Genie Garage Door Opener Battery Backup - Open Your Garage Door When the Power Goes Out

It’s dark as you pull into your driveway one evening.  The commute home from work took longer than usual because you were waiting for the storm to pass.  On your drive, you listened to the radio and heard reports on power outages in your area.  Hopefully, your home isn’t affected.  You reach above to your sun visor and press your garage door opener remote's button to open your garage door.  Nothing happens.  The power is out.  You sigh in annoyance as you get out of your car to enter your garage to manually open your door. The wind is still howling, and you shiver as you struggle to see what you are doing.  If only there was a better way to have your garage door open automatically – even with a power outage.  

Garage doors are required to be installed with a working emergency release cord.  This allows you to open your garage door from the inside of your garage when the power is out.  You simply pull the red cord which detaches the garage door from the garage door opener carriage so you can manually lift open your door.   However, having a battery backup allows you to open your garage door automatically from either the inside or outside of your garage without using the emergency release. 

With a garage door opener battery backup from Genie, you no longer need to worry about your garage door not opening due to power outages.  Battery backup features for garage door openers have gained popularity over the past few years.  One reason is because of California’s Senate Bill No 969 which went into effect in 2019, mandating that new garage door openers being installed must have a battery backup.  Battery backup features are available on a wide variety of Genie garage door openers at a reasonable price.  There are two options to have battery backup capabilities with your Genie garage door opener– purchasing an opener that has integrated battery backup or adding a battery backup separately to your opener.

Integrated battery backup garage door openers have battery backup units housed inside the garage door opener unit. Use the Genie Product Selector tool located here to find a garage door opener that includes battery backup.  On the left sidebar select the box that says “battery backup” to view all openers that include integrated battery backup.  Using the Product Selector, you can also filter out garage door openers to meet your needs on areas such as Wi-Fi capabilities, LED lighting, and mounting location.

For 140V Genie openers manufactured after January 1, 2013 that do not include integrated battery backup, model BB140-BX is an option for an add-on battery backup unit.  The serial number on the garage door opener head must begin with a 13001 or greater for this battery backup to be compatible. The BB140-BX will provide up to 50 operations of the garage door for 24 hours after a power loss.  Color-coded LEDs on the front of the battery show the status of the battery charge.  The 3’ connector cable allows the battery backup to be charged and powered to the opener.  There are several mounting options to choose from and mounting hardware is also included. 

How is your battery backup recharged?  Both the integrated battery backups and the BB140-BX automatically recharge as long as the garage door opener is plugged into the power outlet. The battery backup will kick into action as soon as the power goes out.  In order to conserve the battery while in use during an outage, you will notice some features of your garage door opener will not work.  The garage door opener lights will not turn on and the garage door will close and open more slowly.  These battery saving features will allow your battery backup for your garage door to open and close up to 50 cycles within the first 24 hours of a power outage.

Make sure to test your battery backup every 6 months to ensure proper garage door function in case of an outage.  To do this, disconnect the power cord of the garage door opener from the outlet or shut off the breaker.  Press your garage door opener remote or wall control and observe if your garage door opener operates.  Reconnect the power after you complete testing.  If your battery backup does not operate without power, check the LED lights.  If the LED is yellow the battery is charging.  Allow your battery backup to charge a full 48 hours before testing again.  If the LED is red or is red to yellow flashing, the battery voltage is below operational level.  If after 48 hours the light continues to stay red it indicates the battery has failed to charge.  Make sure to check your connection cables.  If charging fails, it may be time to replace the battery.  Our Genie online store makes it easy to purchase the integrated battery backup replacement battery or the BB140-BX battery backup unit.

Battery Backup (model BB140-BX) Add-On Compatible Genie 140v Openers

 DIY/Retail Store

Installed by a Professional Dealer

Openers with Integrated (Included) Battery Backup

DIY/Retail Store

Installed by a Professional Dealer