Has anyone shortened a garage door?
+10
So we're in the process of building a third stall on our garage. (Its basically a 7 foot tall glorified lean to.) The problem is they don't make garage doors shorter than 7 feet and they all require AT LEAST a foot of head room. I'm leaning toward buying an 8 foot tall door, cutting the rails down and just not installing one of the 2 foot tall panels so the door will only be six feet plus a foot of head room.
Garage doors cost a solid $400 at least so I wanted to run it by you guys and get your opinion on whether or not you think I'll be successful. I cant think of any reason this won't work... What do you guys think?
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Hi, it seems to me that the chain would also need to be shortened as well. Here's an article I found that may help you in your decision. I hope you let us know about the success of your project!
https://support.chamberlaingroup.com/s/article/How-to-shorten-the-length-of-the-rail-to-make-room-for-a-ceiling-beam-or-other-obstruction-1484145517126
Great link from Janice. Cutting the rail, removing a panel, and shortening the chain is all you need. I would first check with the full chain/belt before cutting it. This would determine if and how much you need to cut the chain/belt. Of course if you do need to cut the chain leave some slack for adjustment.
have you tried to get estimates from garage door companies to see what they would charge for the right size door? you can get free estimates just to give you some idea
What is the overall size of the door that you would like on your addition?
I am wondering if a roll up door might be an option,? as it would not require as many alterations as shortening a conventional garage door.
These are often found on small garages, and storage lockers.
Here are a couple of examples.
I know that my local garage door installers work with what you have. Have you called any yet?
I found this which may help you to shorten it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMhhC-FKe7g
Yes ask the. Company on the one you get to trim it to size
That sounds like it would work.
do you have more detail
It's awesome to see you getting creative with your garage space. Shortening a garage door sounds like a challenging yet rewarding project. Your idea of modifying the rails and panel to make it work is pretty inventive. Garage upgrades can be quite the journey, can't they? I'm actually in the middle of upgrading my garage, too, and stumbled upon this site https://fixgaragedoors.ca/service-areas/garage-door-repair-in-milton/. That's been quite helpful. They've got some great insights for garage-related projects. So, go ahead and give your plan a shot – it sounds like you've got a solid DIY spirit going on!
Before attempting to do the job, Price it, including your time. Then get a quote from a proffesional or two before you decide.