Things To Consider Before Purchasing Wood Garage Doors For Your Home

So all throughout our build, I was set on doing something different for our garage doors. There were things I just knew I wanted to change up and things I wanted to leave the same. I had always dreamed of doing real wood garage doors and I had made up my mind that was exactly what I wanted to do. Henry kept trying to get me to look at other options and I just wouldn’t have any part of it. You know how women can be at times, a little set in our ways…or maybe that is just me?

Now, I look back and think maybe I should have thought through the process a little more. This is where lots of planning and time should really go into a new build or remodel. Not to say you will not regret some of your design decisions, but proper planning can hopefully eliminate some of them.

We didn’t go with real wood because of several reasons, but we did choose a beautiful high-quality door from Clopay that I love. The problem is that the faux wood color might be clashing with our stained natural wood elements on the exterior of our home.

The great thing is we love our garage doors and they are paintable! The verdict is still out on whether we will do this or not, but in the meantime, here are some things to consider before you purchase a garage door for yourself.

Consider the Style of Your Home

Considering the overall style of your home is a very important part of picking out your garage door or doors. For example, our new house has a modern cottage vibe. We combined old-world elements with clean lines.

We wanted to make sure the garage doors fit that style. We chose to go with the Canyon Ridge Collection by Clopay. This collection is a carriage house design with a warm authentic look. The overall style fits our home perfectly.

Clopay offers a great online tool called the Door Imagination System. This allows you to upload a photo of your home and see what door options look best.

Consider Other Exterior Elements of Your Home

Another thing to consider while picking out a garage door is the other exterior elements of your home. As I mentioned above, we really wanted to do real wood garage doors, but we knew they would be very high maintenance, not to mention extremely pricey.

We chose a faux door that had a wood-like appearance and stain color. What we didn’t take into consideration was the other real wood elements on the exterior of our home.

We ordered our garage doors in a walnut color which is absolutely beautiful but maybe clash some with our real wood stain headers and posts. This is why we are considering painting them a different color. At this point, it is very doable but it would have been much better to have already decided this before they were ordered. The lesson learned is to definitely consider other elements on your exterior before making a final decision. Everything on your exterior should have cohesive look.

Make Sure to Know the Pros and Cons of Wood Garage Doors

As I wanted wood garage doors for so long, I never really stepped back to consider some things that may make me change my mind. I absolutely love real wood. And for areas that are completely covered, such as a porch, it may not be a bad idea. But, for garage doors that are most often out in the direct weather, it may not be the best idea. They look great for a very short period of time but are very high maintenance.

There are several other options other than real wood, even faux wood that resembles real wood very closely. Another great look that we are loving is painted steel garage doors. Steel doors are less expensive than wood and are such a great look. Then you always have the even cheaper route of doing aluminum garage doors.

Another thing to consider is the weight of a wood garage door. They are quite heavy. Which means that they require a garage door opener with a motor strong enough to handle the extra weight.

Does the Door Provide Good Insulation?

Even though looks are very important, something else you may want to look at and consider is how energy efficient the garage door actually is. A garage door is opened and closed on a regular basis, so when closed it should be as energy-efficient as possible. Make sure and check out the R-value when you are looking at doors. By using an insulating material, you can reduce the transmission of heat or cold. The R-value is used to show how energy efficient a product is. The higher the R-value, the greater the insulating properties of the door. The biggest negative would be the higher the R-value, the higher the price in most cases.

Our Clopay Canyon Ridge Limited Series doors have a 2″ polyurethane insulation which results in a 20.4 R-value. We’ve already noticed how warm our garages stay in cold weather.

Research Warranty and Reviews

This is one area we made sure to check off our list before deciding on a garage door. Making sure to do your homework and research on the garage doors is very important. Reading reviews are a great way to see if a company or product holds up to its claims. I also feel it is important to make sure the particular garage door you are ordering comes with some type of warranty. A five-year warranty is normally the standard for a garage door, but it doesn’t hurt to make sure.