Driving around Toronto and places like Richmond Hill and Vaughan, you see more and more well-built or renovated properties. One specific area of interest is garage doors, for which, it seems, now there are hundreds of types and designs. Plenty of folks have gone with aluminum garage doors, due to their low maintenance needs. These doors don’t get rusty and come in lots of different styles and designs. They’re also kind to automatic door openers, due to their lightness, which means you’re less likely to find yourself parked up in front of a garage door that won’t open.
Things You Ought to Consider When You Buy Aluminum Garage Doors
Once you’ve decided to go with aluminum garage doors, that’s unfortunately not the end of it. There are plenty more things you need to consider in order to make sure you get it right. After all, a residential garage door or commercial garage door is a very important part of your property, having a major effect on aspects such as security, curb appeal and energy consumption. Not getting it right could end up costing you a lot of money further down the line. The kinds of issues you’ll need to consider include the following:
- Make Sure It Will Is Properly Insulated – Just because you know the thickness and the material of the door, doesn’t mean you can know how it will perform as an insulator. More insulation means more heat retention and lower energy bills. As energy costs have gone up, better insulation has appeared in aluminum garage doors. Another factor has been noise reduction – with more garages being connected to the main house, outside noise can enter through the garage door and travel through the house. Obviously, better insulation reduces this.
- Make Sure It Is Safe – Don’t just assume that your door will be safe, simply because it’s made of metal and it’s big. Modern doors come with many features that are designed to improve safety for you and your family. This is especially important when you bear in mind that these relatively heavy doors are usually moved automatically. Look out for features such as pinch-resistant edges and tamper-resistant bottom brackets, for added safety.
- Choose Any Design Carefully – Don’t settle for any old garage door. It needs to fit in with your overall security, lighting and aesthetic strategies for the property.
- Consider the Spring Design – Door springs can hold incredible tension when they are compressed. After all, they are used for lifting a large piece of metal upon command (your door opener merely pushes the door, the springs do the lifting).
- Find Out What the Warranty Offers – it’s perhaps not the first thing people think to ask about when buying aluminum garage doors, but nonetheless, it is important. Good warranties tell you that the manufacturer is confident about the door’s quality and design.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions when it comes to purchasing – most of us don’t go out and buy new aluminum garage doors on a regular basis, so it’s perfectly understandable that you’ll have lots of questions. If you’re not satisfied with what you see, or what you’re being told, don’t hesitate to look around and become better educated about what’s possible. If you’re stuck for ideas or inspiration when it comes to design, you could simply get in your car and go for a ride around Toronto, Richmond Hill and Vaughan, to take a look at people’s garage doors. You may be surprised when you look closely – quite often doors which appear to be wood, turn out to be aluminum. At the moment, no material can match it for the versatility of garage door design.
