Handheld remotes that control automatic garage door openers might seem, to the average person, to be something that is pointless to steal, but thieves think differently. To thieves, a stolen garage door remote is the key to a treasure chest – in this case your home or garage - filled with tons of valuable items to steal.
Considering how valuable a garage door remote can be to a thief, it is important that you know exactly what to do should you discover that one is lost or stolen. This quick guide will walk you through the things you should do immediately upon discovering your garage door remote is missing.
Do Not Panic!
A missing or stolen garage door remote is serious, but it isn't something that should send you into a panic. If you are proactive and take necessary steps to prevent a thief from using the remote, your home and all your valuables will remain protected.
Even though the situation isn't an emergency, it is important that you work quickly. The longer you wait to take the necessary steps to protect your home, the easier it becomes to fall victim to a burglar.
Protect Your Home, Disable Your Garage Door Remote
Many homeowners assume that if a garage door remote is lost or stolen they have to replace the entire automatic garage door opener. They don't have to do that.
All automatic garage door openers have a disable feature that allows you to completely deprogram all remotes for a specific garage. Once the remotes are deprogrammed, they will not open the garage door. The homeowner would then have to reprogram them to work once more with the garage door.
Disable the Garage Door Remotes with a Push of a Button
For most models of garage door openers, it is extremely easy to disable the remotes. All it takes is a couple of steps and all remotes are automatically disabled. The only way to get them to work again is to follow the manufacturer's instructions to reprogram the remotes back into the motor.
If you have a battery back-up system integrated with your motor, it is important that you delete the remote codes from the motor before you unplug the opener from the power. If you do not delete the remote codes when the battery back-up is enabled, then when you plug the garage door opener back in, even if it is a few months later, the stolen remote could still be used to open your garage.
No Control Panel? No Problem!
Some garage door openers don't have a control panel separately in the garage, but they may be operated using a small doorbell like control which is a wireless wall button. These garage door openers can be disabled differently. The way to disable them is by unplugging the system from the power point. Once the system is unplugged, you can open and close the garage door manually.
Stay Safe with the B&D Smart Phone Control Kit
Homeowners that use the B&D Smart Phone Control Kit are in luck. If an original garage door remote is lost or stolen, the homeowner can disable the remotes and then use a smartphone or tablet as a backup remote. This prevents the thieves from using the stolen remote, but allows family, friends, and everyone else who is authorised to gain entry to the house without having to manually open or close the garage door.
We have a variety of garage door openers that work with all types of B&D roller doors and Panelift® doors. Contact us today to learn more about our garage door openers that work great with garage roller doors and Panelift® doors like the Panelift® Icon™.