When selecting garage doors, there are several points worth considering, but arguably one of the most important is aesthetics – how good the doors look and how well they complement the rest of the house and its frontage.
It’s hard to make any plausible case that a solid block of vinyl enhances visual appeal, and the ease with which metal dents and deforms quickly makes metal garage doors look as though they have seen better days. By contrast, wooden garage doors are naturally attractive and retain their beauty with age. Scuffs and scratches actually lend them character and are anyway easily repaired if needs be requiring little more than basic handyman tips to deal with most situations.
It’s no coincidence that wood garage doors are still first choice among architects, builders and homeowners; solid wood garage doors always add a touch of quality in the same way that solid wooden window frames totally outclass aluminium and uPVC window systems. It is also much easier to match wood types and colours to existing architectural features such as the main doors and windows of a house.
As already mentioned, wood is easy to work and repair and when properly treated wooden garage doors can easily outlast so-called maintenance-free materials such as steel, aluminium, fibre-glass and vinyl (also called polyethylene).
Metal doors are prone to attracting dents and to buckling (even simply kicking a ball against a metal garage door can ruin its appearance), and while steel doors tend to be less susceptible than aluminium, steel is heavier and will eventually rust. Fibre-glass and vinyl, while being lightweight and initially robust will over time degrade and become brittle and crack due to exposure to ultra-violet light and they are not realistically repairable once that happens.
Classic wood garage doors also provide a useful lesson in simplicity of design. Using solid wood rails and legs with panels channelled into them and typically swinging outwards on hinges there is no complicated internal framework just waiting to fail or extraneous fastenings to corrode. Most metal and vinyl garage doors on the other hand employ either an “up-and-over” system or the more recent “carriage style garage doors” design that looks as though it might swing outwards but in fact is sectioned and rolls upwards.
In both cases, complex mechanisms using garage door springs are vital to the operation of the door. And it is a near certainty that, even if you regularly maintain the mechanism, you will at some point be required to adjust your garage door springs and possible repair and/or replace them which is not a trivial task.
Get behind any set of garage doors though and the full story is revealed. Only solid wood doors look good on both sides and are not just an outer shell concealing latch mechanisms on the inside. This is critically important to anyone considering using their garage as a secondary living space.
Not only do wood garage doors look good both from outside and inside the garage, they offer superior insulation and security characteristics – heat simply flies through metal and vinyl and neither material supports the sort of proven, quality locking mechanisms typically found in solid wood doors. Although it is relatively simple to add insulating panels to the inside of a metal door, the result is never especially easy on the eye and the result compares poorly against a pre-insulated wooden garage door.
For those looking for ultimate protection then high security wooden garage doors internally reinforced with steel are able to resist even the most determined attackers for a considerable length of time. These not only protect your property but can form the basis of a garage “safe room” to prevent intruders threatening or harming you or your family.
In summary then, wooden garage doors are not only the best looking option, but last better than the alternatives and are simpler, more environmentally friendly and score highly where security and insulation are concerned. There’s no escaping the fact that a wood panelled door is far and away the most expensive option, but there’s always a price to pay for quality and don’t forget either that wood garage doors can increase the value of your home.
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When selecting garage doors, there are several points worth considering, but arguably one of the most important is aesthetics – how good the doors look and how well they complement the rest of the house and its frontage.
It’s hard to make any plausible case that a solid block of vinyl enhances visual appeal, and the [...]
Although modern garage doors can be made from a wide variety of materials, for example vinyl and fibreglass, the most commonly installed garage doors are made from either wood or steel.
There are pros and cons on both sides, but whichever you type you eventually decide upon, bear in mind that this is a long [...]
For many years, custom wooden garage doors have been consistently popular for two simple and connected reasons. Firstly there are few better ways to enhance the appearance of your house than wooden garage doors custom designed to complement existing features. Secondly wooden garage doors can actually increase the value of your house quite significantly in addition to making it much more saleable.
As the term suggests, custom wooden garage doors can be constructed in almost limitless configurations and from many different types of wood, most commonly Cedar, Redwood, Hemlock and Oak. Manufactures specializing in wood doors build quality products that will last for many years. However there’s no getting away from the fact that wood, being a natural material, requires more maintenance (i.e. regular painting or treating with stain) than metal or composite garage doors.
On the plus side, any wood garage door (whether custom or standard) brings a number of benefits to outweigh the higher maintenance regime. Wood doors off a variety of insulation options and even an entry-level wood door can provide a better R-value than a similar non-insulated steel door.
But although wood is naturally a good insulator it is not recommended for areas that suffer extreme cold or if you intend to heat or cool your garage. Likewise, for high wind risk areas such as Florida and the Gulf Coast in general, custom wooden garage doors are most unlikely to comply with high wind codes such as the Miami-Dade wind code – doors designed to withstand hurricanes are typically made of high gauge steel.
But extreme weather aside, wooden garage doors will actually take quite a bit more day to day punishment than steel doors which is definitely something to consider if you have children that play near the doors (or bounce balls off them).
The versatility of wooden garage doors is probably the true key to their enduring popularity though. Homeowners who want customized garage doors to match their home invariably choose wooden garage doors. Think about it. Is your home curvaceous with arches, or is it all straight lines and box shaped? Does it have feature details such as panels or wood trim? Are the window and door frames made of a distinctive wood, are they stained or painted a particular color?
Carriage style wooden garage doors, with their graceful curves would perfectly complement a house with curved windows. A rustic looking garage door would be a great match for a Spanish villa style house. A stylish, contemporary home could look stunning with garage doors sporting glass or wide horizontal panels. Whatever your house style – Colonial, Tudor, Mediterranean, Country, Contemporary – you can customize garage doors to match it.
Custom doors are the most expensive garage doors. These are the doors that are designed to the home owner’s specifications, and can be built to fit odd shaped or custom garages. Typically these doors are made of high quality hardwoods, and incorporate lots of architectural interest.
In most cases a custom wood door will cost much more than a metal door. Although there is some overlap in pricing, with some top-end metal garage doors being more expensive than some more basic wooden varieties, the price differential between a really cheap metal door and a quality custom wood door can be as much as ten times.
The question then is whether the difference in quality and the long-term value-add to your property justify the outlay for doors that are custom designed to your own specifications or built to fit an unusual garage arrangement.
If fully custom designed wooden doors are a stretch though, semi-custom doors are a good compromise, and in fact account for the majority of garage door sales. Semi-custom doors allow you to choose styles, materials, colors, and windows based on a set menu of options. The number and shape of panels, materials, insulation or not, and ancillary hardware can be configured to provide a garage door that appears custom made in many respects but at a fraction of the price of a bespoke wooden garage door.
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For many years, custom wooden garage doors have been consistently popular for two simple and connected reasons. Firstly there are few better ways to enhance the appearance of your house than wooden garage doors custom designed to complement existing features. Secondly wooden garage doors can actually increase the value of your house quite significantly in [...]