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garage door

Phone Conversation: “My garage door is frozen!”

Homeowner: My garage door is stuck from the Winter’s cold? What can I do to unstuck it?

Garage Door Dealer: Can you see ice at the bottom of the door?

Homeowner: Ah, yes.

Garage Door Dealer: Well then your garage doors weather seal is probably frozen to the concrete. This happens when the bottom of the door sits in water or wet snow that eventually freezes when the temperature dips.

Homeowner: So what do I do?

Garage Door Dealer: Well, to get the door unstuck, break off the ice or use warm water to melt the ice. Then raise your garage door and clean and dry the area to prevent the door from refreezing when you’ve finished.

Homeowner: That sounds simple. I tried to force my door open and break the ice.

Garage Door Dealer: That could rip your weather seal and then water, snow and cold air could get into your garage. Then you’d have to replace the weather seal.

Homeowner: I don’t want to do that. Well thank you for your information.

Garage Door Dealer: Just one more idea. Think about waxing your door with the same wax they use on cars. This can be a great way to prevent ice from sticking to your door.

Adore Your Garage Door

Whether you’re planning to build a new home or are doing a remodel, it’s unlikely you think much about your garage door. Still, it’s the largest moving part in your home and the broadest piece of curb appeal on display. Today’s best garage doors are detailed to blend into the aesthetics of the home’s design. Their architectural frame occupies a major portion of the front landscape and has a major impact on the street perception of the home.

Garage doors can have character too. In many homes, the garage doors often incorporate carriage house motifs that greatly enhance the architectural character of the home and the neighborhood. The latest garage doors offer increased style and function that can enhance the aesthetics of any home. And they are safer to use than ever before.

Decorative options are helping homeowners differentiate their doors adding a dynamic architectural accentuation to their home with a selection of glass inserts and new styles of hardware. Homeowners and builders alike are expressing increased interest in carriage-style garage doors, designed to fool the eye and mimic old-style sliding or swing-up doors. These are drawing the most attention due to their distinctive architectural styling and for traditionally styled homes this is [more]

GARAGE DOORS: WE’RE #1

In the new 2016 Cost vs. Value Report (www.costvsvalue.com), an upscale garage door replacement leaped to the top spot in the rankings of 11 upscale projects studied, while a mid-range garage door replacement again ranked third of 19 mid-range projects. The 2016 report compares the average cost for 30 popular remodeling projects with the value those projects retain at resale in nine U.S. regions and 100 U.S. markets. Garage doors have been included in the annual report since 2010.

We’re #1!

In the new study, the approximate $3,140 cost for an upscale garage door replacement delivered an estimated value at sale of $2,830, equating to a 90.1 percent Return On Investment (ROI). Far behind in second place was upscale siding replacement (fiber-cement) at a 78.1 percent ROI. The garage door’s new status as the number one upscale project should help to boost sales of upscale doors in 2016. The typical $1,652 cost for a mid-range garage door had an estimated value at sale of $1,512, or 91.5 percent of the original cost. Topping the list was attic insulation, recouping 116.9 percent, followed by manufactured stone veneer at 92.9 percent. At 91.5 percent, a garage door replacement still holds excellent value as [more]

The Ficticious R Factor

The garage door industry association, the Door & Access Systems Manufacturing Association (DASMA ) is in the process of performing U factor testing and eliminating R rating on all garage doors.  This has been expected for some time as the major manufacturers (Clopay, Overhead Door, Wayne Dalton, CHI, Amarr/Entramatic and others) have been battling over who has the highest R-Factor.

Forty years ago a company, by the name of McKee Door, did testing on a 10′ x 10′ insulated door that didn’t have weather seals around the perimeter. They determined that they may as well have a 12 inch diameter hole in the center of the door due to air leakage. Perimeter seals are a major factor in buying an insulated garage door. Regrettably no one in our industry provides anything close to the kind of seals that the window entry door industries provide on their products.

So while consumers and door dealers get hung up on polystyrene/urethane doors with fictitiously high R-Factors, they are doing nothing less than selling the consumer a bill of goods. It’s reminiscent of the same commotion that energy tax credits and pinch-proof doors provided and flooded the industry for a number of years.

A conditioned air space and an [more]

Are Cheap Garage Doors Really Worth It?

It’s easy to see where you may want to try and save money anyway you possibly can when it comes to buying a new garage door.

You think cheaper always better?

Obviously, the answer is no. Are there less expensive garage doors that are still high quality products? You bet!

There are some basic factors that you need to consider before choosing the one that would fit your specifications. These are the qualities of materials used, design and of course the garage door prices. The first thing that you need to do is to determine the design and style that you want and then allocate your budget. Once you have pictured something in your mind it will be easier for you to narrow down your search and focus on how much the door of your choice would cost.

It is normal to be worried about garage door prices because you want to get your money’s worth, right? If you are not careful you might end in getting a door with substandard quality or materials yet with a high price, the best technique here is to survey everything on offer and be selective. You should shop around and look at the various options and prices [more]

Ready Your Garage Door for the Winter

The garage door is the main access point to the home for more than 70 percent of homeowners, and as the Winter weather approaches, it’s important for homeowners to ensure the operation and safety of your household’s main point of entry.

First United Door provides some helpful tips to ensure your garage doors are ready for Winter.

Weather Stripping

Check the weather stripping around the garage door to ensure it is keeping out the cold air, and replace any damaged or missing seals.Clean the weather stripping with a good all-purpose cleaner. Lubricate it every 2 or 3 months with a SILICONE-based lubricant. Never use a petroleum-based lubricant on weather stripping as it will dry up and crack. Don’t forget the weather strip between your door panels. It is important to let your weather strip hang 1/2″ below the door base when you readjust your perimeter weather stripping. If the weather stripping is too tight, the door will not function properly. So if your weather stripping has lost its flexibility, it is best to replace it.

Maintaining the Hardware

Older garage doors can malfunction in the cold weather, so garage door maintenance and inspections are even more important during the Winter months. Metal parts of a [more]

June is Garage Door Safety Month

Increasing Garage Door Safety Awareness

The International Door Association (IDA) and the Door & Access Systems Manufacturers Association (DASMA) have designated June as Garage Door Safety Month. Both associations and their affiliated manufacturers will be working to increase public awareness of the possible hazards of garage doors and automatic opener systems, and the need for periodic inspection and maintenance to keep them safe.

Just as your customers want their garage door system to operate properly every time they need it,  they also want it to operate safely at all times.

The garage door is typically the largest moving object in your home. Properly maintained and operated,      a garage door and its operating system allow them, their families and their vehicles convenient access to and from their home. They also provide security and protect against the elements. Newer, insulated   garage doors even help save energy.

But moving garage doors can also cause serious injury. While there are some garage door system maintenance chores that your customers can – and should – perform on a regular basis, there are other tasks (including garage door installation and garage door spring replacement) that are best left to you, the dealer.

You have a responsibility to your customers to make sure [more]

Garage Door Check-Ups

At least once a year you should examine the garage door(s) on your property. To insure for proper operation and the longevity of your investment, we recommend that you pay-attention to your garage during daily use. When you find time to do a relatively simple walkthrough, follow these steps:

1. Disengage your opener by means of the emergency release and manually open and close the door. During this time, the garage should operate smoothly without making loud noises. If you can open your garage door with one hand, make sure that it’s not flying up or slamming shut.

2. Check the cables and chain, torsion springs, rollers, and track. As you look at those, also go over the hinges and mounting brackets because sometimes screws come loose.

3. Perform preventative maintenance by having a good lubricant that is made for garage doors. Remember that WD-40 is not a lubricant. With your garage door closed, place a tiny amount at each point on the door where there’s a moving part. When you’re finished, manually open and close the door to work the lubricant in. Don’t forget the bearings on a torsion spring (which is located above the door when closed).

Garage door systems will last [more]

Troubleshooting: Remote Control for Your Garage Door Opener

Believe it or not, technologies like garage door opener remote controls are supposed to make our lives easier. Unfortunately,  there is nothing easy about having to open a garage door by hand in the middle of a freezing winter night because the remote for the opener won’t work. As technologies become more complex, there are more and more ways in which they can break down. Scan the list of problems below to find one that sounds familiar, then read the quick fix underneath it. Hopefully, it will help correct the error within the remote so that the garage will open and close without any issues.

The Garage Door Opener Remote Only Works Up Close

There are quite a few things that could cause this to happen. First, check the batteries within the remote itself to be sure they still carry a charge powerful enough to operate the remote. While replacing the batteries, be sure to clean the electrical contacts, since this may be another cause of a weak signal from the remote. If the remote is still only working up close it may be time to go talk to the neighbors. If a button is stuck on a neighbor’s remote, the signal can [more]

The Biggest Impact on a Home

For something that has been so prominent in the design of new homes over recent years, the garage door has generally been seen as a Plain Jane. But who cared, really? It was just a

two-, three- or four-car structure to house the occupants’ vehicles. No one expected anything so utilitarian in nature to be a thing of beauty. But that has been steadily changing as an amazing trend has started to regain traction in the garage door industry.

That trend? Curb appeal.

In the garage door industry, people like to refer to the garage door as the largest moving object in the home. In today’s home, it’s become the focal point. The garage door has become more prevalent, particularly when it faces the street. The garage door makes up from 50 percent to 80 percent of a home’s front elevation. Viewed from the street, that’s a big part of the home.

Builders haven’t traditionally spent much money on the garage door, despite its prominence or its 25- to 30-year lifespan. But that, too, is changing because builders are realizing that a handsome garage door has a huge impact on a home’s salability.

Like great front-yard landscaping, a well designed garage door enriches the appearance [more]