Carriage-Style Garage Doors vs. Roll-Up Garage Doors

Operation

• Carriage doors are paired side by side, and they swing open from the center. If tight clearance outside the garage is an issue, this style may not work for you. Although some carriage doors are available with automatic openers that swing the doors open, old-fashioned carriage doors open manually. Each time you leave or return home, you'll have to open and shut the doors by hand. Roll-up doors, also called sectional garage doors, operate as the name implies. At one time, sectional garage doors operated manually: You turned a handle and pushed the door up along its tracks. Automatic door openers are now commonplace, so you can open and close the door in the shelter of your garage or vehicle.

Materials

• Old-fashioned carriage doors are often pictured as solid wood, and many still are. Some versions are wood with a core of insulation, and others are metal or composite materials. Wood carriage doors are heavy, and their appearance can enhance a wide range of architectural styles from rustic to contemporary. Optional tempered-glass windows across the top of such garage doors let in light while adding another layer of design interest. Visible hardware, such as handles, is usually wrought iron or another metal that is finished to resemble iron. Roll-up garage doors are available in materials including lightweight aluminum, fiberglass, wood and composites. Aluminum and fiberglass are the easiest to damage, and they are often uninsulated. Composite and wood doors are usually insulated. Specialty manufacturers create roll-up garage doors that look remarkably like carriage doors, including decorative handles and a faux vertical seam down the center.

Installation

• Although carriage doors are bulky, there is nothing particularly dangerous or technical about installing them. Doors hang from door jambs on heavy-duty hinges, and they feature handles and locking mechanisms at the center of a pair. You may need a reinforced door jamb to support the weight of the doors. Roll-up garage doors are more complex. They generally consist of three or more panels and are installed with a number of separate sections, hinges, high-tension springs and other materials. They require professional installation; attempting to install them yourself is ill-advised and can lead to serious injury during installation or in the future during normal operation of the door. Both styles of garage doors are available with gaskets that cover seams and block out the weather.

Cost

• Carriage doors most often have a higher price point than roll-up garage doors. High-end carriage doors can cost several thousand dollars, even if you install them yourself. The low end of the roll-up garage door scale is in the low hundreds, but that doesn’t include installation. The cost of either style depends to a large degree on materials. Composite carriage doors with no windows are less costly than a roll-up door with solid wood detailing and tempered glass windows.