Types Of Garage Doors & Garage Door Openers

Garage doors make the first impression of the curb appeal of your home. A basic garage door with fancy glass window work and lavish looking material can get you all the wows but it doesn’t really offer the security. After all, security and safety is the primary purpose of having a hefty garage door. Therefore, there are few types of garage doors that are differentiated based on the appearance, material, mechanism and many more. Yet the main criteria of differentiation have always been the functionality or the mechanism therefore; let us discuss the types of garage doors based on the mechanism. This article is written as per the inputs from the garage door technician.

Types of Garage Doors:

 1. Sectional Garage Doors:

A sectional garage door is a type of garage door which happens to be one of the most popular types of garage doors in the United States. In this type of garage door, the small door panels are hinged to each other and are rolling on the small rollers. The door panel track of these types of garage doors is curved at the top as the door opens and the panels roll inside the garage, below the roof itself. This mechanism and assemble basically allows the panels to settle parallel to the roof. This saves space and also gives a pleasant appearance to the garage doors. High tension springs are installed on both the roller sides to keep the garage doors held up in the middle of the track, it saves the garage door from drifting down and falling unexpectedly.

2. Roll-Up Garage Doors:

Roll-up garage doors are probably the most seen garage doors but you must have noticed that these types of garage doors are installed mostly at the industrial garages than at the domestic ones. Basically, the roll-up type of garage doors is design optioned for the garages where there is only limited ceiling space. These garage doors are manufactured by setting steel slat sections on a roller drum. As the door opens or closes the slats of the door roll out or roll in, over the drum itself. These garage doors are also called as coiling garage doors, these high-performance units can be developed without springs. These garages perform great against corrosion, frost, and heat, etc. They can be used for the heavy-duty applications therefore; the cost of these roll-up garage doors is higher than sectional ones.

3. Slide to the side garage doors:

Slide to the side garage door performs the same as the name suggests. These garage doors open by bending them to one side as they fit parallel to one of the garage walls. These garage doors are ideal for the garages where there is only limited headspace. In this mechanism, the small-sized garage slats roll over the slight slopes set either on the floor or the roof. The mechanism is simple and the style is often considered the oldest of the garage doors. Nowadays it is auto operated by the use of a rectangular motor set to trigger the direction of the garage door.

4. Tilt-up and over canopy garage doors:

The tilt-up garage door or the over canopy garage doors are the fancy style of garage doors. These garage doors are basically made of a solid metal slate which is eccentrically hinged over a rolling drum assembly. The door opens and closed by lifting and dropping the hinge from the front side. These canopy garage doors fit exactly parallel to the ceiling and also to the front frame of the garage.

There is another version of this type of garage door called a tilt-up rectangular frame door. In this type, the rectangular metal slate is hinged similarly as in canopy but the only difference is the hinge is in the middle of the rectangle. This assembly takes more space therefore it is less preferred by the users.

When it comes to garage doors, there is one component that cannot be ignored. This component is called the Garage door opener. Because unlike traditional doors, garage doors are bulky, hefty mechanisms which need the lifting mechanism called garage door opener. Just like garage doors, there are multiple types of garage door openers that are detailed as follows.

Types of Garage Door Openers: 

1. Belt-drive garage door openers: 

Belt drive garage door opener is an extremely simple and silent type of garage door opener. It has a belt wrapped over a pulley or a gear pinion arrangement which adds or reduces the tension on the application and allows the door to be lifted. It is a basic weight lifting mechanism integrated into a garage door. Unfortunately, the belt drive lacks the strength to hold the weight therefore these openers are not ideal for hefty metal doors but can be used for acrylic or wooden doors.

2. Chain-drive garage door opener: 

Chain drive garage door openers are the modification of belt drive openers where the belt is replaced by a chain to pull the weight. This opener makes noise while operating but with proper maintenance, it can be used for heavy garage doors for a considerable time. This type of garage door opener requires maintenance like lubrication.

3. Screw-Drive Garage Door Opener: 

The screw-drive garage door opener is suitable for many garage door kind of opener. It uses a threaded shaft which interlocks with the threads of the garage door. This type of garage door opener is ideal for the limited use of heavy garage doors. Being metallic and machined assembly, it needs maintenance like consistent lubrication, load management. It cannot take the jerks while lifting the load therefore; it can only be used until the threads are sharp.

Now that you are well aware of the different types of garage doors and garage door openers, you are all set to purchase the one that suits your requirements.

Also we provide garage door repair in Maumelle