Types Of Timber Garage Doors

Timber Garage Door Type Options

For garage doors manufactured with timber there is a very good choice of operating mechanisms to choose from depending on various factors such as door size, internal garage space, security and insulation or sealing required.

Here are some pointers to help you maybe decide on the best door mechanism for your garage:

Fully Retractable Up and Over Garage Doors are named as such because the one piece door panel retracts fully into the garage when it is operated. Lifting arms with springs are mounted onto the sides pivoting about half way up the height and which open the door panel into the garage on horizontal steel tracks using rollers at each corner of the door panel as a support. Retractable garage doors are popular because their mechanism is ideal for automatic control or operation and is used most often on heavier door panels which includes timber. This door type offers the most styles, not necessarily possible in other door types.

Canopy Up and Over Garage Doors are the most common type when it comes to garage door mechanisms in the UK, but not in timber, due to the general weight of the panel. This type of door requires torsion springs for counterbalance, as it lifts open upwards and backwards. As the name suggests, a canopy garage door swings towards the outside as it opens and then slides upwards and into the garage. About a third of the door protrudes out of the garage opening to allow for more room inside. The canopy mechanism provides a good drive through width and it is the easiest to install. Canopy garage doors are generally the most affordable option in the UK, however, this mechanism can only be automated using a canopy bow arm converter system and this reduces headroom, if this is an issue.

Sectional Garage Doors are always individual panels that are hinged horizontally (usually 4 panels on an average height door). The panel sections slide up on vertical tracks and then slide into horizontal tracks adjacent to the garage ceiling. The main advantage this mechanism has over the “up and over” types is that this garage door does not swing outwards when opening or closing, ideal for most standard length driveways. This door type has the ability to maximize the height and width of the drive through area, which is ideal if you have a large vehicle.

Side Hinged Garage Doors are most traditional in timber and ideal for those who do not have inside clearance for the up and over door or sectional types. The garage door is usually divided into two parts and strong hinges at the sides attach each to the garage. This door mechanism allows easy and fast access into the garage interior and they are ideal for a garage which is not used for a vehicle as access on foot is so easy.
This door type can be easily automated by making use of an overhead door opener mechanism or a converter that attaches each wing to the electric operator as well as the more expensive piston type drives as used on electric gates.

Round the Corner Sliding Garage Doors are also a traditional timber mechanism and again offer the non-swing out principal but of course do need one wall for the door to travel along into the garage. This does put many people off, but it is relatively easy to create a false wall with stud partition to allow the door to disappear behind and offer a wall for shelving, etc if required. You can use an RTC door for some extremely large widths of garage and also have options for bi-parting models to allow one side only to be operated.
Electric and manual versions are available in all these modern versions of this traditional door type and the concerns people have for the dust trap of the bottom channel in the ground are alleviated as most of these doors now use a track system that is surface mounted also acting as a weather barrier.
This type of door requires almost no internal headroom available unlike most of the other door types.

Trackless Sectional Doors (The Overlap) is another option newly available in the UK and this uses 2 individual panels split horizontally and lifted by a counter balance weight system with no internal tracking at all. The door panels are in timber or double skinned steel and these offer great insulation values with the thickness of the timber panels used.

Roller Garage Doors are not an option in timber