In the past, garage doors were not a priority and often added as an afterthought. Many homeowners did not spend as much time and resources on them as they did on their front doors. Nowadays, however, garage doors are essential to a house because they heighten security and boost its curb appeal. As such, they now feature some of the most elaborate locking systems and timeless designs.
Garage door manufacturers often base their aesthetic and functional designs on the material they use for a door. Wood, retractable steel, and metal sheets have different qualities, and, therefore, need different hardware and accessories. The material also determines the longevity of the garage door, how often the spring mechanisms need checking and servicing and how it should open and close.
Overhead doors are among the most popular for wooden and metallic doors in Mareeba, Australia. These doors are lifted into your ceiling using a rail or track. Overhead doors were only manually operated in the past, but now, more homes are using motorized and remote-controlled garage doors.
Take your pick from these types of overhead garage doors:
Up & Over (Canopy) Doors
This model is the easiest to install, but they do require plenty of headroom so that the bottom of the garage door can swing outwards, pushing the upper portion inside the garage. About a third of the bottom of the garage door sticks outside your garage whenever it opens. Canopy doors are among the easiest overhead doors to use and are considered to be more secure than retractable doors.
Up & Over Retractable Doors
Up & over retractable garage doors look very similar with the canopy garage doors, except that they can retract almost fully inside and up along the garage ceiling. The door is mounted on multi-tension springs and horizontal steel tracks (one on either side of the garage door) that that lift the door in place. Once the handle is pulled open, the mechanism will effortlessly lift the door. They are space-efficient and more convenient compared to swing-out doors (the garage door will slide open with minimal effort). Another advantage of up & over garage doors is they are convertible to automatic. The disadvantage? They’re quite heavy, so they may be prone to intermittent spring malfunctions.
Roller Doors
These garage doors are made with narrow, steel sheets whose ends are attached to a roller. When opened, the slats compress and move smoothly in place above the frame of your garage door. The advantage with roller garage doors is there’s no need not install an overhead track. On the flipside, roller doors leave very little room for aesthetic enhancements because they can’t support windows and heavy accessories.
Sectional Doors
These are the most popular overhead garage doors today. A horizontal sectional garage door is made of several panels that slide up towards the ceiling. The panels slide smoothly on the steel tracks on the left and right sides of the garage door. Unlike with the up & over garage doors that form a wide “canopy” when closing and opening, sectional doors take up very little space. Some brands also come with insulation. Sectional doors are cost-effective because you only need to repair or replace the damaged sections rather than pay for the entire door.
These overhead garage doors are all efficient and will serve you well; but if you want to get the most of your money, choose the model that meets your standards for safety and efficiency.
