Over the years, there has been a wide variation in the kind of garage doors used in homes. These doors evolve with time. From the wooden doors to the now fiberglass doors for your garage, they keep improving with time. We offer all these doors and many more. Today, however, let’s talk about the different types of doors, depending on how they open. They can use springs, guide rails, hinges, or none. Some have internally installed motors for opening while some need you to install a garage door opener. Gates come in different shapes, materials, sizes, and opening mechanisms. In this article, we will talk about the various types of gates, depending on the way they open. These include:

  • Sectional garage door
  • Roll-up garage doors
  • Slide to the side garage doors
  • Side-hinged garage doors
  • Up and over canopy garage doors

Sectional Garage Door

These are the most common type of garage doors in the United States. As the name suggests, these gates have different sections hinged together. The panels are connected in such a way that, as the door opens, they fold inside. These panels roll on a vertical track on each side of the garage door, allowing you to open and close the garage door. The hinges between the panels bend over a curved path, allowing the door to be parallel to the ceiling. With a sectional garage door, especially ones made from steel, you can forget the high costs of maintenance. These garage doors are easy to customize, based on color, texture, and also inserting windows. Whether you want an insulated or an uninsulated mode, you can get it in the market.

Roll-Up Garage Doors

The roll-up garage doors are conventional for commercial applications, compared to residential. These types of garage doors are for areas with a limited ceiling space. They are a no-frill design option made with 2-3 inches of steel flat sections. They do not have hinged on them. Instead, when opening, they roll around a drum above the opening. The roll-up garage doors are made with heavy-duty properties. That means that they can withstand heavy usage and high-performance units. Also, they do not have springs and come with an enclosure to prevent rusting, freezing, and corrosion. Due to all these favorable characteristics of the roll-up doors, they tend to be a little costly compared to the sectional garage doors.

Slide to the Side Garage Doors

As the name suggests, this type of door opens by sliding to the side and resting parallel to the wall. Since there is no need for extra space on the ceiling or the drum, these types of garage doors are most favorable for areas with little headroom. The door has lower railings that can slope or be level of the ground or the ceiling. Since they use guide rails to open, they do not require balancing springs for operation. However, they have a built-in motor that allows for the opening and closing of the garage door with ease.

Side-Hinged Garage Doors

This is one of the oldest models of a garage door that exist. The garage door swings open and closed from a hinged frame. The doors have hinges that fix them to the panes on the sides. At a distance, you would think the garage door was a barn door. Usually, these doors are made of wood, since it does not add too much weight on the hinges. However, for some commercial applications, galvanized steel doors are also viable. They have a classic look, hence the increase in their demand. If you have a garage with an obstruction or little headroom, then the side hinged garage door is the perfect door for you.

Up and Over Canopy Garage Doors

This type of garage door lacks sections on it. On the other hand, they comprise of one solid piece of wood or metal. They work similarly to the side-hinged door; only this time, they tilt upwards. Hence, they have a hinge support system to allow them to tilt up into the garage. When fully open, it sits parallel to the ceiling, with some of it protruding in front of the house. For this type of garage door, a balancing spring is needed to ensure the door does not fall.