Ok, now that you’ve measured your existing garage door and you’ve thought about your options for a new garage door let’s look at some specifics.
Insulated garage doors vs. non insulated garage doors.
A non-insulated steel garage door will certainly do the job and provide security for your garage and your home. Perhaps the most attractive benefit to a raised panel steel garage door without insulation is the low cost and that they’re lightweight, so if you’re looking for a basic inexpensive garage door this may be your best bet.
Non-insulated overhead garage doors are constructed of thin gauge galvanized steel so it’s important for you to know that they dent very easy and because they’re hollow that they also tend to be noisy.
Insulated garage doors come in a variety of gauges of metal and numerous methods as to how they’re constructed, their overall thickness, types of insulation and whether they are double sided steel or not. You can find insulated garage doors in the following overall thickness, ¾”, 1”, 1 ¼”, 1 3/8”, 1 ½”, 1 5/8”, 1 ¾” and 2”. The primary types of insulation in garage doors are either expanded polystyrene, or polyurethane. Insulated garage doors can consist of hollow garage doors with add in insulation panels which are very basic or insulation that has been installed by the garage door manufacturer and can’t be removed.
The inside backing panels of your garage door can be polyvinyl which can gouge and tear, cardboard which can easily tear, separate or deteriorate and steel which is the strongest and most durable option. Generally speaking the thicker the overall door and insulation the better quality the garage door is going to be.
Now I have the following thoughts about the two different insulating products either the polystyrene or polyurethane. I personally believe that the polystyrene is more durable, lasts longer and will not break down like the polyurethane product will. Polyurethane will initially provide a better “R” value for your new garage door but over time will disintegrate whereas the polystyrene will have a little lower “R” value but won’t lose its value.
Read up and look for our next blog before purchasing your new garage door.
