How not to fix a garage door opener

My garage door opener croaked last week. I did the responsible thing and called a local business to fix it. It appeared to me that the chain was loose and just needed some adjustment. They came out the next day informed me the main drive gear was stripped and I’d need a new opener at a cost of almost $500. Well, it’s only about 6 years od so I decided to do some investigation. I found the gear that needed to be replaced for $8 online. I also needed the part that tightens the chain (the turnbuckle) as it had broken while I was trying to tighten the chain. Total cost plus shipping was under $20. I could tell the wife was a bit skeptical that I’d succeed in this repair adventure.

It started out ok. I had the opener disassembled so all I needed to do was replace the part and re-assemble. The gear was easy to replace, then I had to thread the chain and tighten it. That was a little tricky as it’s a lot chain to squeeze through some tight spots. I got it tightened and all I needed to do was adjust the door so it would open and close correctly. Problem is that is a lot more difficult than it looks. I had to keep starting and stopping the door manually to make sure it didn’t go too far. Unfortunately I didn’t react fast enough and the sprocket that I had just replaced tried to eat the turnbuckle I had also just replaced. The result was the turnbuckle broke again and I said a lot of bad words with my 4 yr old son looking on in disbelief. After composing myself, I surveyed the damage and realized I still had a part that I could use to fix it again. I went back to threading the chain through while cursing just under my breath. I was looping it around the sprocket when the chain got away from me and hit the exposed circuit board. That wouldn’t have been a problem if I had remembered to cut the power to the opener. The opener made a audible pop and the lights went out. Naturally, Zach was still in the garage with me but luckily he didn’t freak out. I made my way to the door and brought Zach inside to find a flashlight. I reset the breaker I had tripped, but the opener still wouldn’t power up. I don’t know exactly what was wrong with the opener at this point, put I was pretty sure I was not going to be able to fix it.
I had one more shot to get the opener fixed yet that night. My next door neighbor had stopped by a couple days before because he heard my garage door opener was broke. He informed me he had one just like mine that I could have. He replaced his with a belt drive opener and the old one was free to a good home. I thanked him for the offer, but said I had parts on order and I thought I could get it fixed. Which is why after fighting my broken opener for over an hour I called up my neighbor to see if the free opener offer still stood. Within 15 minutes of my calling him I had an operational garage door. And I felt like a complete idiot for not taking him up on his offer earlier. I do plan on paying it forward. If anyone is interested in a fried garage door opener, I have one available for the low price of free to a good home.