Sectional garage doors
Insulated panels that lift up and back under the ceiling. The warmest, best-sealed door.
Garage doors
Roller garage doors
An insulated aluminium door that rolls up into a box above the opening. Nothing swings out and nothing runs back along the ceiling, so it is the door that fits where the others will not.
The door is made of double-skinned aluminium laths with foam between them, curled onto a barrel that sits in a box over the opening. It is almost always electric — the motor lives inside the barrel, so there is nothing hanging from the ceiling.
The reason most people end up with one is the driveway. A roller door does not swing out over the car and does not need the run-back space a sectional door needs. If you park close to the garage, this is usually the door.
Detail
What that means on the job
Nothing swings over the drive
The curtain travels straight up the face of the opening, so a car parked 300mm from the door is not in the way.
Keeps the ceiling clear
No horizontal tracks running back into the garage, so storage in the roof space and lighting stay where they are.
Insulated as standard
Foam-filled laths take the edge off the temperature and cut a good deal of the road noise. Not a heated room, but a noticeable difference.
Manual override
Every door we fit has a way of getting it open in a power cut, and we show you how to use it before we leave.
Before you decide
Straight answers
The part of the conversation most quotes leave out.
Right for you if
- Short driveways where a swinging door would hit the car
- Garages with no room for tracks along the ceiling
- Wide openings where you want the full width to drive through
- Anyone who wants it electric from day one
Worth knowing first
- The box needs somewhere to go. Inside it eats 300–400mm of height at the front; outside it is visible above the opening.
- On a very wide opening the curtain is more affected by wind than a sectional door.
- It is not the cheapest door. If budget is the main thing, an up-and-over does the same basic job for less.
Specification
What you are actually getting. If something here does not suit your garage, say so and we will price the alternative.
| Operation | Electric as standard, with remote fobs and a wall switch |
|---|---|
| Curtain | Double-skinned aluminium lath, foam filled |
| Headroom needed | Around 300–400mm inside for the box, or an external box |
| Finishes | Anthracite, black, white, cream, and woodgrain foils |
| Safety | Obstruction detection that stops and reverses the curtain |
| Backup | Manual release, plus a battery backup option |
What is covered
Guarantees
- Door and mechanism
- 10 years
- Motor and operator
- 5 years
- Our own labour
- 2 years
Product guarantees are the manufacturer's and are passed to you. The labour guarantee is ours.
Brands we fit
- Hörmann
- Novoferm
- Select
Our work
This job, done
Real jobs, our own photographs.
Questions
Common questions
Do roller doors lose much headroom?
You lose the height the box takes up, usually 300–400mm, unless we mount the box outside above the opening. We measure this at the survey and tell you the finished drive-through height before you order.
What happens in a power cut?
There is a manual release. We run through it with you on handover, and it is worth doing once yourself so you are not learning it in the dark.
Are they secure?
The ones we fit lock automatically at the bottom of the travel and the motor holds the curtain. Ask us about the anti-lift options if the garage is detached or out of sight.
Can a roller door be insulated enough to use the garage as a room?
It takes the edge off but it is not a wall. If the garage is becoming a gym or an office, a sectional door with 42mm panels is the better choice.
Also worth a look
While we are there
Electric garage doors & operators
Automate the door you already have, or have a new one supplied electric.
Garage roof replacement
Box-profile steel over new bearers. Old felt stripped, asbestos handled properly.
Get a price for roller garage doors
Send a photograph and a postcode and we will come back with a figure. If it is a repair and the door is stuck, ring instead — we prioritise those.