When it comes to the exterior design of homes, all the craze is about the front doors, and very often the most visible feature of the house gets neglected from the aesthetic point of view. Which is why we want to give you the answer to the question what is the most popular type of garage door?
The most popular type of garage door is the steel sectional design. This type of garage door, besides steel, can also be made of aluminum and composite materials.
When choosing a garage door for your home, whether as a replacement or part of new construction, you will be faced with the choice of both the material and the type of operation. So let’s get into the details of both of these.
What is the most popular type of garage door?
As I’ve said above, it is a sectional design made of steel. These garage doors are arguably the most common type and most people when they say “garage door” have the mental image of the sectional garage door. When you venture into any suburb, chances are pretty good that 9 of 10 garage doors you see will be of this type.
What types of garage doors there are?
There are several types of garage doors, and they are divided by the way they are operating. This can have a large impact on their longevity, ease of use, and any potential problems that can arise during their life. So making the right choice can be the difference between having a useful garage door that keeps the elements out of your garage and a headache.
Sectional garage doors
Sectional garage doors are made of several hinged sections that slide up and down along the rails on the door frame and along the ceiling. Being built from several sections allows them to safely slide along the curved section of the rails. Most of the time they are counterbalanced in some way, and besides having a narrow profile, they can stay partially opened.
Roll-up garage doors
Roll-up garage doors are more common in commercial buildings than in residential types. They are made of relatively thin interlocking sections of steel, usually 2 to 3 inches tall, that can be rolled around a drum located at the top of the door frame.
Side-slide garage doors
Side-slide garage doors are very similar to the sectional type. The main difference is that their operation is rotated for 90 degrees, and instead of opening towards the ceiling, they slide to the side and along the sidewall. They are not as popular as standard sectional doors, because many people have concerns about the potential warping of the top rail.
Side-hinged garage doors
For all intent and purposes, side-hinged garage doors are just a type of oversize double or French doors. They have the same design and function as all other double doors. Hinges are installed on the door frame, from which a pair of doors are hung. This type of door provides an opportunity of having perfectly matching front and garage doors.
Tilt-up garage doors
This type can be divided into two sub-types depending on the way that the canopy of the doors is tilting:
- canopy,
- retractable.
A canopy tilt-up style garage door is made of a single piece of material that rotates up and down when operated around a pair of pivots located usually at a top quarter height. When opened, about ¾ of these doors are protruding out.
The retractable type has a slightly complicated mechanism, with the top of the door sliding along the rails hanging from the ceiling, and allowing for the doors to almost completely retract inside the garage when opening.
What types of materials for garage doors are used?
Besides the choice of how the doors operate, you have a wide choice of materials they can be built from. All of them have their own advantages and disadvantages and are more or less suitable for some door types.
Steel garage doors
Steel garage doors are usually made of two layers of galvanized steel, between which there can be a layer of insulation for heated garages, such as on many sectional garage door designs. They are durable and practically maintenance-free and come in a wide range of different colors and styles.
Aluminum garage doors
Aluminum sheets can be used instead of steel for the construction of garage doors. It provides the same advantages as steel, but also much better resistance to corrosion. But, aluminum is not a popular material for garage doors in the US as it is in other parts of the world.
Vinyl garage doors
Vinyl sectional garage doors are very popular in areas where the doors can be subjected to the corrosive influence of salty water, such as coastal areas. While the steel can be made corrosion resistant, it will eventually start rotting away if exposed to salty spray. So, composite and non-metallic materials like vinyl are the better choice.
Composite wood garage doors
Composite wood is just another name for plywood. It is not a very popular material because most people are not aware of the actual quality of the plywood can be. Marine-grade plywood is resistant to both moisture and delamination and is very resistant to shrinking and expanding.
So, if you want a hardwood-looking garage door without all of the problems associated with wood, it is a good choice.
Hardwood garage doors
Just like their name implies, they are made of the solid piece or pieces of wood. Because of that, they are very high-maintenance material and also very unpopular
Glass garage doors
More often can be seen garage doors made with an intention to have the content of the garage seen from the outside. These are usually constructed of aluminum frames holding tempered glass panels. Currently, they are the most expensive type of garage door.
Conclusion
Whether you are looking to purchase a replacement or deciding on what to have installed on a house currently being constructed, it is a good idea to know what is the most popular type of garage door. The answer to that question is a sectional garage door made of steel. They are very durable and practically do not require any maintenance.