The garage door is most likely the largest part of your home building that you can move.
The weight is then a major concern when you want to open or close the garage especially if it is not automated. You might want to consider the best door you can get with the least weight while offering maximum protection.
In this article, we will be taking a look at the various types of garage doors, their weight, and the various types you can get for your garage.
Here’s How Much Can Garage Door Weight:
A garage door can be extremely heavy, usually between 130 pounds and 350 pounds.
However, the weight of your garage door is determined by several factors such as the type of material used, thickness, size, insulation, and glass.
A garage with a double car door made of steel would most definitely weigh more than a single-car door made of wood.
Should You Be Concerned About The Weight Of Your Garage Door
Garage doors serve as the opening to the garage. If your house is built with a garage in front, then it is the first contact to your house. It then becomes the main entrance into the house.
However, these garage doors are usually heavy. The weight of your garage door matters especially if you are going to be pushing it up or pulling it down.
You can consider the weight of making a choice for your new home or in the case of renovation.
The average garage door weight is between 130 pounds and 350 pounds.
Also, you might need to determine the weight of the door to figure out the extension spring that would be suitable to balance up the existing weight and keep the hinges intact.
Factors That Affect The Types And Weight Of Garage Doors
Now, there are different types of garage doors and their weights differ due to some factors. Such factors include:
- The material of the door
- The size of the door
- The thickness of the material used for the door,
- Insulation of the door.
Now let’s take an in-depth look at these factors.
- Material of the door
There are different types of materials that can be used to make garage doors. It all depends on your choice, the homeowner, the budget you have, and the aesthetic view you want your house to project.
You can make use of steel, wood, or a hybrid of both materials, and then glass.
- The steel doors offer an aesthetically pleasing view of your garage. They are usually durable and can be easily folded – a means of opening the garage. The new technological innovations have made it possible to control the opening and closing of the steel garage door with a remote.
- Steel doors weigh between 85 – 225 lbs depending on the style of the garage door and the thickness.
- Wooden garage doors are traditional doors that have been in use for quite several years. They naturally offer elegance and incomparable beauty. Although, the downside of the wooden doors is their inability to resist water and the probability of being infested with termites.
Wooden garage doors are usually heavy and weigh about 300 to 500lbs depending on the style of the door.
- Hybrid doors, commonly called overlays, are made from a combination of wood and steel. This type combines the finest qualities of both materials. Usually, the base of the door will be made of steel while the wooden part would overlay it.
With the wood and steel joined together with high-grade adhesives, the hybrid door weighs between 250-400lbs.
- Glass garage doors are commonly used in high-end homes that use glass for every section. Not only residential buildings but also showrooms and restaurants are also known to make use of this material for their garage. It gives a full vision of the building and adds a classy outlook to the general outlook of the building.
Glass garage doors usually weigh about 300 to 500lbs depending on the style of the door.
- Size of the door
The size of your door and the configuration of its panel are closely linked to the weight of the door. The bigger the door, the heavier it is and the more panels it has. A door of 7 feet will likely have 4 panels while an 8 feet door will have 5 panels.
When you calculate the surface area of your garage door, you can estimate the value of the weight of your door.
You can now use the multipliers showing the types of doors in this table to estimate the weight:
| Ratio type | Multiplier |
| Non-insulated ratio | 1.40 lbs per square foot |
| Vinyl Back Insulated Ratio | 1.50 lbs per square foot |
| 1 3/8″ Steel Back Insulated Ratio | 1.63 lbs per square foot |
| 2″ Steel Back Insulated Ratio | 1.97 lbs per square foot |
- The thickness of your door
The thickness of the material used for your garage door in no small way contributes to the weight of your door. It determines how heavy your door would be. The thickness of most garage doors is usually measured in inches.
With a measuring tape, you can easily measure the thickness of your door. You do this by running the tape from one end to the other of the stile of the door.
The most common door thickness adopted by most manufacturers is 2 inches but the general range is from 1⅜ inches to 3 inches.
3 inches thick doors are used in special areas where there is climatic control. They are usually found in buildings that are needed to be kept constantly cold.
The thickness of the door is a huge factor that determines the weight of a door. Increased thickness means increased weight. A 3 inches thick door is heavier than a 2 inches door which in turn weighs more than a 1 ⅜ inches door.
- Door insulation
If your garage is detached from your main building, then you do not need to concern yourself with the process of insulation.
Also, if you are not interested in maintaining a certain temperature in your home, you might as well not bother with insulating your garage door.
Insulation adds additional weights to the garage door while it helps to conserve energy. The type of insulation attached to your door also determines the weight of the door. There are two basic types of insulation, Vinyl back insulation, and polyurethane insulation.
However, if you have not had insulation on your garage door, you can still install it with an insulation kit.
The average weight the insulation kit adds to the garage door is listed below
| Door Size | 9 X 7 | 9 X 8 | 16 X 7 | 16 X 8 |
| Added weight | +8 lbs | +10 lbs | +18 lbs | +23 lbs |
Summary
The weight and size of your garage door are dependent on many factors.
These factors include the type of material used, the size of your garage door, the thickness, and the insulation added.
There are two types of insulation that can be used in a garage door; the vinyl back type, and the polyurethane type.
Knowing your garage door weight can help you in making a lot of vital choices.
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