Tilt-Up Garage Doors and Mid-Century Suburbs

You’ve probably seen a tilt-up garage door before, but it probably wasn’t on a modern home. This type of overhead door was really popular on garages in the 60’s and 70’s. This was when designer suburbs began to become common, and a single-panel, tilt-up garage door has the ability to be produced and installed on a mass scale because of its simplicity. But as time has passed and garage door technology has advanced, you won’t find many (if any) garage door repair companies that would recommend installing new one if you have a choice. When it comes to overhead garage doors, sectional doors are a much better and safer option. Here’s why:

All the Iffy Features of Tilt-Up Doors

• First of all- safety is an issue with this type of door. The garage door springs on tilt-ups are extension springs (sectionals typically use torsion), and if one becomes loose or breaks, the entire door will come crashing down.
• The fact that the door is kind of pulled back and then lifted by the opener means it takes up way more overhead space than a sectional door.
• You need a driveway with a decent amount of length, since the door will stick out while it’s lifting and closing. It can hit your car if you’re pulled in too close.
• There’s no way to insulate or effectively weather-seal these doors because of their build and design.

Now, this doesn’t mean that if you have an older home and you need the garage door replaced, you should never use a tilt-up door – depending on the construction of your garage, it might take really expensive renovations you don’t want or need in order to retrofit for a sectional door. Regardless, you should really consult with a company that sells and repairs overhead garage doors before you make any decisions on your new installation or replacement.