When looking for light bulbs for your garage, there are several options available in the market. The LED lights are the go-to option for advantages like energy efficiency and long life. However, you simply cannot install just another LED light bulb in your garage. So, which light bulbs can be used on garage door openers?
Let’s discuss in detail to find out what you should look for in a light bulb for your garage.
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Which light bulbs can be used on garage door openers?
Among the several variants of bulbs, the ideal choices for your garage are incandescent light bulbs, compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs and the best quality LED light bulbs. Each of these bulbs has its advantages and disadvantages. It is important to weigh the pros and cons of each one carefully to choose the most suitable option for your garage. The option must be cost-effective, long-lasting, and energy-efficient. Most importantly, it should not interfere with the working of the automatic garage door openers.
Why LED light bulbs cannot be used in garage door openers?
Even though LED light bulbs are the most energy-efficient and offer long-lasting solutions for light illumination, they are not a great option for garages. Low-quality LED light bulbs are known to interfere with the working of automatic garage door openers. These light bulbs work on the principle of Pulse Width Modulation (PWM). In this, the beam of light gets divided into numerous small flashes of light. The control circuit of the LED light bulbs regulates these flashes of light. It emits an electromagnetic field having radiations in the frequency range of 30 MegaHertz to 300 MegaHertz.
The garage door openers work in a similar way. The door openers are controlled by radio signals. These signals exist in the form of waves in the frequency range of 28 MegaHertz to 360 MegaHertz. As the working range of frequencies of LED light bulbs and remote controller of garage door openers intersect, there is interference. As a result, the garage door openers don’t work properly. The door may not open after being closed or may work only when the remote controller is closer to the door. Therefore, low-quality LED light bulbs cannot be used on garage door openers.
Types of Bulbs That Can be Used on Garage Door Openers
| Incandescent light bulbs | Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) | Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) |
|---|---|---|
| Best choice for garage door openers | Not a good choice as they interfere with automatic garage door openers. | Low-quality LEDs interfere with garage door openers signal. |
| Short life span due to not being vibration resistant (getting RSV variants can help) | Last 5 times longer than incandescent bulbs | Can last 20+ years |
| Least energy efficient | More energy efficient than incandescent bulbs | Most energy efficient |
| Not great for cold climate regions | ||
Incandescent light bulbs
Incandescent light bulbs are the best option to use with garage door openers. Very often, the garage door openers come with incandescent light bulbs in the original box. But these light bulbs have a few disadvantages like short life span and more energy requirements. The short life span is due to the reason that the door openers cause vibrations while opening and closing the garage door. These vibrations are capable of destroying the glass of incandescent light bulbs. To overcome this problem, incandescent light bulbs come with rough-service variants. These light bulbs have a thick filament that is likely to back up the bulb against the vibrations. These bulbs won’t shatter even after falling out of the socket.
Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs)
Compact fluorescent light bulbs aren’t generally the first option for garages. It is because they sometimes interfere with the automatic door openers by weakening the control signals. But you can always try installing a compact fluorescent light bulb to see if it is compatible with your garage door opener. Compact fluorescent light bulbs are better than incandescent light bulbs as they are more energy-efficient and last five times longer than incandescent light bulbs. However, CFL bulbs may not be a great option for cold climatic regions as they become too hot while working.
Light-emitting diodes (LEDs)
LED light bulbs can interfere with the garage door openers by interacting with the remote control signals of the garage door openers. However, this issue arises only when the LED light bulbs installed in the garage are of low quality. There are manufacturers that produce LED light bulbs that do not interfere with the working of garage door openers. These are the most energy-efficient options and have a long life span.
While choosing the LED light bulbs for your garage, you must look for the logo of the Federal Communications Commission that marks the compliance of the light bulbs with the parameters of FCC. You must also look at the working frequency range of LED light bulbs to see if that doesn’t match with the range of the garage door opener. When buying LED light bulbs for your garage, you must select the variants having a protective shield that blocks the electromagnetic field. This shield is effective in stopping the electromagnetic field from escaping the glass of the light bulbs.
What to Look For in Light Bulbs for Garages?
There are some important things that you should look for while buying light bulbs for your garage. Some of these are mentioned below.
- Size of the bulb – The socket for bulbs in garages is suitable for A19 light bulbs. In addition to this, spiral-style bulbs and tubes can be used in the garages.
- Logo of FCC – The FCC logo on the box of light bulbs represents the compliance of the bulb with the instructions of FCC. This means the bulbs are manufactured according to the safety precautions and parameters set by FCC.
- Frequency range – Considering the frequency range of the light bulb is important to see if it is compatible with the garage door openers’ remote controller.
- Energy Efficiency – The energy efficiency of a light bulb must be one of the deciding factors while buying the light bulbs for your garage. This reduces the electricity requirements of your home while contributing to an eco-friendly world.
- Lifespan – The lifespan of the light bulb is an important consideration to make. A good light bulb must have a long life to cut down the replacement costs. Therefore, LED light bulbs are a great option in terms of long life.
- Lighting – The garages need to have all three kinds of lighting namely, ambient, task, and accent lighting. Therefore, the light bulb you are choosing must provide these types of lighting.
Top 3 Best Lights for Garage Door Openers
While choosing the light bulbs for your garage, you don’t want to buy a light bulb that doesn’t illuminate the garage properly and causes interference in the radio signals of the garage door opener. Therefore, it is important to look for some of these features to buy the best light bulb for your garage. To ease the task, here is a curated list of the top 3 light bulbs that are best suited for garage door openers.
The 3 best lights for garage door openers are:
- Grimaldi Lighting LED Bulb
- TORCHSTAR Garage Door Opener LED Light Bulb
- Genie LED Garage Door Opener Bulb
Grimaldi Lighting LED Bulb
Are you looking for an LED light that is smaller than normal bulbs? Grimaldi lightning LED bulbs are a perfect solution for your need, being 40 Watt equivalent of normal halogen bulbs but a more efficient solution. This 5 Watt bulb is suitable for lighting up every corner of your garage area. It has a medium E26 base.
The bulbs have 450 lumens and 5000K color temperature which is enough to light up your garage in bright white light. Its A15 styling owes to the smaller size of the bulb as compared to normal light bulbs. The bulb is designed to provide maximum energy efficiency in a low-cost solution.
Grimaldi Lighting LED bulbs are extremely good for damp locations. Therefore, you can also use these bulbs in other electrical appliances such as refrigerators. This bulb is available in a pack of two to provide more lighting at a low cost.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Smaller size | Not dimmable |
| Low Cost | Not universal |
| Saves energy |
If you’re interested, check the price on Amazon!
TORCHSTAR Garage Door Opener LED Light Bulb
No more hassle of finding the right sized light bulb for your garage. One size of this bulb fits all types of sockets. Whether you wish to light up your garage in daylight or illuminate it with a warm glow, these bulbs are your go-to solution as they come in two variants. The 1500 lumens and 220 degrees beam angle of these bulbs provide you an ultra-bright glow and wide lighting range, while simultaneously saving 85% energy.
The bulbs are designed to reduce the interference in the radio signals of the garage door opener. They are resistant to the vibrations occurring during the opening and closing of the garage door. Therefore, they won’t fall off due to vibrations. Even if these bulbs fall off, you may not need to replace them as these bulbs are manufactured using shatter-proof material.
You can easily buy these light bulbs in a pack of two which saves some money. As they are backed by two years of warranty, you can use the light bulb to brighten up your garage for at least two years.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Energy efficient | Costly |
| Shatter-proof and vibration resistant | Not too bright |
| 2 years of warranty |
If you’re interested, check the price on Amazon!
Genie LED Garage Door Opener Bulb
If you are finding a bulb that has a long life, doesn’t cause interference with the radio signals of garage door openers, and is shatter-proof, Genie LED garage door opener bulb is your way out. These light bulbs are exclusively designed for garages as they cause very less or absolutely no interference with the working of your automated garage door opener.
They are specifically crafted to work in rough conditions of the garage like cold weather and damp environment. These 800 lumens bulbs are very effective in brightening up your entire garage area while consuming much less energy as compared to other bulbs. They provide up to 25,000 hours of uninterrupted lighting of your garage.
One size fits all mantra applies to these light bulbs. These light bulbs can be bought in a pack of two or as a single-bulb pack.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Works well in cold weather and damp conditions | Not long lasting |
| Universal | |
| Very Durable |
If you’re interested, check the price on Amazon!
Conclusion
Incandescent bulbs are the most compatible choice “out of the box” for garage door openers, however, they aren’t likely to last long as they aren’t very vibration resistant. It’s much better to use an LED light but it HAS to be the correct one or it won’t work because a low-quality LED will interfere with the garage door signal. Pick any one of the recommended bulbs on this list and you shouldn’t have any problems with your garage door opener!