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Old 09-17-13, 08:32 AM   #11
Geo NR Gee
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Sorry, yes I did leave out the bulbs to see if it opens or has range issues and it works fine. Ryland, the door opener also does have that cool feature you described.

Even the tough bulbs that I put in there haven't lasted as long as the CFL and LED bulbs. I even went bought a whole house surge suppressor thinking that was the problem.

We are going to try the Sylvania bulbs that NeilBlanchard mentioned and see if those don't interfere with the RF signals.

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Old 09-17-13, 10:31 PM   #12
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Other thing to try would be to move the bulb further from the receiver, light socket extension cords are not common any more, but you can make one with a cheap clamp on lamp and a screw in lamp socket to outlet dohicky, I have some extension cords that are a male and female lamp socket on either end.
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Old 09-22-13, 10:52 AM   #13
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@OP:

try different brands of LED bulbs and find one that works for you.

With CFL: there's a lot of RFI created within (thus the call for FCC standard imposed on them to keep their RFI emissions low);

RFI is what radio broadcasts, CB, etc. would do over the air: only difference is that RFI is broad-spectrum meaning that it spreads out over a very wide frequency, and it may have an impact on your garage door receiver side (which locates very close to your bulb).

While I haven't have a chance to take apart an AC120V based LED bulb yet, my investigation so far (online) has led me to believe that most of them don't have a lot of RFI-generating components within....but then again: different manufacturers may resort to using different designs...perhaps SMPS based chopper to lower the output voltage then with current regulation before feeding into the LEDs?

SMPS "choppers" are noisy, you know.

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Old 09-18-14, 11:03 AM   #14
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Hi!

I had the same problem after installing LED lights around the house. Fortunately, I found a solution called GoGogate that's working fine for me and its cheaper than replacing all remotes I have at home. I even can open and close the garage door from anywhere with my iPhone and receive alerts.
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Old 09-19-14, 07:54 AM   #15
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I have a Chamberlain Liftmaster, have had cfl bulbs in it since I installed it 5 years ago without any problems.
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Old 09-19-14, 09:42 AM   #16
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mine is also a chamberlain (security+) and none of the CFL nor LED would affect my remote control distance or consistency in terms of performance.

(* I'm now using a Ikea LED bulb in my garage door opener*)


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Old 12-13-14, 11:38 AM   #17
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I just put an LED bulb in my garage opener a while back. It's GREAT!

I had a CFL in there for a while for energy savings (light stays on while I'm working in my garage) but it warmed up so slow (especially in Wisconsin winters) that it was nearly useless for having any light to briefly open the door and go in and out of the garage.

So, I replaced it with an LED. Great light, bright, and instant on. As was already mentioned in this thread, fantastic vibration resistance compared to incandescent.

No problems at all with the garage door remote either.
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Old 04-01-15, 05:07 AM   #18
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To update this post, all was good with the garage door opening after finding out about the problems that some CFL and LED bulbs causing problems. As soon as my girlfriends son plugged in a light fixture into the garage electrical circuit, the issue popped up all over again.
So I assumed that the RFI was transmitted in the air so to speak, and didn't think that it could travel down the electrical circuit and cause the problem. Once we unplug the lights fixture in question, the range from the door opener returns.
What best practices have others used to determine a problem CFL or LED unit that causes RFI and is there a device that can clean the electrical circuit (plug in filter, surge suppressor, etc.?)
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Old 04-03-15, 02:23 AM   #19
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Does your opener have an antenna? Many have an exposed bare wire antenna that hangs down. Perhaps if its misrouted or stuck inside the lamp housing it could be extra sensative to rf. Likewise poor placement could hurt range. Try building a wire mesh faraday cage around your bulbs.
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Old 04-04-15, 01:15 AM   #20
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There is no cfl or led bulbs screwed into the openers, just a lighting fixture with fluorescent bulbs in the garage circuit. I was hoping to isolate the openers as it seems the interference is coming through the wires.

Can the antenna be extended to out the garage?

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