My garage door chain broke, what should I do?

When it comes to chain drive garage door openers they come in several different ways. The most common chain drive garage door openers are manufactured by Chamberlain, LiftMaster or craftsman. Also in all my years of repairing garage door openers I have never ever seen a chain break it is usually something attached to the chain that has broken. Four instance some LiftMaster/craftsman brand openers that are bought at a retail hardware store will have a chain that is combined with a steel cable making it half chain and have steel cable it is just enough chain to open the door.

full chain opener

Now if you have one of these chains that is half chain and half steel cable then all of the ones that I have seen break was the part of the middle cable that attaches to the chain that has broken not the actual chain itself. If you do not have one of these chain drive openers and you have an opener that has a full chain all the way front and back. then if the chain has come off and is hanging down it is most likely not the chain that has broken it is either the gear and sprocket or the plastic or metal sprocket in the front of the garage door that the chain rotates around that has deteriorated or broken off.

just replace the rail

I have also seen the carriage that slides back and forth on the opener rail get destroyed or break apart and the chain will break off because both ends of the chain are attached to the travel carriage. If this is the case then you should just replace the opener rail as long as the motorhead is still good. As long as the opener is not too old then you should be able to just replace the rail. If the chain has come apart because of the gear and sprocket then this is what you will have to replace inside the motorhead it is very common for the gear and sprocket to come apart or wear out because the gear inside the opener is made of plastic.

garage door opener will cost you anywhere from $300-$500 to replace

I usually keep at least two gear and sprocket kits for LiftMaster or craftsman openers on my truck because it is that common of a problem. Any one of these factors that may have caused your chain to break or come off can always be repaired and you should be able to repair them for less then what it would cost for a new garage door opener. It should cost you anywhere from 150-$200 to fix any of these problems and a new garage door opener will cost you anywhere from $300-$500 to replace. If you think your garage door opener is too old then it might be a good idea to just replace the opener. If you need to replace the gear and sprocket kit inside the opener then if it is installed properly then you should be able to get at least another 10 to 15 years of life out of your opener.