Battery backup units have been attached to garage door openers for many years. This convenience started off as only being available for the top of the line garage door openers. Now you can add a battery backup to many garage door openers at a reasonable price and they are available on new garage door openers across the price range. Battery backups have become a necessity for most that live in rural areas or places that must deal with extreme weather. One of those areas is California. They commonly experience wildfires, floods, landslides, and earthquakes. Due to this the state government has mandated that all new garage door openers must come equipped with battery backups.
The California battery backup up laws, for garage door openers, go into effect July 1, 2019. This law states that new garage door openers installed that day forward must include a battery backup at time of installation. Existing garage door openers prior to that date will not need to be retrofitted or updated with a battery backup but it is recommended.
More on the Battery Backup law – click >>Senate Bill No 969<<
The battery backup can be a separate unit that merely plugs into the garage door opener or it can be integrated into the garage door opener. Genie currently has an extensive line of garage door openers with both types of battery backups available. See the images below for the add on option or the integrated one. Both options fulfill the California garage door opener battery backup requirements.
For many years there has been a requirement for garage door openers to be installed with a working emergency release cord. This allows your garage door opener to be released and the door to be opened manually in the event of a power outage or failure. This feature kept you from being locked in your garage. By simply pulling down on the red emergency release cord, this detached the garage door from the garage door opener carriage and allows you to manually lift the garage door to the open position. But with this new law, having a required battery backup installed on your garage door opener will allow for you to operate the garage door electronically from inside or outside without having to manually disconnect the emergency release.
Since the battery backup has a limited amount of power, not all features will not work on a Genie garage door opener when the battery backup is in use. One of the first things you will notice if you operate your garage door opener, while in battery backup mode, is the garage door opener lights will not turn on. Use of the overhead light is temporarily disabled while in battery backup mode so that the battery backup does not waste power on anything other than lifting the door. The operator will also open and close at a slower rate than normal to conserve battery life. These savings should allow the door to open and close, up to 50 cycles within the first 24 hours of a power outage, running purely on the battery.
To ensure that your Genie battery backup will provide you enough power during an outage, you should be sure to regularly test the battery. This check on the battery backup function should occur every six months to ensure proper garage door opener function. Open and close the door under normal power, then disconnect the power cord of the garage door opener from the outlet or shut off the breaker. Press the button on the wall control or the remote control and ensure the opener moves the door under battery power only. Reconnect the power after the test is complete. If for any reason the battery backup does not work check the motor head display for a red or = yellow flashing light. If the light is present the battery may not be connected or has an internal issue and needs replaced. Replacements for the Genie garage door opener battery backup can be found on our website or at most home improvement retailers. Having a fully functional, fully charged battery attached to your Genie garage door opener will feel like a life saver, when the power goes out.
Current Genie Garage Door Opener Models that can have our GBB-BX battery backups added on:Professional Product Line Garage Door Openers:
Genie Model 4164, Genie Model 4064, Genie Model 3064, Genie Model 4124, Genie Model 4024, Genie Model 3024,
Genie MachForce Model 4062 & Genie MachForce Connect Model 4063, Genie SilentMax 1200 Model 4042, Genie SilentMax 1000 Model 3042, Genie ChainMax 1000 3022Current Genie Garage Door Opener Models that have an integrated battery backup (already come with a BBU without adding on):Professional Product Line Garage Door Openers:
Genie Model 3020H-B, Genie Model 3120H-BDIY Garage Door Opener Models:
Genie Stealth Drive 750 Model 7055, Genie Chain Drive 750 Model 7035
Additional Models Coming Soon!
