Garage Door Opener Remote Reduced Range or Radio Frequency Interference

Published on: May 10, 2019

The Overview

Do your garage door opener remotes, wireless keypad or HomeLink work intermittently?  Do they work inside the garage but not outside of the garage?   Is the range in which they work shorter than when you originally installed your garage door opener?  Do you have to press the buttons multiple times to activate the garage door?  These issues may in fact not be the wireless devices or the garage door opener, but the cause of radio frequency interference.

Radio Frequency interference with garage door openers, can be avoided.  The Genie GIRUD-1T Universal Conversion Kit was made to fix this issue.  Some garage door openers may only work on a single frequency, this kit is a dual frequency upgrade, so if there is frequency interference on the 390MHz (most commonly used in garage door openers) then it will automatically switch to a 315MHz.  Possible interference with the 315MHz as well?  This kit can be mounted further away from the garage door opener so that the antenna is closer to the door, or the antenna wire can be extended with a simple, cut and splice into the existing antenna wire.

Don’t want to deal with frequency interference at all?  Then upgrade to a Genie Aladdin Connect smartphone garage door controller.  The Aladdin Connect does not work on a radio frequency, it works with your home’s Wi-Fi Network, so the only thing you need is a compatible brand garage door opener, and Wi-Fi in the home with good strength in the garage.   This will now make your garage door opener smart, and you now have the ability to monitor, open and close your garage door with your smartphone (something you always have with you) and no need for a garage door opener remote.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Garage door opener remotes work on radio frequency waves, typically from ranges of 300MHz to 390MHz.  All current Genie garage door openers specifically work on 315MHz & 390MHz (dual frequency), to help reduce the likeliness of experiencing radio frequency interference.  The radio waves can be interrupted by electromagnetic fields that are given off by a variety of home appliances, electrical transformers, military bases/homeland security, Airports and even the light bulbs in or near the garage door opener itself. With Genie garage door openers having dual frequency technology, if there may be interference on one frequency, the unit will automatically switch to the second frequency, to ensure you're working with the best range possible. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cause:

So how do you diagnose what could be causing the lower range with your garage door openers remote?  Basically, to eliminate what is not causing the problem, and to determine what is causing the radio frequency interference with your garage door opener, we recommend a simple process of elimination.  Always ensure that the antenna wire hanging down from the garage door opener is not tucked up in the light bulb cover, or even loose, if neither than proceed to the steps below.

• Do you live within a 50 mile radius of a military base or airport? If you do, check with the base to find out if they are testing on the frequency of which your garage door opener is using.  If this is the case, using our GIRUD-1T Genie Universal Radio Conversion Kit made for frequency interference may help with expanding your range. 
• Check your light bulbs. Are you using LED’s or CFL’s in or around the garage door opener?  – Check out our blog article here on LED/CFL bulb interference:
  https://store.geniecompany.com/blogs/genie-blog/why-does-genie-use-genie-led-light-bulbs-in-our-garage-door-openers
  If you have recently changed your bulbs, or installed LED or CFL bulbs in the garage close to the garage door opener and notice shorter distance or intermittent responses from the wireless devices while the lights are on, then, remove the bulbs one by one to see if your range gets any better. If it does then your cause was the bulb that you removed. The Genie LED Bulb was made specifically to reduce or eliminate radio frequency interference that may be caused by standard LED’s.
• If neither step 1 or step 2 apply to you, do you have another older garage door opener installed in the garage near this opener? Unplug it.  If the remotes range gets better than that was the issue.  Or do you have any appliances in the garage?  Unplug them one by one to see if they are emitting a signal that is causing the RF noise. None of those, any satellite dishes recently installed? 

Many different electronic devices can cause radio frequency interference, which will reduce the range of the garage door opener remote or cause it to work intermittently.   Step by step process of elimination is the best way to determine what is causing the decreased range on the garage door opener remote.

 FAQ'S

Q: Will this unit work on all Genie openers made since 1993?

A: Yes, but there is a series of Genie openers manufactured from 2010-2014 that are equipped with Series III technology, and a black wall button, these units will require adding a dry contact connector for the conversion kit to work.  

Q: Will this work on LiftMaster®/Chamberlain® Security 2.0 operators?

A: No this is not compatible with that series of product.