Garage Doors

One of the worst materials in history for garage doors (or almost anything for that matter) is wood fiber. When it first comes out it looks good but after years of use and weathering moisture builds up and the panels begin to swell and sag. Besides, they are heavy and are hard on garage openers. Thankfully, nobody makes them like that anymore.

Types:

• Panel Doors: This is the odds-on favorite with garage door installers because they are safe and easy to operate. In addition, the car can be right in front of the door and you don’t have to worry about the front getting hit like with a swing-up door. The most popular material is vinyl because it it light and has a dent r-value whereas steel, fiberglass and aluminum doors have to be insulated. These doors use torsion springs – a shaft and drum assembly – which distribute the weight of the door more evenly. There is also no fear of breaking and flying off like an extension spring.
• Swing Up Doors: These are a solid door and use and extension spring which is an easy-to-install mechanism. When opening the whole door tilts and swings up.

Materials

• Steel: These doors are extremely strong and won’t warp, break or crack. They also have wood-grain patterns rivaling the look of wood without the cost of time and money in maintenance. The finish is made of hot-dipped, galvanizing with either a vinyl cladding or a polyester coat so they will not rust. Like aluminum, if bent they are difficult to repair.
• Aluminum: Tilt-up doors are usually made from aluminum because they are very light. however, even though they will not rust, aluminum is easily dented and needs insulation.
• Fiberglass: Another light-weight material, aluminum resists corrosion but can break and it will yellow in time.
• Vinyl: Like in window construction vinyl is making big inroads into garage doors. it is light, dent resistant and comes in a wide variety of colors. The insulation value is good, as well. However, for wide doors some products have sagged from warping. Vinyl is great but do some checking before putting on a wide garage door.

The Great Garage Hoax

It started becoming a prominent feature with the coming out of split-level homes. Then, because no designer cried foul, it multiplied until it took over three-quarters of the home frontage. I am speaking about the most over-rated and the most ugly of home features – the garage!

The garage began before the turn of the 20th century as a place for the well-to-do to keep the carriage. (Most city people did not have the space to keep the horses so they were housed at the local stable.) Then the automobile made garages a necessity. But no one said that they had to take over the curb view.

A Big Tongue

Many split-level designs shoved the garage out front like a big tongue. The rest of the home hid behind the house as if the homeowner was afraid to come out. This put the entrance door in a dark, enclosed area between the home space and the garage.

And while the old one-car garage may not be an option for three cars no one said that you had to build three garages side by side. Home builders pushed these monstrosities and, years later, designers were showing the same people how to add living space above your garage. Is that what you want people to remember your house by?

If you have one of these eyesores and want some help on a re-design go to Renovation Experts and get up to 4 great ideas and estimates.