garage door opener, you need two things (iPhone & transistor)! The good thing is that you will have your iPhone on you anyway, and if you do not have homelink, it is one less thing you have to search for when you pull into the driveway. Have we lost you yet? Ok, we admit it, It’s not simple for everyone, but it’s not rocket science, either. All the instructions and details are at MyDoorOpener.com, and they provide schematics so you can make the stuff yourself, instead of buying some black box which pinches your wallet.

For those of you who aren’t a fan of apple operating system and have any other smart phone, unfortunately the app still isn’t available. But no worries, Sanford and Son is here to save the day and give you the remotes you need, and at the lowest price possible.