Buying Garage Doors - 8 Important Factors to Consider

Garages and their maintenance are important to the ambiance of a home. So you should consider replacing the garage door if it is too old or if it has an old motor or pulley system. Some of the most popular garage doors to check out are sectional, roller doors, up /over doors and side hung doors:

Roller Garage Doors

Roller doors are an ideal alternative if you have a short drive way or a tiny garage. When selecting the materials for these doors, your choices are either aluminum steel or aluminum. You can purchase roller doors either with or without insulation.

Up/Over Doors

Similar to the roller door, the sectional door is great if there is little space. The door has a series of panels or sections that lets the door lift up and glide into the overhead roof space.

Sectional Doors

These doors are well-suited for larger garages with a fairly long driveway because they initially swing out before the lift to the roof area.

Side Hung Doors

As garage doors can be expensive, you should ensure that a garage door seal is included. This feature is important mainly because the seal acts to keep out rodents as well as rain, wind and snow.

Motorized System used

As noted by the experts at About.com, the primary types of systems consist of chain drive, screw-drive system, and the computer controlled system. The screw drive system moves the length of a steel rod and includes a lifter mounted into the garage ceiling. The computer based system does not use any chains or screws or chains and the system is mounted over the door.

Speed and Power

The faster the door opens the more power it uses or requires. A faster door also equates to one that is more expensive. However, this feature reduces waiting time on the open. And though it opens rapidly, the more powerful door typically closes much more closely for safety reasons. Further, the motors with more power may have larger motors which last longer and can be quieter

Security Features

More recent door models use random codes. Here, a different random code is returned every time the remote control opens the garage door. This security feature is supposed to prevent the opening another garage door and vice versa. Popular remote controls are available in multi-functions for multiple garage use and the keypad controller which provides a timer set to provide enough time to exit the garage at your own pace.

Safety Features

These features essentially keep the door from crushing people or objects by reversing direction upon contact. It's an electronic feature mandated by law.