# Garage door opener dilemma



## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

Long story short, my mom has these crappy Wayne Dalton Torquemaster openers that are concentric to the garage door shafts that also have Wayne Dalton torision springs. Problem is one opener is dead and they don't make or service them anymore. Would be simple to put in a Sears or Chamberlain except for needing to remove the Wayne Dalton (I think I can do this, I found the instructions on how to unwind the spring and disassemble). But she has a crossbeam that cuts across the garage (it sits about 118' from the face of the garage doors) right at the point where the new GDO head unit for her 7' door needs to go.

I know that the rails and chains/belts can be shortened but then the dooor will not open fully. So I am thinking I can get the opener for an 8' or 10' door that should put the head unit beyond the 12"x4" beam and adjust the travel limit switches to suit the 7' door. Does that make sense?


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## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

OK, after starting to disassemble I managed to get the WD lift to work. Turns out the manual release cable was in sort of an intermediate position that didn't fully release the door but kept the lift motor from operating. So I pulled the manual release cable and the damned thing broke inside the motor housing but seems to have fully engaged the opener mechanism.

So, good news bad news. The opener works fine now, but the manual safety release is inoperable, so no way to disconenct the opener for manual operation. Not really a safety issue since the other 2 garage doors have functional manual releases and there is also a man door.

So the new not so urgent problem is how to repair the WD opener manual release cable.
I don't see an obvious way to open the housing to get at the release cable attach point to reconnect the cable and lube the mechanism. Anyone ever worked on one of these that can advise?


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## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

OK, I took the cover plate off the bad one and off a functioning one on another door and see how the release cable is run. I might be able to do it.... gonna be like threading a needle blindfolded, but possible.


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## firehawkmph (Dec 12, 2009)

Rayo,
I install overhead doors and openers and do repairs. Lately I have been running across a lot of Wayne Dalton's lightweight doors with the Torquemaster tubes. I won't say what I think of them, but they're junk. I usually replace the torque tube assy with a standard torsion spring setup. The local WD warehouse has conversion kits available. So in the future, it's easier to change a spring when it breaks. As far as the opener goes, I have mounted openers behind beams using a longer track and it works fine. The opener doesn't care if you don't use all the travel. I have mounted them above the beam if there is open space available. If you want to go through the beam, best to have a structural engineer figure out if you can drill a hole in it. It you go this route, you need to get an opener from a garage door supplier in order to get the one piece track. Big box stores carry e multi piece tracks and don't normally have the longer lengths available. 
Mike Hawkins:smile:


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## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

Appreciate it Mike. I have the same opinion. I managed to repair the opener release cable. I had to pull the circuit board to route the new one that I made from a spare bicycle derailleur cable. I used the lead nub on the opener end since the little hex set screw was already rounded out.

It worked OK but the internal cogged clutch mechanism on this unit is stiff so even though I lubed it as best I could with spray white lithium it worked only soso. But then I went and ruined it all by trying to tighten that set screw with vise grips and I broke one of the retention ears on the motor unit. I can loop the cable around the remaining ear and use a crimp on the cable to improvise. Another run up to Ace Hardware....





Too bad these WD openers are such junk because when they work they are fast and don't take away headroom.

Probably a good idea to lose the WD torque tubes as you suggest. But we have never had issues with the springs per se so I might try to keep them... remove the drive unit and replace with a center tube bushing/bracket for support.

Chamberlain sells specific openers for 7, 8 and 10 foot doors so I could get a longer one off the shelf pretty easily. I also think Sears sells rail extension kits to do same. I would run it under the beam, not wanting to challenge the structure.

Chamberlain also makes some interesting jackshaft openers that would have been ideal except this is a beach house on pilings and each garage door is flanked by pilings on both sides that would almost certainly interefere.


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## firehawkmph (Dec 12, 2009)

Did you do replace the opener, try to get the one piece track instead of using the extensions. You normally have to go to a garage door supplier for this. They are usually wholesale to contractor type places. Sometimes they will sell something like an opener to a homeowner. I have a LM jackshaft operator on one of my shop doors. The track follows the slope of the cathedral ceiling to provide clearance for an automotive lift. They work very well for a situation where you have a high lift door. You have to be careful when you install them on a door where the upper track is horizontal. The opener relies on gravity to start the door downward as it just turns the shaft. On a horizontal track setup, they make a couple different types of helper springs that mount on the rear of the upper track and apply tension to the door when it is all the way open. That way it helps the door get moving right away when the button is pushed.
Mike Hawkins:smile:


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## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

No, I didn't replace it yet. I repaired the cable and got the thing working for now. Thanks for the insight on my options. Looking ahead a few years I may have all the garage doors replaced with insulated units. I'd get standard torsion spring tubes and then look for openers made for 8' or 10' doors.

Hey, do you still have a Firehawk as in your screen name? I have been a long term f-body owner (T/As and Z28s) but recently went to the dark side with a new C7. All good stuff! I am selling my last F-body, a 1994 Z28, M6. Gonna be a little sad to see it go.


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## firehawkmph (Dec 12, 2009)

No I don't. Actually the username comes from my previous career as a full time firefighter. Never really had a muscle car. Grew up in that era, cousin and uncles had a roadrunner, charger 440 RT, and a coronet 440 superbee. Grew up with motorcycles, mostly off road, raced MX for a bit over ten years when I was younger. Still have a couple dozen off road bikes in the garage from 1970-1983 plus a few modern mixers that I still ride but don't race.
Mike Hawkins:smile:


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## raylo32 (Nov 25, 2006)

Wow, that's a lot of bikes. I have a late model Triumph (Tiger 800) that I bought 4 years ago. Hadn't had a bike for awhile and needed to get it out of my system. I might be selling that this spring, too. Seems less safe to ride out there these days what with all the distracted drivers.

The firehawk used to be a tuner version (also a line of accessories) of the Firebird offered by SLP. Not sure if they are still in business.


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