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If you are replacing an old garage door or selecting one for your new home you already know that you have a lot of choices in terms of door design and materials. There is a strong trend toward carriage house doors and natural wood materials. Many manufactures will help you design a wood door that will accent your home with woods natural beauty. These custom garage doors are in terms of garage doors pricing expensive with some exceeding $5000. Natural all wood garage doors do require a higher degree of maintenance and are subject to warping. In general all wood doors do not have the strength of metal garage doors.
Probably a smarter option is to install metal garage doors that has an exterior layer of wood. The major benefit of this type of garage door comes from the fact that a garage door with panels framed with steel are stronger and more secure. In addition the new metal garage doors can be insulated to a higher R-value than an all wood garage door. However you will still have to spend more time maintaining the exterior wood surfaces just like you wood on an all wood garage door.
One of the best metal garage doors designs on the market includes a multi layer metal panel that includes two or more galvanized 25 gauge steel or stronger layers that sandwich 2 inches of polyurethane foam between them. When these panels are married together with a shiplap style joints you end up with a strong, quiet and very energy efficient garage door. Metal garage doors do not warp as a result of moisture and temperature and as a result have a higher level of operational reliability. Basically this means that your automatic garage door opener is not going wear out as quickly.
If you live in an area that is subject to high wind risk from tropical storms or hurricanes then metal garage doors can provide you with the protection necessary to keep your family and home safe from destruction. High wind metal garage doors that meet the Miami-Dade wind code will provide you will as much as 150 mile per hour protection. Engineering studies conducted after severe hurricanes show that once you lose your garage door in a storm it is only a matter of minutes until you lose the roof of your home. A high wind code garage door may make the difference between losing your home and your life and survival.
Good quality metal garage doors will have very little maintenance. You can purchase a garage door that has a finish that only needs to be occasionally washed off to keep it looking good. Doors with new composite exteriors are extremely tough and durable. No matter what kind of metal garage doors you decide to install they will outlast just about any wood door.
Spending time on the Internet will help you to decide what types of metal garage doors are best for you. A visit to the local home improvement store such as Home Depot will also provide a good deal of information. If you are handy with tools they can also help install a metal garage doors yourself. We feel that metal garage doors are the best option available for the modern home or garage.