Choosing the Right Garage Door for Your Home

Wood vs. Steel, Standard vs. Custom? What garage door is best for your home?

When you think of it, the garage door can take up a LOT of the house, visually. It also is used more often than the front door in many cases. So we suggest you treat it that way, and consider ALL factors so that you don't buy a door that comes back to haunt you. Factors to consider:

Location

We suggest that this is perhaps the most important factor - if the door is a prominent feature on your home, treat it that way - look at the style of the door and how it matches the style of your home. This can be a huge improvement to the way your home looks, for a fraction of the costs compared to siding, windows, front doors, roofing or re-painting the exterior of your home.

How long will you own the home?

This is perhaps just as important as location - think of this - the garage door is the largest moving item, with the most components, in the home. Given that it opens against gravity, there is a lot of pressure on the door from the springs that have to counterbalance the door, and constant pressure whether the door is opened or closed. So paying attention to the strength and engineering in the sections, as well as the hardware, is recommended if you want the door to last!

Sound

This is a major factor if you have bedrooms above or adjacent to the garage - that is why we have various door systems that can range from the everyday-sounding garage door (detached garages or garages on the end of the house that doesn't have sound concerns such as off the kitchen or family room) to the world's quietest garage door system - a Madden Door exclusive!!

Safety

More often in our hurried days, we forget about this important concern - some garage doors have features such as pinch-resistance section construction (cannot lose your fingers) and safety cable and hardware components on the garage doors, while others (such as wood doors, particularly custom) that don't have as much safety features due to their unique architectural characteristics. An informed decision here can really make the difference!

Thermal Performance

In California? You bet - not because of the cold here, but the heat! We have some of the most intense sun exposures you can have in parts of the Bay Area (such as Central Contra Costa, East Contra Costa County) where sun, if facing the garage door for even a few hours, can make the garage (and the surrounding rooms) VERY HOT! Pay attention to the material (wood vs. steel), and the application - we've learned over the years that it may not be so important in February, but when July comes around, a customer may very well have wished they'd paid more attention to this factor!!.

Reliability

One expects a new garage door to be just this; reliable - but don't assume it - many of our clients have come to us because of the failure of other garage door companies that sold them a 'bad' door. Reliability is the result of the type of door you select, the expectations of its performance and those expectations being realistic. We promise to ensure you will know the pros and cons of each door if you come to our showroom, where we can clearly explain the factors with the doors in person.

Design

Another major factor - even if you aren't looking for custom or a fancy door, the design should still compliment your home. We can help you with this - if you wish, you can send us a JPG digital picture of your garage door, along with your house in the picture, in order to offer professional design recommendations. If interested, simply click here to submit a photo.

Activity around the door/What do you use the garage for - storage, parking, game-room?

Kids, cars, pets, ball games…yikes!!! Wood and steel doors have a wide range of strength characteristics - this is why we strongly advise you to take advantage of our professional approach to this serious purchase - come to our showroom, call or email today so that we can get you started in the best direction.

Speaking of which, Getting Started:

You may have a newer home or a home that is over 100 years in age - The first step is to make sure that putting in a new modern-day sectional door will work (even if it looks like the old style carriage door). It is best to measure the opening and clearances around it to make sure this will be feasible, and even if it is not perfect, it will be enough to get started:

Measure your garage door opening:

It is usually easiest to simply close your old garage door and measure the opening from the outside to determine the new door size.

Door opening = Width x Height of opening (NOT the old door) Example: 15'10” x 7'0” means that the opening is 15 feet, 10 inches wide by 7 feet zero inches tall.

Hint >>To find the height, measure the height from the floor to the frame in 3 locations: left, right and center. Use the largest of the 3 measurements.

To find the width, measure the width from frame to frame in 3 locations: bottom, middle and top. Use the largest of the 3 measurements.

Once you have determined the door size, check the internal clearances:

Headroom space. The normal headroom required for a standard door and operator system is approx. 14”, while custom doors usually require about 18”+. In cases where your garage simply doesn't have enough space, we have special low profile track hardware to suit older homes/limited spacing. Sometimes, it requires some framing to the opening to accommodate the new door - this is our specialty and how we've helped thousands of customers with older homes, so call us and we can talk it over.

Depth: Sectional door systems simply need more inward space to operate than the old door you may have now. It's a good idea to check for oddities such as in older homes, perhaps old gas or sewer lines that run across the garage ceiling (especially when the garage is situated below the house itself), or perhaps you have a stairway or chimney that blocks the space needed for the new sectional garage door tracks. Try to find those items that may be in the way, measure where they are in relation to the garage door opening, and call us.

Never use your existing garage door as a guide.

Lastly, never count on hearsay to decide your final choice - it is our 29 years of being in business that has taught us how to determine the best outcome for our clients. Rather than the limited information tactics of most of our competitors today, we strive to ensure that all of these factors are looked at for the most relevant door system for you in the end. After all, the best-informed decision is almost always the most satisfying outcome - and our Q-I-V formula of business promises that you will get the best value from Madden Door & Sons, beyond all others!!!

Q-I-V in every job we do:

What is Q-I-V?

Quality in the products we carry, Integrity in the service we perform and Value in the price we offer.

Residential and Commercial Garage Doors
Standard or completely custom made.