Pictures of wiring garage door opener to AUX switch

[TheWaterBronco]

I know for most people this is not worth the effort but I wanted a low risk starter project to get more comfortable with wiring electronics in my Bronco.

Cost: about $50 including purchase of soldering iron and multimeter

Time: about three hours all in, would be much faster for someone with an experience

I successfully wired a garage door opener to my AUX 6 switch using a cheap opener from Amazon and a relay to step down the voltage from 12v to 3v.

First step was cracking open the remote, removing the battery and soldering wires in for power.

Next I connected these wires to a 12v->3v step down relay so the remote doesn’t get fried.

I attempted to find a way to solder the switch under the remotes button to the closed position but ended up having to MacGyver this instead with plastic and tape to hold the button down.

After a bit of trial and error I was able to test this connecting to the AUX wire still in the engine bay and confirm it was working.

Running the wire through to the cabin was easy but my initial plan of hiding the remote under the plastic covering near the drivers windscreen changed because I didn’t want to mess with passing a wire through the A-pillar so close to the airbag. Thankfully I was able to find a secure and more easily accessible location at the base of the A-pillar at dashboard level.

Range seems good after testing and overall this was a really fun way to build my comfort level so I can install lighting on my own.

Plus it’s cool as hell to open the garage door with the switch

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[Rumbloki]

Thanks for sharing.
I went with this under the dash. Out of sight, and well within reach.

 

[MileHighCitizen]

Couple question if you don't mind?

Does the garage door opener store the frequency needed without a battery, or full time power? It's only receiving power when you hit the switch, correct?

Which wire did you have to run into the cabin? The way I'm reading this is that it's hooked up to an Aux switch that powers the opener as needed and you have the button taped down to activate it as soon as it receives power from you hitting the switch. Is it not connected to the Aux switch under the hood near the fuse box, i.e. the bundle in picture #4?

 

[TheWaterBronco]

Couple question if you don't mind?

Does the garage door opener store the frequency needed without a battery, or full time power? It's only receiving power when you hit the switch, correct?

Which wire did you have to run into the cabin? The way I'm reading this is that it's hooked up to an Aux switch that powers the opener as needed and you have the button taped down to activate it as soon as it receives power from you hitting the switch. Is it not connected to the Aux switch under the hood near the fuse box, i.e. the bundle in picture #4?

Sure!

Someone may correct me on this but I believe the frequency of the opener button is hardcoded and the storage of that frequency is actually on the garage door itself, which is why you have to hold down a button on the ceiling unit to program it to a new opener. The way this is wired it only receives power when I hit the switch (and the ignition is on).

It is connected to #6 wire from the bundle under the hood, I ran additional wire (not shown in picture 4) from there, through the resealable hole in pic 5 then up through the paneling to the location at the base of the A-pillar, I did have to remove the grab handle to get better access and secure it in place but it was an easy removal. There were plenty of points to ground the - wire to the frame in this location.

 

[MileHighCitizen]

Sure!

Someone may correct me on this but I believe the frequency of the opener button is hardcoded and the storage of that frequency is actually on the garage door itself, which is why you have to hold down a button on the ceiling unit to program it to a new opener. The way this is wired it only receives power when I hit the switch (and the ignition is on).

It is connected to #6 wire from the bundle under the hood, I ran additional wire (not shown in picture 4) from there, through the resealable hole in pic 5 then up through the paneling to the location at the base of the A-pillar, I did have to remove the grab handle to get better access and secure it in place but it was an easy removal. There were plenty of points to ground the - wire to the frame in this location.

Ok that makes sense.

The opener is in the cab and the wire you ran is from the opener to the Aux switch wiring under the hood, correct? I initially assumed you left the opener under the hood and was wondering which extra wire was needed.

Thank for the response. I think I'm gonna do this too, as it seems much easier than installing get homelink which ive seen other people do here.

 

[TheWaterBronco]

Ok that makes sense.

The opener is in the cab and the wire you ran is from the opener to the Aux switch wiring under the hood, correct? I initially assumed you left the opener under the hood and was wondering which extra wire was needed.

Thank for the response. I think I'm gonna do this too, as it seems much easier than installing get homelink which ive seen other people do here.

Right, it needed about 4ft worth of additional wire to run from under the hood to the tucked away position at the base of the pillar.

Easiest to do would just be to clip the garage door opener to your visor but this is a fun way to use one of the lower powered AUX switches and solves the security issue of having a garage door opener just sitting out in your car.

 

[MileHighCitizen]

Right, it needed about 4ft worth of additional wire to run from under the hood to the tucked away position at the base of the pillar.

Easiest to do would just be to clip the garage door opener to your visor but this is a fun way to use one of the lower powered AUX switches and solves the security issue of having a garage door opener just sitting out in your car.

Yeah, it’s easily reversible if I need the extra switch down the road, and I’m mostly worried about the battery running out or the opener get wet or otherwise ruined at the most inconvenient time.

 

[tock13]

I know for most people this is not worth the effort but I wanted a low risk starter project to get more comfortable with wiring electronics in my Bronco.

Cost: about $50 including purchase of soldering iron and multimeter

Time: about three hours all in, would be much faster for someone with an experience

I successfully wired a garage door opener to my AUX 6 switch using a cheap opener from Amazon and a relay to step down the voltage from 12v to 3v.

First step was cracking open the remote, removing the battery and soldering wires in for power.

Next I connected these wires to a 12v->3v step down relay so the remote doesn’t get fried.

I attempted to find a way to solder the switch under the remotes button to the closed position but ended up having to MacGyver this instead with plastic and tape to hold the button down.

After a bit of trial and error I was able to test this connecting to the AUX wire still in the engine bay and confirm it was working.

Running the wire through to the cabin was easy but my initial plan of hiding the remote under the plastic covering near the drivers windscreen changed because I didn’t want to mess with passing a wire through the A-pillar so close to the airbag. Thankfully I was able to find a secure and more easily accessible location at the base of the A-pillar at dashboard level.

Range seems good after testing and overall this was a really fun way to build my comfort level so I can install lighting on my own.

Plus it’s cool as hell to open the garage door with the switch

this is awesome! I have not messed with my aux switches yet so this would be a great first run.

i thought i read there is no power to the switches with ignition off…. So there’s no security risk of someone lucking into flipping the switch while car is parked in driveway for the night?

 

[TheWaterBronco]

this is awesome! I have not messed with my aux switches yet so this would be a great first run.

i thought i read there is no power to the switches with ignition off…. So there’s no security risk of someone lucking into flipping the switch while car is parked in driveway for the night?

Right, the switches aren’t powered if the ignition isn’t on so if you park in a driveway it’s better than leaving a battery powered opener in the car.

 

[TerryB]

Some friendly feedback to improve your soldering, and for anyone else since this is a common beginner mistake.
In your second picture that’s a cold solder joint on the remote. You can tell because it’s dull rather than shiny and the solder didn’t flow properly across the joint. A cold solder joint will be a poor connection and likely give trouble in the future.
Cold solder joints typically happen when solder is melted on the tip of the iron rather than the joint. Use this technique instead.
1. Hold soldering iron tip where it’s firmly touching the wire and the pad (whatever you’re soldering to) for 2-3 seconds.
2. Briefly apply solder to a point where it touches the soldering iron and the pad. This will form a solder ball which transfers heat more efficiently. This should be a very small ball.
3. Then apply solder to the pad, or wire, a few mm away from the soldering iron tip. Hold it there and within a couple of seconds the solder will start melting. Solder will always flow towards the heat source. This is why it doesn’t flow properly when applied to the tip of the soldering iron.

 

[BigFootie]

Nice work. Just for clarification, I assuming you mean step down transformer, not relay?

 

[TheWaterBronco]

Some friendly feedback to improve your soldering, and for anyone else since this is a common beginner mistake.
In your second picture that’s a cold solder joint on the remote. You can tell because it’s dull rather than shiny and the solder didn’t flow properly across the joint. A cold solder joint will be a poor connection and likely give trouble in the future.
Cold solder joints typically happen when solder is melted on the tip of the iron rather than the joint. Use this technique instead.
1. Hold soldering iron tip where it’s firmly touching the wire and the pad (whatever you’re soldering to) for 2-3 seconds.
2. Briefly apply solder to a point where it touches the soldering iron and the pad. This will form a solder ball which transfers heat more efficiently. This should be a very small ball.
3. Then apply solder to the pad, or wire, a few mm away from the soldering iron tip. Hold it there and within a couple of seconds the solder will start melting. Solder will always flow towards the heat source. This is why it doesn’t flow properly when applied to the tip of the soldering iron.

Thanks for the beginner tips, I will try this technique next time. This was my first time soldering anything so I was just happy it worked at all!

 

[TheWaterBronco]

Nice work. Just for clarification, I assuming you mean step down transformer, not relay?

Yes I think you are right, I’m learning the terminology as I go. This was the exact part I used:

https://www.amazon.com/3V-3A-Waterp...664494614-B07PNWPLRY-&hvexpln=73&gad_source=1

 

[Big Pony]

Looks like a fun and simple project. Question, does the Everglades not come with the sun visor garage opener buttons? Seems like wasting an Aux switch just for this, but I would totally give this I try if I didn’t have the buttons on my visor!

 

[TheWaterBronco]

Looks like a fun and simple project. Question, does the Everglades not come with the sun visor garage opener buttons? Seems like wasting an Aux switch just for this, but I would totally give this I try if I didn’t have the buttons on my visor!

I'm pretty sure there is not a way to get the sun visor in the Everglades trim since it only has the mid package (and I dont think can be upgraded). I had a bit of hesitancy using an AUX switch for this but realized I will likely never fill them all anyways!

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