We have two garage doors. I know, I know – cool story, bro. But I promise this gets better. Well, it does if you’re a tech nerd or just enjoy life’s little conveniences. Sherry’s eyes glaze over when I try to tell her this stuff, so I’m talking to the remote-control-loving convenience enthusiasts out there. Anyone?
Each door came with its own remote, which we inherited from the previous owners. This guy barely worked at first, but with a quick battery replacement it works almost too well – occasionally opening or closing the door when the remote shifts in my cup holder. Did I mention it didn’t come with a visor clip? Yeah, that’s why it lives in the cup holder.
The other remote wasn’t much better. It worked more consistently, but required a duck tape wrap to keep it functioning. Classy, no? Not to mention its monstrous size meant it didn’t really fit anywhere conveniently in our car.
Improving our garage door remote situation was not high on our to-do list, but then I passed a display at Home Depot for a Clicker Universal Remote. It was $34, but the lure of simplifying to one, small, tape-free remote was too great for me to resist.
You only live once, right?
Sidenote: this YOLO skit gets quoted a lot in our house.
I didn’t really pause to think about actually programming the darn thing. And I know nothing about garage doors. What is this “dip switch” the instructions speak of? Well, a little bird (aka Google) told me it was a series of a 9 or 12 tiny switches that live in the garage door opener whose sequence of ups and downs creates a fingerprint. Match that sequence in your remote and you’ve got a match. Here’s the partially-obscured-so-you-can’t-get-into-our-garage dip switch in one of our existing remotes.
So all I had to do was replicate that switch in the new clicker.
To do so, I used the tip of a screw driver to move each switch into the correct up or down position. Note: the last 5 dip switches hadn’t been moved to reflect our code in this photo yet.
Once the dip switch was coded correctly, I just clicked the button I wanted to assign to that particular door until the door responded.
It was craaaaaazy easy to program this little thing. I got both doors programmed within 10 minutes or so. Doing the second door was the same as the first (and it didn’t undo the first door’s programming by changing the dip switches to a different sequence) so within no time I was the proud owner of one, single, double-door-operatin’ remote. Hallelujah.
And I just had to spread the word, so there you have it: a post about an easy tech update that might sound intimidating, but you can do it. Heck, I think Burger might be able to do it.
In summary: I think I might just be a remote addict (remember these?). The icing on the cake? Since it came with a clip, I was finally able to hang my garage door opener in a convenient spot on my visor. Yup, you can call me big poppa.
Okay, who else is way too excited about a little technological upgrade? Sherry couldn’t believe my enthusiasm for my new remote when I first told her about it (or when I brought it up again and again). But seriously, I’m so happy to be rid of those big ugly duct-tape-covered cup-holder-hogging remotes of the past.
Welcome to the future, guys. It’s nice here.
Annie says
I am super jazzed about this post! My husband’s garage door opener hasn’t had a clip for 3 years – I am buying one of these for him ASAP.
Calista says
We have the exact same remote for our double door garage. Our last one had a loose connection, which required opening up the area where the battery lived, and squeezing the two pieces of metal on either side of the battery so that it would function. This thing was a VERY easy to program life saver! We have two cars, though – and so in the other we’re still on an old opener because it hasn’t kicked the bucket yet (single door operation). But soon, soon it will be a double as well!!
Ana Silva says
This was a pretty funny post. With the hilarious video and “big popa” at the end too funny! Also the caption in the photo that said “swag” But at least you have remotes I have no remote, no nada. I can only manually open the door and only from the inside.
Amy @ Paint Wine Repeat says
I STILL brag about my garage door programming skills and it was almost 3 years ago.
But seriously, anyone wanna come see how you just punch in a code and the door opens?!?
Bueller? Bueller?
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, here I come Amy!
xo
s
bhh says
Don’t want to be a wet blanket BUT . . . be sure to always keep the entry from the garage to your living space locked and alarmed. A family friend’s car was stolen with their registration (that had their home address on it) in the glove box. You can imagine the rest of this unfortunate story. I’m sure you are very careful but I wanted to pass along this cautionary tale.
Ally says
Whoa! Look at the size of that honkin’ duck-taped “Genie” remote! It looks like a STUN GUN! :)
Enjoy the clicking luxury, Jboom…you deserve it :)
xox
YoungHouseLove says
I have no idea why, but when you wrote STUN GUN I busted out laughing. It totally does!
xo
s
Maddie says
Haha picturing you guys saying ” be care-folo” to each other now as you DIY.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah, there’s always some of that going on!
xo
s
Jennifer : Creative Scatter says
Haha! I think I was just as excited when I programed and installed one of those keyless entry pads for my garage. I’m still obsessed with it. Some times it’s the little things that make all the difference!
bhh says
oops . . did’t see my original message so I re-commented. Sorry.
YoungHouseLove says
No worries! Sometimes there are glitches in the matrix.
xo
s
Vivian says
I LOVE those end-cap shopping finds … things I would never think of actually looking for. I actually think this was a necessary upgrade … you can hide that little remote easily from would-be break-inners [not a word, I know]. Well done, John!
PS: Yes the garage door opener itself should have corresponding dip switch configuration …
Krystle @ Color Transformed Family says
This is a little big of a tangent but Sherry did you ever get your driver’s license? I think it was on your list of things to do a year or two ago.
Of course if I didn’t have mine and always got chauffeured around I might not get my license either.
YoungHouseLove says
I’ve actually always renewed my license so I have it! And I even occasionally drive (ex: on a long trip when John’s tired from driving the first half). I’m not the worst! It’s thrilling to know that. I worried I’d drive like a crazy person…
xo
s
becca says
cup holders are important!! when we recently test drove a BMW in our search for a new car (spoiler: we got something else), the salesman told us that the germans didn’t understand americans need for cupholders, and thus didn’t add them for a long time(the 80s, maybe?). even now they’re still very flimsy and (dare I say) half-a$$ed. http://www.businessinsider.com/bmw-cup-holders-are-the-worst-2011-11
YoungHouseLove says
So funny! Who knew?
xo
s
Heather says
…… you’re kidding me.
It’s that easy?! I thought it was going to be so much more complicated than that! Thanks so much for writing this post! I am both a tech geek and a lover of all things convenient. Our current garage is a lounge area and not requiring a remote, but in the future and for dealing with my grandma’s garage, this is super useful info.
Jenni says
even more cool are the built in openers in cars…..thankfully I have 3 buttons – one for mine, one for sister’s house and one for my parent’s house!
Darcey says
My husband & I were just discussing how we wish our garage door had one of those keypad garage door openers on the outside (I had one growing up, and it made randomly getting into the garage a simple task while doing yard work), but alas, it didn’t have one. I had no idea that you could get universal ones, so after this post, I did a quick search on Lowes website to see if there were keypads that also can be programed like that, and I came across one for a decent price- score! Thanks, ya’ll!
Mel says
I love all things techy. And I hope to move soon. I was worried about having to change the locks and the garage door opener when I move. i will refer back to this post! I really want one of those Kwikset locks that can be used with my iPhone. I wonder if there is an app for a garage door opener?
YoungHouseLove says
I was telling John that the other day! I bet we’re really close to one if it’s not invented yet!
xo
s
Brenda says
I used to work at a group home, and one time we discovered that you can change the doorbell to different tones. You just had to pop the cover of the receiver off and move a piece to the prong that corresponded with the numbered guide on the inside of the cover. We’d do Christmas songs during July, Happy Birthday around a resident’s birthday. Great fun.
YoungHouseLove says
See, now that would even excite a tech-phobic person like me.
xo
s
Kate F. says
Um, wait. You must be posting from the future. You can now buy a house with not one, but two garage doors? AND, you can open them BOTH ELECTRONICALLY??? I have one small garage and my in-laws gifted us with an electronic opener system for our wedding last fall and seriously for the first three months I felt like Judy Jetson when it opened. We were literally the only people on our street without one, but I was seriously like “check me out y’all!” #itsthelittlethings.
YoungHouseLove says
Hahaahahaha!
xo
s
Eri says
LOL! We used the exactly the same stuff (Clicker Universal Remote) to set up & upgrade our two-door garage. A little thing, but we felt 60-year (<- our house's age) more modern haha. Thanks for sharing the story.
Debbie says
I’m sure you appreciated a break in painting and I appreciated reading a post other than one about painting. Hooray for garage door openers. I have a 2 car carport at my house, so I am tucking this away in the back of my mind for someday when I might have a garage in the future. :-)
Gwen says
Definitely one of those projects you can put off and put off, but it makes things so much easier and clean. Nice!
Cindy says
I have a friend (really it’s a friend…not me…I’m not kidding) that has 3 garage door program buttons on her rearview mirror. She moved 7 hours away 6 years ago and refuses to change the one that went to her old house because it makes her feel like she still has ties to the house! :) I can neither confirm nor deny if we drove by the house one day when she was visiting and opened the garage door and then floored it to get the heck outta there!!
Amanda says
This would totally make me excited too. Yay for technology!
Ryan says
Sometimes stuff from the 70s still works (like your garage doors) but a little upgrade (like the new remote) makes your life so much more pleasant. Those remotes were huge, and to have both in your car? Ridiculous.
Back when we had a garage, we also added a key pad entry to the garage which made life so much easier. especially if you take the dog for a walk and forget your keys, or loose them in the dark under some bushes when you stop to pick up “the business”.
Catherine Wood says
My husband and I LOVE The Lonely Island! We sing their songs, especially “YOLO” all the time! You guys are too cool for words :)
Andi says
I’m with Sherry and the eyes glazing over…But my hubby would love it!
-andi
Tina says
So…we just came to the realization that our garage door opener not only opens ours…but our neighbors across the street at the same time! (They were too nice to tell us this and didn’t know how to fix the problem.) Anyways, this post of yours is hopefully the answer!
Whitney says
Your story is very similar to ours. Two wonky remotes that didn’t work all that well and we replaced them with the exact same universal remote. :) Good choice! Ours has been working great for almost a year.
Julie W says
Seriously, it’s the little things! Our cable box came with a “universal” remote. The Man tried ONE TIME to program it, a YEAR ago and gave up because it wouldn’t run the ancient DVD player. A few weeks ago, I got sick of wrangling 4 separate remotes that all of my menzes refuse to put in the handy, pretty basket (it puts the lotion in the basket…wait, what?), so I programmed it myself. Did it take a few tries to hit on the right codes? Ah-yeap, sure did. Does it run 3 of 4 components without a hitch? Ah-yeap, sure does! Will any of the menzes take 2 minutes to learn which buttons to push. Ah. NOPE. At least I am happy!
YoungHouseLove says
Hahaha!
xo
s
Sara says
Just be sure to lock the door leading from in the garage into the house. If someone ever breaks into your car and steals the remote, and also steals a wallet/purse/car registration, they will know your address and then can go burglarize the house. True story–see it happen a lot. Just a tip ;)
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, thanks Sara! We have an alarm system on all the doors and windows. Definitely helps me sleep at night!
xo
s
Carolyn says
My hubby did this when we bought our house, too. Very nice! Then he re-keyed all the locks to use one single key. Then he proceeded to hook up ALL our electronics to one remote: the TV, stereo for TV, cable, Roku, DVD player, 3D thingie the TV does, the volumes, the recording options for DVR — and much more. All on one single clicker. I can no longer figure out how to turn the TV on much less do anything else like change the channel. The one time I did manage to get something working, I was watching nuns cooking. In Spanish. Now, if hubby is not around, all I can do is watch Netflix on my laptop.
Lisa in Seattle says
Oh Carolyn, I feel your pain. You should see the look on my face when I’m trying to figure out how to play a DVD or run the stereo through the central control thingy – I’m like a seagull contemplating the Space Shuttle.
Sarah D says
As a math teacher, this excites me from a probability lesson perspective: what are the odds of having the same garage code as a neighbor? Thanks for the inspiration!
Glad you’re finding time to accomplish non-painting activities. :-)
Kristi C says
In a moment of further dorkyness, I will tell you that your link to the lamp remote post didn’t work for me. I pulled the title of the link from the broken link and still read the post, even though I know I read it before… annnnnnnnd then I admitted that to you. Oops.
YoungHouseLove says
Hahah! Off to fix that for ya Kristi!
xo
s
Sonya says
I know you’re sick of painting, but now I’m wondering what color you’re going to paint those garage doors. That would be a lot of blue, but the gray you used on the house would be nice…
YoungHouseLove says
We’re thinking a shade darker than the siding (just sliding one color down so it’s deeper for the doors).
xo
s
Shawna says
We have the same remote. My non-DIY, non-tech-savvy husband programmed 2 remotes for 2 doors in 15 minutes, and I was VERY impressed!
Ashley says
John,
I enjoyed this post just as much as you liked writing it! When I moved into my new place two months ago, that’s the first thing my dad did, was pick up a new remote and my boyfriend programmed it while we were moving in. The bonus was when my dad brought that $34 remote up to the counter at Blue, it had been marked down to $20, so it was a double score! That little thing has made my life soo much easier–I hardly EVER use my front door! :)
Laurie says
Sadly, I think this is really awesome. I only have one garage door but I’m wondering if I can program it for two different garage doors. My Mom has only one too and if I get one of these for each of us, we can always get in each other’s garage. (one button for my garage door and the other button for her garage door)
Is giving her this kind of access a good thing or something I’ll regret?
YoungHouseLove says
Anyone want to vote yes or no for Laurie? I think it’s all about how cool your mom is. Haha!
xo
s
Marcy says
My dad has a key to my house! Only you can know if you’re parents are trustworthy enough, you raised them.
christina @ homemade ocean says
John,
Your posts always make me laugh….
Keep em coming.
high fives,
Christina
Julianne says
Hey! I have one of those that came with the house, too! Except, mine’s a combination of large, no clip AND tonnes of duct tape to hold it together. Old duct tape….the kind that ‘goos’ your fingers every time you touch it! *gross* lol I appreciate the info on not only how to recode them, but the fact that universal ones exist. Never thought about it… But, it’ll be a nice little upgrade to look forward to! :O)
Jane B. says
Memories from the past. I got the exact same remote control when we bought our house. And took me some google search as well to figure out the 9 to 12 pin digit. But I still remained a little ‘paranoid’ that previous owners had the exact same code. So I went beyond and switched it on both the garage door opener ‘box on the ceiling’ and then matched it to the new remote.
The one downside I found about the clip is that every time I open the visor the remote hits the windshield and the door either opens/closes unexpectedly. So it went back to live in my cupholder…
Laurie says
P.S. Boy the front of that garage could sure use a pergula like your old carport had!
YoungHouseLove says
Amen, sista! Just don’t say it too loud because John says he has to recover before we tackle another one! So we won’t tell him about how big I want to make this one…
xo
s
Rebecca says
Growing up we didn’t have automatic garage doors and no cars were ever in the garage anyway (large driveway). When my husband and I bought our first house last year the first thing we did was replace the old tilt-up garage door with a motorized door! I LOVE clicking the button to open and close it and I get highly annoyed if I’m driving us somewhere and my husband opens the garage door instead of letting me do it. Hah.
Robin says
Just want to throw out there that I was highly entertained by both posts today. Nice team work!
I literally laughed out loud at work (on my lunch of course) at Sherry’s “romantic moment” with the door. And John’s “you can call me big poppa” just made my day.
thanks
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Robin!
xo
s
Felie Hempfling says
It’s always the simple things in life that often bring the greatest satisfaction or sense of accomplishment! $37 plus tax for for a little less duck tape and more swag well worth it.. WORD!
Kara says
We have the exact same opener. Except we only have one garage door and they didn’t have a single-button version of that at our Lowe’s, so we paired the other button to my parents’ garage door. It’s one of the best hacks in my life.
YoungHouseLove says
That IS impressive!
-John
Kristin says
IS this one of those things your 20 year-old self would have said, “you are so lame to think this is cool”. I have had a lot of those moments lately.
YoungHouseLove says
Completely.
-John
Laura says
Haha, this was one of the first upgrades I made at our house! I have the exact same remote, and felt the exact same glee when I got that puppy working. Remote control lovers, unite!
Amy says
Sign me up for the Remote Control Dork Squad! Thank you so much for this post. The remotes for my Craftsman garage door opener were losing strength quickly. While changing the battery solved the problem with one of the remotes, it did not do anything for the other remote. After going to two Sears stores before I finally found someone who would help me and paying a decent amount for a replacement remote, both remotes are functional. However, they are not as sensitive as they were before. I may try your remote. At least I will not have to climb up on a ladder to get to the reset button on the garage door opener like I did the last time.
Skittle says
I am excited FOR you! We also inherited 2 garage doors but only inherited a remote opener for one, and it barely worked (like only if you hopped on one foot & held your mouth just right & sang a special song.) So we ordered some replacements online & it is soooo nice to be able to open either door. Any time I want!! “Yes, I love technology….”
Jan says
Brilliant! We just moved into a new house too and inherited too identical remotes that control different garage doors. Yup, you know where this is going. Lots of opening of the wrong door! Can’t wait to pick one of these puppies up! Thanks for the recommendation! Made my day!