Chamberlain Garage Door Openers Chain Drive Parts List

A recent survey commissioned by The Chamberlain Group, Inc., the world’s largest manufacturer of garage door openers and accessories, reveals that nearly 45 percent of Americans have turned to the last possible “room” in the house to renovate – the garage.

Among the most popular uses for today’s garage include a gym/workout room; bedroom/living quarters; child’s playroom; home office, and party room.

The rest of America isn’t far behind either.   In fact, 18 percent of those polled said they would, or already have plans, to expand their existing garage.  And what are people willing to pay to renovate the “last frontier?”  Up to $5,000, according to 80 percent of survey respondents.  High-rollers, those willing to spend $25,000 or more, accounted for a scant 3.9 percent of those polled.

 “The average attached two-car garage is 400 square-feet of prime real estate ready for development.  It’s bigger than most rooms in the home and just begging for a little attention,” said Bill Keller, home improvement expert and contributing writer to Cut the Clutter and Stow the Stuff.  “The bottom line is: fixing up the garage is a lot cheaper than adding an addition.”

Keller predicts that this trend is truly in its infancy.   “It all comes down to acceptance and imagination.  As people become more comfortable with the idea that the garage is just another room in the house, these ‘extreme garages’ will eventually become the norm.”   

“I love to take any space and make it over, ” said Dawn Nichols, a homeowner whose three-car garage boasts a pool table, bar, TV, refrigerator, microwave and even central air and heat.   “Our garage is a real attention-getter and point of interest in our neighborhood – people just have to come over and see it.”

With garages housing more and more valuable items, Chamberlain reported that the interest in enhanced safety and security devices is also on the rise.

“There has been a continual demand for additional convenience features and higher-end accessories for the garage as well as superior safety and security provided by garage door openers,” said Sally Anderson, Chamberlain’s vice president, marketing communications.

According to the survey, 68 percent of respondents expressed that the most desired feature in a garage door opener is the function to automatically turn on the garage light, hands free, when entering the garage from inside the home.  Chamberlain’s Motion-Detecting Control Panel, which automatically turns on the garage door opener lights when entering a dark garage from inside the home, was introduced by Chamberlain in 2000, and has continued to gain popularity with consumers each year.