The up and over garage door is the most popular door fitted in the UK. There are two main lifting mechanisms - canopy lifting gear and tracked/slide-away lifting gear. Both mechanisms are excellent; the only difference being that each mechanism is designed according to the application for which it will be used. Both types of lifting gear can be fitted to steel GRP or timber doors, so the choice of doors is vast.
With canopy lifting gear, two-thirds of the door retracts into the garage, with a third of the door exposed. The advantages of this door are:
The only disadvantage is that it is not suitable for double doors or for electric operation.
Although it is possible to automate a canopy door, we do not offer this as experience has shown us that, true to form, it is not natural for a door to travel along its tracks vertically whilst being pulled horizontally.
With tracked/slide-away lifting gear, almost the entire door is retracted into the garage along horizontal tracks. The advantages of this door are:
" suitable for electric automation as it travels horizontally along its track, in the same direction that the motor is pulling - this is natural and hence works well. (just a note - if you don't want it automated now, it can easily be automated at a later date)
" suitable for large doors as all the weight of the door is distributed between the frame and ceiling joists making it very rigid and able to take the extra weight of a heavier door
They are more complicated to fit, but that's our problem apart from that, it's a great mechanism.
