Garage Lights

We have an electric garage door opener and I think it may be getting old. It's the second one we've had here. The first one used some kind of nylon strap that disintegrated after a few years. This one has a screw drive and it's still working fine, but the light bulbs don't seem to last very long. They used to last for months, but now it seems they only last a couple of weeks. I looked for some "Rough Service" bulbs, but all Home Depot had was the extended life bulbs, and they didn't last any longer. I suspect the machine has developed a vibration that is reducing the life of the bulbs. This may mean it is due to fail any time, or it may last for another ten years.

Wires stuffed into groove cut in back of mounting board

Betting that the machine is going to last more than a couple more weeks, I decided to mount the lights on the ceiling. Total parts cost was about five bucks. Flipping extension cords are cheaper than wire. I used the cutting board from the shingle episode and cut some grooves in the back with a skill saw to accommodate the wires. Extension cords have gotten thicker. I had to make two passes and it was still just barely deep enough. I just eyeballed it. Measuring might have been a good idea. I started with about an eighth of an inch. 3/8 would have been better. A hole saw for access holes to the light bulb bases would have been a good idea also.

Light fixture mounted to ceiling and plugged into garage door opener.

Bonus: I don't have to deal with the screws that hold the light cover on the opener anymore. They are in plain sight only if you are within inches of the ceiling. One more royal pain gone from my life.

Update November 2016 replaced missing pictures, added captions and labels.