Ratings ranging from 1 2 horsepower to 1 1 2 horsepower are typical for residential models.
How many horsepower opener for a 16 foot garage doors.
Garage door horsepower bottom line.
A traditional steel door that is one sided non insulated and without windows can weigh about 150 pounds even if it s 16 feet wide and 7 feet high and a lot less if it s smaller.
Garages with carriage doors should opt for 1 hp garage door openers or higher.
Two car garages or one car garages with insulated or wooden doors need at least a 3 4 horsepower garage door opener.
It is the cheapest of the three and least power.
If you have a sectional double car garage door a 1 2 horsepower motor should be sufficient but a higher power model will operate with less effort and less wear and tear on the motor.
Horsepower is really just a starting point for garage door openers.
Many models can be adapted to 8 10 or 12 foot tall doors using extension rail kits but very tall 14 foot tall doors require specialty openers like the marantec rv8000 the liftmaster 3595 or the liftmaster 3800 jackshaft garage door opener which mounts on the front wall like a commercial opener.
Even if your steel door has an extra layer and is insulated the door can be twice as heavy but a horsepower motor should be sufficient.
The most popular out of the three choices this opener works best with single and double garage doors that have an average weight such as a carriage style door.
Look for horsepower hp ratings to compare the lifting power between garage door opener models.