Garage door

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A garage door is a large door on a garage that can either be opened manually or by a garage door opener. Although of many designs, most garage doors are sectional, upward acting, and self storing. Garage doors are necessarily large to allow passage of automobiles and/or trucks.

A common material for a new garage door is mild steel sheet roll formed to look like a raised panel wood door. A design mimicking carriage house doors has become quite popular since about 2002, and many manufacturers clad the exterior of a smooth steel door with composite or vinyl boards to give it the look of an outward swinging door. A more economical alternative for exterior clad carriage house garage doors is mild steel sheet formed to look like a carriage house door, but this method lacks the design flexibility and overall beauty of exterior cladding.

This is an example of sectional-type overhead garage doors manufactured in the style of carriage house doors. They are steel with exterior cladding. This particular model is manufactured by CHI Inc.

A typical garage door may weigh hundreds of pounds, and is typically sprung by a torsion or extension spring to counterbalance the weight of the door. The great force on these springs can make them dangerous to replace for the inexperienced or incautious handyman. Many cases have been reported where even experienced garage door technicians have suffered severe lacerations and/or broken bones in the replacement of garage door springs. Garage door torsion springs are rated in cycle life, with 10,000 cycles being the industry standard minimum, and upgrades available to around 100,000 cycles. The average spring breaks about every 10-15 years. If a garage door has two or more springs and one breaks, all springs should be replaced to maintain proper balance.

The leading causes of garage door failure and/or replacement include lack of maintenance and being hit by vehicles. A proper maintenance schedule for a garage door includes lubrication of the rollers, bearings, pulleys, and springs once a year; washing painted steel surfaces several times a year; painting or refinishing wood surfaces as necessary; and making proper adjustments to the counter balance system as necessary to maintain door balance. A properly balanced garage door should be able to be stopped mid-travel without drifting down or up when operated manually.