Find the Best Garage Doors For Your Home

Finding the right garage door is an important part of home ownership. Your garage door affects your home’s aesthetics, energy efficiency, and overall property value. If you want to choose the best garage door for your home, you need to consider style, materials, insulation, and garage door brands.

Here’s everything you need to know to get started:

Garage Door Styles and Materials

Some of the first considerations you should think about when shopping for doors are style and what materials the door is made of. Here are some different options:

Steel garage doors

Steel is the most common material used for new garage doors today. They’re appealing because of their durability and reasonable cost. Options include various levels of insulation (2-3 layers, or no insulation at all). You can adapt a steel garage door to fit different types of styles and looks, such as adding a wood-grain pattern. Most steel garage doors are primed or painted with a topcoat finish.

Steel doors usually come with a long-term warranty, which is good because they can easily be dented or even corrode in some weather conditions.

Wood garage doors

Most people opt for a real wood garage door because of their visual appeal, as maintenance and upkeep needs are extensive for this type of material. Wood doors are usually built with plies to prevent warping. Depending on the manufacturer, you have a few different wood types to choose from, such as cedar, redwood, or fir. Wood doors need to be stained or repainted regularly to avoid a weathered look.

Other materials

There are lots of other materials your garage door can be made of. Each has its own benefits that make it a worthwhile option to consider. In addition to steel and wood, there’s also:

• Aluminum
• Vinyl
• Fiberglass
• Wood composite

The materials used can have a big impact on how much a garage door costs, so explore the different options and price points before making a decision.

Style considerations

In addition to material, another factor that can impact garage door cost is style. Some of the most popular residential garage door styles include:

• Carriage house 

Carriage house doors are known as “barn style,” made to look like a traditional barn door, giving a rustic look to your home.

• Classic raised panel 

Raised panel doors are a classic garage door option using symmetrical, rectangular panels. They come in many different shapes, sizes, and with numerous options for window placement.

• Contemporary design 

Contemporary garage doors offer lots of appeal for mid-century and modern homes, showcasing a fresh, functional design that catches attention.

Each garage door design has many different options in terms of materials used, colors, window size and location, and other customizations. Start by getting a general idea of what style you like, then research the specific options in more detail.

Best Insulated Garage Doors

Another important factor to consider when choosing your garage door is insulation. Insulated garage doors are energy-efficient, and can help you save lots of money on your electric bill.

How much insulation your garage door needs really depends on your location, seasonality, and what kind of home you have. Someone living in Arizona, for example, might not need much insulation at all. Whereas someone in Idaho would need more insulation to protect against harsh winters.

Insulation is also going to be more important if you use your garage as a studio or shop. If people are going to spend time there, then it needs to be warmer in the winter. If you mostly only use your garage for storage, keeping it cold is fine. You will also likely want more insulation if your garage is located below a second-story room, as a poorly insulated garage can also make the room located above it cooler.

When looking at the specifications of a garage door you’re interested in buying, be sure to check out the R-Value. This will tell you how insulated the door is, with 0 meaning no insulation and 18+ meaning highly insulated. Usually, your garage door installation company can recommend how much insulation you need based on your needs.

Garage Door Brands

There are likely quite a few garage door brands you can choose from depending on what’s available in your local area. Some of the best garage door brands have distribution centers located throughout the US.

Here are some well-known options to choose from:

1. Amarr
2. CHI Overhead Doors
3. Northwest Door
4. Wayne Dalton

This isn’t a complete list of all the reputable door companies across the US. But you won’t go wrong choosing a door from any of these companies. Instead of purchasing your door directly from them, most likely you will work with a garage door installation company that partners with several of these manufacturers.

About Garage Door Installation

Choosing the garage door you want is just the first step. Next you need to get it installed properly. Garage door installation is something you could do yourself if you have the time, tools and knowledge to set everything up properly. Just remember that if you make any mistakes installing moving parts, you could end up breaking parts of your garage door when testing out the system. Then you’ll have to pay for replacement parts plus hire a professional garage door company to come install it the correct way.

The best idea is hiring professionals to install your door for you. In most cases, no matter which manufacturer you purchase your door form, you will need to work with a third-party company for installation.

Get Help When You Need It

ExCello Garage Door offers garage door installation services in Boise, Idaho and the surrounding area. Our team is trained to work with all major door brands, and have extensive experience installing doors on different types of houses. We can also guide you through other important considerations to help you choose the best garage door, such as style, materials, insulation, and brands.