Hopefully this will spark some enthusiastic debate as I know many TZ members love a good garage thread.
The house we bought 2 years ago has a Gliderol Rollamatic garage door – 10' 6" by 7'. It was installed in 2014 and serviced in 2017.
It started playing silly buggers over winter, sometimes rolling back up a bit as if there was an obstacle, but nothing was there. Then it seemed to work ok until a few weeks ago when it would roll down with the remote and internal button, but not up.
Roll around (see what I did there) to the weekend just gone and I put the door in manual mode to push it up, got the car out, then went to auto roll it down and it started bunching on itself until I stopped it. I manually tried to unroll it, with limited success, but had to get it back down otherwise the whole thing would have been exposed. I pushed auto down again and it started flipping up, rolled over itself with much noise and drama, nearly taking me out in the process, and came to a shuddering, grinding halt.
I flipped it back to manual and managed to pull it back to the ground, and engaged auto again, so at least it's locked, if a little lopsided. Basically, it's come out of its tracks and was flapping about like a sheet in the wind. I've managed to apply a few strategic timbers to stop the flapping, but clearly we need it sorting.
I phoned the original local company who fitted and serviced it and they don't want to know. Don't deal with Gliderol anymore, but will happily fit me a new door for ££££s. After phoning hundreds of garage specialists, it seems that no one does repairs and if a garage door breaks, it's new or nothing.
Which, if you're still with me, leads me to my quest for knowledge from the TZ hive mind. Which garage door do I need/want/avoid?
I'm well down the rabbit hole and looking at same roller door (all infrastructure in place so simple replacement) or sectional doors (needs new frame, might block strip lights).
Because we use the door quite often – about 4 days a week, twice a day – we're a bit suspicious of another auto door and the motor failing again after a couple of years, but the only manual option seems to be the sectional door.
After phoning a load of companies I found one who happens to have a Hormann sectional door ready to go after a client changed their mind about the colour. He can fit this for £1100 incl. VAT in manual guise, or £1500 in auto flavour.
1. Is a sectional door going to be a PITA to manually open and close all the time? Should we just go auto and revel in the luxury of one-touch operation, and risk it failing in a couple of years?
2. Reading Hormann reviews online doesn't give me a warm fuzzy feeling inside. Flimsy remotes that chew expensive batteries, motor failures after a few months, doors rusting after a couple of years, etc.
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/hor...k?sort=recency
3. Quotes for roller doors are about £2,200 incl VAT. for insulated, alarmed, convenience light, SBD police approved, remotes and internal switch. Same door without light and alarm and SBD is coming in at £1,800. Same concerns about motor failure.
4. Any recommendations for brands/style/companies in London/Essex?
I quite liked the look of the Hormann sectional until I read the reviews but maybe they're a red herring?
All thoughts welcome :smile-new:
