Wood Garage Doors: Is One Right for You?

If you are considering installing wood garage doors, and are wondering if they would be the right choice for you, then this article will help you with some ideas to consider. There will be a number of factors that you should investigate before going ahead with a wood garage door. These would include your local climate and how cold it gets in the winter. Are you in an area of possible high winds? And then you should also compare the cost of wood garage doors to other materials. Putting some time and research into these topics should ultimately help you make the right choices both for your home and for your pocketbook.

Climate and Environmental Conditions

Your local climate and environmental conditions can be an important factor in your decision to purchase a wood garage door. Extreme weather conditions and local temperatures, especially in the winter, can make the use of wood as a garage door material impractical.

Wood, generally speaking is a good insulator. However, when compared to garage doors that are insulated they do not provide nearly as much insulating value. This is an important consideration especially if you live in a part of the world that gets extreme cold temperatures in the winter. Home engineers will tell you that your garage door can be greatest source of heat loss in your home. A wooden garage door may not be a practical consideration especially if you are concerned about energy consumption and the cost of heating your home. In these cases, an insulated garage door may be a better option.

Another weather condition that you should be concerned about is extreme winds. If you are in an area that occasionally experiences hurricanes or other types of high wind conditions, then a reinforced steel garage door might be better compared to a wood garage door. Wood is strong, but not nearly as strong as steel. In addition, a garage door made of wood is much heavier than a metal garage door which makes it more susceptible to damage from high winds. With these thoughts in mind, lets take a look at the types of wood that are most commonly used in wood garage door construction.

Types of Wood Garage Door Materials

Wooden garage doors are typically made of a number of different woods. These types of wood all have different positives and negatives and also provide different looks and styles that you should consider so that your doors compliment your home.

The most common types of wood used in wood garage door construction are Cedar, Redwood and Hemlock. Oak is also used in some areas usually because of its extreme strength and durability. Cedar, Redwood and Hemlocks are most often used though due to their natural resistance to rot. These types of conifers contain higher amounts of natural oil which simply make them last longer in areas where humidity is a consideration.

High humidity is one the the main environmental factors which can destroy your doors. Not only can it cause rot as suggested above, but it can also cause warping to occur in your garage doors. Warped doors will not seal properly, and often will not run properly on the rails and can bind up and get stuck in either the opened or closed positions. Regular maintenance of your doors can help prevent warping. Insuring that the doors are well sealed with a good paint or stain and making sure that any areas that are rubbing are adjusted can help ward off moisture intrusion which in turn can cause the warping. Maintenance leads us to our final consideration when trying to decide on wooden doors - cost.

Wood Garage Door Costs

Wood garage doors have certain costs both initial and ongoing that are particular to wood as a material. Because the wood in doors like this must be high quality and the manufacturing and installation process much more in depth, you should factor in how much this is going to cost you.

Compared to almost every other garage door material, wood is going to be the most expensive. Steel garage doors, because of the ease of manufacturing are much cheaper - often a tenth of what a wood garage door will cost. Other garage door materials such a aluminium, wood composite and fiberglass are also usually cheaper than wood. The wood used to make garage doors must be high quality to prevent cracking and extreme warping and generally speaking the manufacturing process must be more precise to make a garage door that both looks good and operates properly.

Installation of wooden doors should also be factored into the total cost of your garage doors. Wood garage doors are much heavier than doors made of other materials. Because of this, you will have to install heavier rails and beams to support the door. Further, you should not attempt to install them yourself as any mistake can lead to door damage or doors that do not fit or ride properly. A professional installation is a must - and that is going to cost you some money!

Now that you see the importance of these factors, you should be better equipped to make the decision whether wooden garage doors are right for you or not. Your climate conditions, types of wood and maintenance issues and the overall cost must be issues that you address before you lay out your money. So, armed with this information, make a list of your requirements and go shopping for a new wood garage door!