That is the most common question our sales consultants get. The real answer is it depends on several factors: where you live, what you use your garage for, and the façade of your house.
Where do you live?
Action Automatic Door & Gate services all of Southwest Florida, which means doors here must meet wind mitigation standards and impact ratings in order for homeowners to get credit on their insurance. Although, not wind load doors are available, we discourage our customers from buying them because of the issues that creates with the insurance companies. The higher the wind load rating, the more expensive the door will be.
Wind-Direction
Another consideration based on where you live that changes the price of a door is whether you need insulation on the door or not. There is a lot of debate in our area about insulating doors. Southwest Florida is HOT most of the time. An insulated door can help keep the heat out, or it can trap the heat in. The higher the R-value of the insulation the more it will add to the price of your new door.
What do use your garage for?
Why is garage usage an important factor in determining the price of a door? Do you use your garage as your front door? Do you park your car in the garage or do you use the garage as storage?
If your garage is your front door, you want to consider a better quality door. It will be quieter. The builder grade, basic door, tends to be noisy. Insulation also adds to the quietness of the door.
If you actually park your car in the garage, are you storing heat sensitive items in there? Keep in mind, if you have an insulated door and park a hot car in there, it will raise the temperature of the garage. The insulated door will not dissipate the heat as quickly as a non-insulated door.
If you are storing items in your garage, do you need to keep the temperature steady? Again the higher the R-value of the insulation, the more it will cost.
What does the façade of your house look like?
Depending on the size of your garage and its location, the garage door is anywhere from 20% to 100% of the façade of your house. That is a lot of space. Adding a garage door that is a step up from a basic, white, builder’s grade garage door can add a lot of value to your home.
Final thoughts
The cost of a new garage door can range greatly depending on what you want from your new door. A plain, builder’s grade door with no wind load is relatively inexpensive. A nice wood grain designed door will cost more. The Ultra-grain finish can be added for a couple hundred dollars to most Clopay models. Or you can step way up and get a beautiful Canyon Ridge Limited Edition door which will add several thousand dollars to the cost of the door.
The best advice is to contact a professional sales consultant at a reputable dealer to discuss your needs and your budget.
