Sectional Garage Doors
Sectional Garage Doors are rapidly growing as one of the most popular choices of garage door in the UK. Their strength, safety and security are just some of the many benefits that justify this popularity. They are known as ‘Sectional’ doors due to their construction, being made of separate sections which open vertically. This means that Sectional doors can be installed on almost every door shape (rounded, arched etc.).
Benefits at a glance…
Construction
Most Sectional doors are double skinned as standard, with panels filled with insulating foam 40mm to 45mm thick. These sections are generally constructed from galvanised steel for strength and longevity. There is a wide variety of finishes and effects available for these doors, which is often pressed onto the door at the manufacturing stage. High quality paint finishes are also available, including a range of woodgrain effects designed to match existing building and wood work.
The efficient and impressive construction of a Sectional door provides strength and stability not possible in other doors, even in larger than normal sizes. As a result, significantly larger garage openings can be accommodated through the use of a Sectional door.
Space Saving Solutions
Sectional garage doors open and close vertically, meaning space around the opening can be utilised. This is perfect for shorter garages or driveways, allowing vehicles to be parked up against the door without needing space to ‘swing out’ when opening the door. The door panels curve upwards over the opening and then back into the headroom of the garage. When fitted and specified accurately, a Sectional door can offer full drive-through height and width, which is unlike most other garage door types. This is a great solution for garages that require large vehicle access, or have limited access dimensions.
Operation
The mechanical design of a Sectional garage door is notably different to Up and Over garage doors. The spring system provides a much smoother operation than a conventional Up and Over door, which is particularly useful on larger sized doors. All Sectional garage doors can be either manually or remotely operated, but remain smooth and quiet in both cases due to excellent engineering, flawless design and high-quality components. Sectional door panels are also safe, with anti-entrapment design between the sections to prevent finger trapping, and a number of other safety features that meet all current legal regulations.
Insulation and Security
Double skinned, insulated sectional doors offer fantastic insulation values (u values), as well as strong security qualities. Sectional doors are built to maintain constant temperature within the garage, perfect for applications where temperature control is a factor. Some doors come with optional rubber seals to further improve the insulation qualities. If your garage is used for an office, workshop, gym or something similar, a sectional door is a fantastic choice to insulate and protect your belongings.
Combined with a quality electric operator, a Sectional door can be almost impossible to break into, especially without specialist tools and lots of noise.
Materials
Sectional doors are largely constructed from galvanised steel, although aluminium and timber doors are available. Most manufacturers offer woodgrain finishes with their steel doors, giving the insulation and security of steel, with the aesthetic impression that only wood can deliver.
With Timber Sectional doors, the choice of wood differs between manufacturers. The choice of softwood or hardwood include Hemlock, European Oak, Iroko, Accoya, Mahogany and Cedarwood. Timber doors are only available up to 8 feet (2134mm) wide in Up and Over form, whilst timber Sectionals can be manufactured up to 5 metres wide (over 16 feet)!
Sizing Information
Sectional doors are extremely versatile when it comes to sizing for two main reasons. Firstly, a Sectional garage door does not swing through the opening, meaning that when installed behind the opening the exact size of the door is not as important. Steel fixing frames are designed to concealed (or partly visible), meaning that this is not an issue. This means that larger doors can be fitted to smaller openings, increasing the range of doors that can be ordered for any given dimensions, and perhaps elimating the need for made-to-order doors in some situations.
Secondly, the strength of the panel means that large dimensions are achievable, particularly with double skinned panel doors. With heights up to 3000mm and widths of up to 8000mm, there is a Sectional door to suit almost every domestic application. Purpose made sizes are available in, Steel, Timber and aluminuim, although there are a large number of standard sizes readily available.
Note: Manufacturer’s ‘order reference sizes’ for Sectional garage doors always refer to the exact structural opening sizes when the door is being installed to the inside face.
Installation Positions
Originally, Sectional doors were designed to be fitted behind the opening, limited by the positioning of the springs and the guides. However these doors can now be fitted inbetween the opening through the use of adapted installation kits and alternate gear mechanism options. Specially designed, bespoke fascias and panelling can also be used to accommodate any opening.
The only spatial requirement for Sectional doors is the headroom needed for the curve of the tracks, and then for the horizontal storage of the door panels when in the open position.
Why Choose Insulated?
There are two simple reasons as to why you would specify an insulated sectional garage door: panel strength for security, and outstanding thermal insulation properties.
All insulated Sectional garage doors are foam filled, double-skinned galvanised steel panel construction. We don’t supply single skin panels with polystyrene stuck to the inside face like some cheaper manufacturers. The 42mm thick panel construction provides incredible strength, whilst reducing damage from knocks and bumps. When properly installed an insulated sectional door will give an impressive U value rating, and reduce any heating costs on adjacent rooms as a result. As mentioned previously, insulated doors also provide a good constant temperature, even in winter, perfect for valuables and car collectors alike, preventing damp, damaging conditions.
Manual or Remote Control?
With a Sectional garage door, manual or electric operation delivers equal levels of security, mainly due to the design geometry and gear mechanism.
Matching Entrance Doors
You can create an impressive entrance to your home by matching your entrance door to your sectional garage door. We have a variety of contemporary entrance and garage door styles, with a range of surface finishes, colours, glass, door furniture and locking systems. View our Entrance Doors or call into our showroom to discuss the variety of options available to you.