Should you go with two single or one double garage door?

If you are currently designing your home, you might now find yourself in the position of needing to decide between two single garage doors, or one double garage. This is a great choice to be presented with, and we aim to help you decide which one is the best for you and your dream home!

Below are some of our professional insights that we hope will help you make an informed decision that takes into account your individual needs and the overall design of your house.

The Width of the Garage Matters

It does not matter if your new home will have an attached or detached garage, if you have your mind set on parking two cars in there, then your garage should be at minimum 18 feet (5.5 m) wide by 22 (6.7 m) feet deep. If you want to go the route of having two single 8′ X 7′ garage doors, the garage will then need to be a minimum of 22 feet wide. Some garage doors are 9′ (2.7 m) in width. If this is what you are thinking, then the garage should be a minimum of 24 feet (7.3 m) wide. You might even want to go just a bit wider if you desire to use an access door in the front, as opposed to the side of the garage.

You also want to think about the kind of vehicle you plan to park in the garage. SUVs, vans, and small RVs typically require a bit more room. You will also want to keep enough room reserved in the interior of the garage to account for your storage needs along the walls, while still being able to comfortably open the vehicle door.

What are have just mentioned are the technical issues that you need to think about in terms of garage size. The final decision, of course, will depend on how much money you have in the budget for this portion of the project.

There Are Some Practical Points That Should Be Considered

• Weather, namely humid and cold conditions

  If you go with two single garage doors, your heating bill will be reduced slightly. This is because the amount of cold air flowing into the garage will be reduced as well. You will notice that your garage is a bit warmer in the winter months as a result. If you are in a humid climate, two single garage doors will result in less humidity in the garage overall, reducing your summer cooling costs.

• When the garage door malfunctions…

  Garage doors, particularly single ones, can have a major breakdown at some point. An example would be a torsion spring break. When that happens, you are stuck with two cars in the garage. With two single doors, you will at least be able to get one out.

• What if you have three small cars?

  If your garage is wide enough, you could comfortably get three small cars inside. This is made practical if you have a 16- to 18‑foot (4.9- to 5.5‑metere) double garage door. If you were to have two single doors, however, quite a bit of work would be required to get them all inside.

• The possibility of a triple garage

  Many real estate developers today created plans where it is becomes more difficult to make a double door of 16 feet fit in with a single door of 9 feet. Triple garages are more common in areas of the United State where land prices are typically lowers. The smaller door would then be useful for a motorcycle of ATV. Even a fishing boat could fit in there. To accomplish this effectively means a garage that is at least 900 ft.² (84 m²) is in the cards.

There Is Also the Appearance To Consider

• Everyone has different tastes, but…

  Almost any designer will agree that two single garage doors will provide your house with an overall better look. If you think about it from the perspective of the street, a double garage certainly stands out but it can overwhelm the look of the home and detract from the architectural design of the home.

• What you really want is a carriage‑style doors

  In such a situation, you will need to go for the two single garage option.

Are Two Single Doors More Expensive Overall?

Actually, the cost of materials for one door as opposed to two, when covering the same area, is roughly the same. The noticeable difference occurs when we think about the cost of a second electric garage door opener. There will also be some carpentry related costs when account for the wall dividing the two doors. What it amounts to, however, is personal design and desire.

If bears mention that if you do opt for a double garage door, that does not mean that you need a door opener that is more powerful (ex.: ¾ HP). You just want to make sure that the width of your garage door is well balanced, which means that the spring system (counterweight) does the work. The door needs to weight between 8 to 10 lb. (3.5 to 4.5 kg), while the motor accomplishes what you could do with one hand. You do want to be aware of the fact that door openers can actually lift a great deal more than you think while also pulling down the same weight. As a result, you will want make sure that your foot or any other part of your body stays out of the way when the door is lowering!

In Summary…

When you are ready, contact us at 866-573-3667. We would love to go over the many garage door options currently available on the market. It is also possible for you to send us an email for an online quotation.

Also, you can visualize what your garage door will look like by visiting our Design Centre. This will allow you to create your own garage door. Our image gallery is also readily available to help get the creative juices flowing.