Have you ever driven along an otherwise-attractive street and found your eyes riveted on someone’s dingy, unpainted garage door? It got your attention, but certainly not in a good way. No matter how nice the property might be, that one eyesore can change your opinion in a heartbeat. That’s because it sticks out like a sore thumb and detracts big-time from the curb appeal of that particular abode. Having seen or imagined such a spectacle, it’s easy to see what effect a similar door could have on your own garage. Stand back and take a look at your own curb appeal, and you may decide you need a new door.
Replacing a garage door is no longer a difficult job; you just need to know what to look for. Your first decision will be in the type of door you want to buy. Basic styles include roll-up, retractable, side-hinged, or sectional with hinged sections. Although any style will look lovely and add to the look of your home, most people choose doors that retract up into the ceiling of the structure as they take up the smallest amount of space.
If you’ve never had an automatic garage door, you’re in for a treat. Manual doors hardly exist any more, because the convenience of being able to open and close the door from your car has made manual doors very unpopular with consumers. Door openers keep you out of the elements and don’t require you to get out of your car outside your home when you come home late at night. They have also made the once-tight and inconvenient space more open and usable. It isn’t difficult to install an opener, and prices are nominal.
The style of the door your choose should be something that will blend in with the décor of your home. Doors come in wood, fiberglass, and steel, each with their own pros and cons. Wooden doors, although attractive, have lost a lot of favor, because they lack the durability of steel and need more maintenance to keep them looking nice. Wood also expands and contracts with the heat and cold, and it can develop unsightly cracks as it spends years exposed to the weather.
A fiberglass door is a good choice when you want to let in more light or near oceans where salt becomes a factor. Fiberglass is tough and durable and will look nice for many years with only a little cleaning. It is not necessary to paint or stain it.
Steel doors are also a good choice, because they a low-maintenance, don’t crack, warp, or otherwise succumb to the weather, and they always look stylish. They are coated so that they do not rust, and they do not need to be painted. Some of these doors have been designed with steel that’s imprinted with a wood grain so that if you choose to stain it, it will give the impression of wood. If you buy a more expensive door, it will not dent so easily. Repair, when required, can be more difficult than with the other types of doors.
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