The Advantages and Disadvantages of the Main Types of Garage Door Shutters

Installing a garage door, whether it’s for your residential home or for an industrial facility, can be an expensive and time-consuming operation. To make sure you don’t spend even more time and money in the future changing your garage door, it’s important to carefully consider your requirements before making this crucial decision. This is because there are a range of different types of garage doors to choose from and each of them have their own unique qualities which make for a range of advantages and disadvantages. Hence, understanding these individual qualities, pros, and cons is key.

From traditional side hinged garage doors to side to side options, these are the main types along with their advantages and disadvantages to help you reach the right decision!



Tilt Up and Over Canopy Garage Doors

Canopy style garage doors are different to the other options because they’re always made of one solid piece of material, be it wood, metal, or plastic. They work on a pivoting hinge mechanism that allows it to tilt upwards and then into the garage on a rail. The garage door then sits parallel to the ceiling and the floor when it’s opened.

This type of garage door is a good option because it’s a more cost-effective choice than the alternatives. This is because, where the others have more moving parts, more complex builds, and are often automated, these garage doors require a lot less labour and are usually manually opened and closed. The other benefit is that they don’t take up any room on either side of the garage door.

However, they usually aren’t automated and manually opening and closing your garage door every time you use it will likely get irritating. The other problem is that they require some clearance room outside the front of the garage door, whereas roll up and sectional doors require no clearance at all.

Tilt Up and Over Retractable Garage Doors

These are similar to the canopy garage doors, only that the garage door is held independently from the frame. As it closes, various mechanisms pull the bottom of the garage door inwards so that it doesn’t protrude past the front of the garage opening.

Retractable canopy doors are a good option as they solve the common problem with normal canopy doors; that they only allow for limited space usage outside the garage. Not only can you park your car in your drive and be able to open the garage fully without needing to move the car, but this option will also hold the door in place as it’s opened and closed, making it more durable over the long term.

Yet, many more mechanisms are at play to allow this to happen. Not only does this make retractable canopy doors a more expensive option, but it also uses a lot more space to house all the needed components, and they require more maintenance as there are more working parts than the original canopy version.

Side Hinged Garage Doors

As their name suggests, these garage doors work via a side hinge just like regular internal house doors. They usually open outwards to allow more room within the garage or industrial facility and they can be made as single or double doors. They can resemble barn doors as they’re usually made of wood for more of an aesthetic look, or galvanised steel for a more durable build.

Side hinged garage doors are particularly useful because they don’t take up any space within the garage or industrial facility itself, leaving you much more storage room both above and on either side of the garage door. The other advantage is that they’re more aesthetically pleasing than more industrial-style alternatives, making them good for customer-facing businesses.

The downside to these doors is that they require considerable clearance space outside the door whereas traditional shutters need none at all. This makes it difficult to park a car outside the garage in the drive if you have these doors installed. They can also be noisy when the door is opened and closed and their hinges mean that they require more maintenance than the other options.

Roll Up Garage Doors

Roll up garage doors are most common in commercial and industrial settings rather than residential areas, but they’re still a useful and space-conscious option. In essence, the door is made up of a series of metal slats that move up and down a rail to open and close to form either an opening or a closed off wall of slats.

These are a good option because they’re specifically designed for heavy usage and high performance settings. Whether your facility is in an area with extreme or variable weather conditions, or if you need a durable garage door because of the types of items moving in and out of the facility, Thoroughbred Industrial Doors will have the right option for you.

The downside to this durability is that they’re often a more expensive option. Especially when compared to sectional doors, to which window inserts and other appearance-enhancing additions can be incorporated, this is something to carefully consider. In general, these doors are best for storing valuable items as they’re generally more secure.

Sectional Garage Doors

These garage doors are similar to the roll up option. When the door is fully open, it lays parallel to the roof and when it’s closed it lays in line with the walls. This is able to happen because this garage door has large sections that move independently from one another, along a set of rails.

The main advantage for sectional garage doors, similar to roll up garage doors, is that they take up zero space on the walls surrounding the garage front. This will leave you more room for shelving and storage. Where they have the edge over roll up garage doors is that, because the sections are much larger, small window inserts can be added.

That being said, they do limit the amount of overhead clearance your garage will have, leaving you less room for storage. To resolve this issue, you may want to make your garage door opening taller but this is likely to be costly. They’re also less durable than their roll up alternative.

Slide to the Side Garage Doors

These were one of the first types of garage doors to be put to use because they don’t require much headroom. As their name suggests, the door is broken into slats or sections, a lot like roll up garage doors and sectional garage doors, but these move horizontally rather than vertically. Each slat or section rolls along a rail until the door is fully opened or closed.

The great thing about slide to the side garage doors is that, unlike most other options, they require minimal headroom. This makes them ideal for garages that have a low ceiling or in industrial facilities where vertical space is used for other things like storage. The other benefit is that it’s easier to automate these garage doors than their roll up and sectional cousins and they can also be operated on a slight slope.

On the other hand, they obviously take up wall space. This is particularly problematic in smaller garages and industrial facilities. Plus, if you’d like your garage to be as aesthetically pleasing as possible then you mightn’t be a fan of the rails stuck on the walls when the garage door is closed.

Clearly, there are a number of options available to you as you begin your search for the right garage door, whether this is for your home or for a business facility. Regardless, the most important thing to do is to carefully consider your needs and requirements and to compare these with the advantages and disadvantages of each type of door in this guide. Then you’ll be able to find the most appropriate option, saving you money and time in the future rather than having to replace or change it in a few years.

At Thoroughbred Industrial Doors, we have a broad range of garage doors for you to choose from and, as industry-leading experts, we can help you to maintain and install your garage door. If you have any further questions about garage door installations, or if you’d like to know about any of our other services, then don’t hesitate to give us a call on 01638 718 718!