Accessories
The small things that decide how it feels to use
Remotes, keypads, photocells and signalling for automated doors. We match them to the specific installation - some come as standard, some you have to order deliberately.
- items on this page
- 10
- drive brands
- 3
- typical parts
- off the shelf
items on this page
drive brands
typical parts
Control and access
What you open the door with, and who is able to.
Two-channel remote
The basic transmitter. Two channels handle two doors from one fob.
Four-channel remote
For houses with several drives - door, gate, driveway lighting and one spare.
Code keypad
Opening with a code, no remote needed. Useful when the door has to be available to someone without a transmitter.
Key switch
Key-operated control fitted beside the door. Immune to a flat battery.
Radio receiver
A module added to the drive when more transmitters or a different frequency have to be handled.
Safety
The parts that stop the door before anything happens.
Photocells
A transmitter-receiver pair across the opening. Breaking the beam stops the leaf and reverses it.
Safety edge
A sensitive edge along the bottom of the leaf. It reacts to contact rather than to a broken beam - it catches what a photocell cannot see.
Signalling
Letting everyone around know that the door is moving.
Warning light
It flashes throughout the cycle. In buildings with foot traffic it is sometimes required; at a house it is simply useful.
Traffic lights
A red and green light at the entrance. Standard where the door handles trolley or delivery vehicle traffic.
Backup power
So that a power cut does not mean a closed garage.
Backup battery
A kit that keeps the drive running when the mains fails. An alternative to releasing the door by hand.
Selection
What to think about before ordering
A photocell is not the same as a safety edge
A photocell sees an obstacle along one line, at the height it is fitted. A safety edge reacts to contact along the whole bottom edge. On a door over a driveway where children run about, it is worth having both.
A second way to open it
A remote can run flat or go missing. A code keypad or key switch is cheap insurance for the day the door has to open and the transmitter is in the other car.
Channels to spare
A four-channel remote costs little more than a two-channel one and will handle the door, the gate and the lights. Adding one later means programming all over again.
Backup power or manual release
In a power cut the door can be released by hand, but from outside that is awkward. A battery solves the problem if the garage has no second entrance.
Above we show a typical range. The specific models depend on the make of the drive - we confirm the match when quoting, so that the remote really does talk to your control unit.
Accessories decide how convenient and how safe a door is to use - and bought separately years later, they rarely match the drive.
The first group is control: remotes, keypads and key switches. What you need depends on who should open the door and in what situation. A remote is enough for the household, a keypad helps when someone without a transmitter needs access, and a key switch survives a flat battery and an electronics failure.
The second group is safety: photocells and safety edges. A photocell sees an obstacle in the opening and stops the leaf before it touches it. An edge reacts only on contact with the bottom of the door. Where children walk under the door every day, or trolleys pass through, this is not optional equipment.
The third group is backup power and signalling: batteries that let you open the door during a power cut, and warning lamps. We match the specific models to the drive, because compatibility with the control unit matters more than the specification of the device itself.
What to consider when choosing
- Compatibility with the drive
- Critical for every control component. We match them to the control unit, not to the description of the device.
- Who opens the door
- Household, staff, couriers. That decides whether a remote is enough or you need a keypad or a key switch.
- Who walks under the door
- With children around and trolleys passing through, photocells and a safety edge stop being an extra.
- What happens in a power cut
- A backup battery makes sense where the door is the only way onto the property or into the building.
Already have a door? We can help with that too
Give us the make and model of the drive and we will check what can be matched to it - even if the door did not come from us.