Your Complete Guide to Garage Door Materials

Sometimes, choosing the right material for your garage door is simply a matter of personal preference – certain materials look better to your eyes than others. That said, it’s important to understand that some garage door materials are better for your particular circumstances than others. Choosing the right material is important and you should always take the time to look through your options carefully, so as not to be disappointed in your decision later down the line.

Pros and cons of garage door materials

So, how do you choose your garage door material? In this article, we take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of the four most commons options:

Benefits of wooden garage doors

Solid wooden garage doors look great and can be stained in various shades, painted, and even carved with specific designs. It is naturally energy-efficient, being a great form of insulation and reducing heat loss from your garage. Timber doors tend to be durable, giving them several security advantages against other models.

Downsides of wooden garage doors

Wooden doors are often the most expensive when comparing like-for-like. While its extra weight is an advantage in terms of security, it does make wooden garage doors more difficult to install. In addition, wooden doors require more maintenance than most others – specifically regular staining/treating of the wood to prevent it from warping or rotten due to excess moisture.

Benefits of aluminium for garage doors

Aluminium is very light, making it easy to operate an aluminium door with an electronic opener. Despite its lack of weight, it is very robust and durable, being naturally resistant to heat and corrosion. From an aesthetic point of view, aluminium garage doors can be coloured or coated in a variety of hues or designs, which will not fade with use. Aluminium is normally used in roller-shutter doors in a series of overlapping strips. This makes it almost impossible to penetrate with brute force – perfect for the security-conscious buyer.

Downsides of aluminium for garage doors

Aluminium is a more expensive material to use than steel, which is its main competition. Aluminium is generally used to manufacture roller-shutter doors, which do not appeal to everybody.

Benefits of fibreglass for garage doors

Fibreglass can be tailored to meet almost any aesthetic you want for your garage door – it’s simply a matter of colouring and patterning the glass resin before it cures and sets. You can even get translucent fibreglass that allows outdoor lighting to penetrate your garage. Fibreglass can also be cut easily, prior to installation, if you want to install windows or other openings in your garage door. It is cheap and easy to form into any size or shape of garage door, making it a very affordable option.

Downsides of fibreglass for garage doors

Fibreglass is not as popular as it once was. The material offers very little in the way of insulation, resulting in higher energy costs to keep your garage heated. The material itself is quite fragile compared to steel and wood and can easily break with sufficient impact. If not properly cured, fibreglass can discolour and fade over time.

Benefits of steel for garage doors

Steel garage doors can be easily fabricated, allowing you to customise them with a variety of stylistic choices. From vents and apertures cut into the door, to various coatings and finishes in a vast array of colours, you get to pick the look you always wanted. Steel is also low-maintenance and liable to last a long time, even in the worst weather conditions. Steel is cheap to manufacture, resulting in garage doors that are nearly always more cost-effective than a wooden equivalent.

Downsides of steel for garage doors

Steel is a great conductor of heat, which means you could experience significant heat loss through your garage door, resulting in higher energy bills if you hope to keep the garage warm. This can be offset to some extent by investing in an insulated steel garage door. If you buy a cheap, thin steel door you may find that it dents rather too easily if impacted with force from either side of the garage.

Garage door material guide: final thoughts

Whatever materials you prefer for your garage doors, you can rely on Alliance Garage Doors to deliver exceptional results. We offer garage door installation and garage door repairs in Newton Abbot and the broader Devon area, and you can expect quality workmanship and unbeatable customer service from our team of technicians. If you’re not sure on which garage door material is best for you, our garage door experts will be happy to advise on this and any other aspect of your garage door selection. Call today on 0800 328 1930 for a free, no-obligation quote.