Garage Doors for Every Taste

December 10, 2012

Why You Should Replace You Old Tilt-Up Garage Door

For years the standard of quality in garage doors was the wooden one-piece tilt-up door. These doors were particularly popular on homes built in the 1960's and 70's and, while many continue to operate well, they should be replaced with a modern sectional door.

Here are some things to consider.

Space: Old tilt up doors swing outward away from the door frame and reduce space and/or can hit objects (like your car) in the driveway. Sectional garage doors roll straight up.

Springs: Tilt-up garage doors typically use two very large springs mounted on the sides of the door frame. This type of spring can be very dangerous when they become worn. Modern sectional doors utilize safe torsion spring systems mounted above the door.

Safety: Tilt-up doors are most often wood and can weigh upwards of 300 lbs each. If/when springs fail that weight will swing down and damage objects or injure you or your children if in the way. Modern sectional doors are most often light weight insulated steel construction and weight between 1& 2 hundred pounds.

Insulation: Wooden tilt-up doors have no additional insulating features. Modern sectional doors can be ordered with various types of built in insulation up to R-19 Value.

Connection to the track: Tilt up doors typically have just 2 connection points and rollers - while modern sectional doors have 8-10 connection points. Modern rollers also are ball bearing and are much quieter.

Weather: Because of the tilt up/out design older doors make it difficult to create a good weather barrier/seal. Modern sectional doors are designed to seal out weather much more efficiently.

Security: Older tilt-up doors are significantly easier to break into when compared with modern sectional doors.

Curb appeal: When you consider that the garage door my be the most dominant curbside feature people see when approaching your home - a modern stylish garage door will add curb appeal to any home.

Maintenance: Older tilt-up wooden doors weather and require painting to keep in top condition. Modern sectional doors are most often a backed enamel finish on steel and require no painting.

Repairs: Many garage door companies no longer service these older style doors.

So, bottom line - the modern sectional garage door made from steel are easier to maintain - are safer, work better in weather, provide better insulation - last longer - and because they look great, will increase your curb appeal.  If you have an older tilt-up door - consider upgrading soon.

Seattle, Salt Lake, Spokane, San Diego

12 comments:

  1. How much does the average garage door repair cost? Mine just stopped working, and I think it has something to do with either the remote, or the receiver. I can still open it manually, but when its super cold and icy up here in Calgary, its not really the most entertaining thing to do.

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    1. Bill - That's a difficult question because there are so many options as to what might be wrong. At Precision we do a full 25 point inspection of each door system to determine what is the actual cause of the current issue and determine possible future issues. A simple door repair could be as little as $50.00 or as high as several hundred dollars. Remotes often loose battery power - start by replacing the battery. Stay warm!

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  3. I've actually been thinking that I should replace our old garage. We've had it for about 17 years and it's definitely lived it's life. When we had a garage in Ottawa, it seemed like we never had to replace it, I guess they just don't make them the same any more.

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    1. I know what you mean Liam. But I must say the "new ones" are definately more energy efficient and require less maintenance.

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  5. Thanks for this article, its just what I needed. I have been looking for help with my garage door repair Gilbert AZ. I have been determined to figure it out and fix ti myself but its been tough. I feel after reading enough articles I'll feel ready to at it again. Thanks!

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  6. I've got an old tilt-up garage door, and I'm wanting to replace it. I need help finding someone who does garage doors in calgary. If anyone knows where I can find someone who does quality work at a fair price I would really appreciate the help. Thanks!

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