Best Garage Doors For Security
Garage doors can be an eye-catching part of your house. When choosing garage doors, many homeowners make their choice based on looks alone. Yet, your garage door is also one of the most crucial safety features of your home. If you’re in the market for a new garage door, you may be wondering what garage door type is the most secure.
If you want to prevent break-ins to keep you and your family safe, then you need a theft-proof garage door. While no garage door can guarantee safety, some garage doors are safer than others. First, you should understand the common ways thieves break into garage doors.
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What Are the Most Common Ways Garage Doors Are Broken Into?
The most skilled burglars can break into a garage door in a matter of seconds. If your garage door does not have modern safety features, thieves can easily find a way to pull your garage door’s safety release lever. Sometimes, it’s as easy as inserting a coat hanger through a breach in the garage door and pulling the door’s safety cord. They can then open and close your garage door behind them without anyone noticing.
Thieves can break into old, weak garage doors with brute force. In other instances, they will use tools to dismantle your garage door’s locking mechanism from the outside. Modern garage doors give you a better chance at keeping intruders out.
The Most Secure Residential Garage Doors by Type
Let’s take a look at some of the most popular garage doors on the market so you can determine which has the best garage door security.
1. Roller Garage Doors
How secure are roller garage doors? Roller doors, also called roll-up doors, are one of the most secure garage door styles available due to their design. These doors consist of horizontal slats with rollers on either side to slide them open and closed. These garage doors roll up neatly overhead without sticking out as one rigid piece. When closed, roller doors show no visible signs of convenient entry for thieves.
Enhance your roller garage door security with some additional features. A double-skinned roller garage door provides extra protection against forced entry. Make sure the bottom slat is strong and durable, as this is where most thieves will try to breach your garage door. You can also invest in extra locks and bolts, making it harder for burglars to dislodge the door. Make sure to choose a door with high-quality, strong rollers.
2. Sectional Garage Doors
When it comes to the security of garage doors, sectional garage doors are one of the best, which is why they’re the most popular type of residential garage door. Hinges connect the horizontal sections of these garage doors, and when you slide the door open, these hinges allow the sections to separate and roll overhead. Because of this, sectional doors are compact and easy to use. They’re also great at protecting from intruders. When closed, the sections form a tight seal, giving potential thieves no clear signs of entry.
Sectional garage doors are a deterrent to thieves, but you can further enhance their security by making sure of two aspects. First, choose a sectional garage door with a strong steel frame, as this determines the overall strength of the door. Second, make sure the door forms a tight seal when closed. This is a crucial component that makes it very difficult for intruders to wedge anything between the sections.
3. Up and Over Garage Doors
Up and over garage doors are similar to sectional doors in that they slide vertically up and come to rest in a nearly horizontal position overhead. However, they don’t have any horizontal sections or slats and stay in one rigid piece. Due to their unique construction, up and over garage doors have been notoriously easy to break into. Their single locking mechanism is easily accessed by drilling a hole into the doors. Thieves can then easily unlock these doors and slide them open.
Because of this obvious weakness, manufacturers have made these garage doors much more secure in recent years. If you’re considering an up-and-over garage door, make sure it has multiple locking points. A euro cylinder anti-snap lock also goes a long way in keeping intruders out. Getting an up and over garage door with these features will make sure that you and your family stay safer against forced entry.
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4. Side-Hinged Garage Doors
These garage doors are popular for their aesthetic appeal. They swing open from a meeting point between two sections of the door, creating a “French door” type of opening. They add an element of luxury to your garage and are especially useful if your garage receives more pedestrian traffic than vehicle use. They may not be the best garage security system, but they can keep intruders out with some added features.
If you want a side-hinged garage door, then choose one made with strong, sturdy materials. Double-skinned metal panels provide the best protection, and a strong steel frame boosts its strength against intruders even more. You should also invest in one with multiple locking points to make it even more difficult for anyone to break in. If you’ll be using it for pedestrian access, then multi-lock mechanisms are a worthy purchase. You can also get the look of side-hinged carriage doors with the convenience of modern overhead operation.
5. Automated Garage Doors
If you’re looking for the best garage security system, automated garage doors may be the answer. These familiar garage doors use a motorized opener to open and close the door at the push of a button or security code. They’re convenient for vehicle use, as you can stay in your car and use the wireless remote to engage the door. Automated garage doors are also one of the best garage doors for resisting intruders.
Since they are automatic, they have no need for an external locking mechanism. These mechanisms are where thieves usually try to break in first, so their absence in itself is a deterrent. Because automated garage doors use springs and tension, they exert a constant downward force when in the closed position, which makes them difficult for burglars to lift. Only once you engage the motorized opener will the door lift.
Choose Garage Door Specialists, Inc. for Your Garage Door Needs
If you’re ready to enhance your home’s security by investing in a new garage door, we at Garage Door Specialists are ready to help. Our professional teams care about giving you a reliable product at competitive prices throughout North Carolina. We carry high-security residential garage doors to meet every need, no matter your home’s size. We want to give you a product that will last for years to come.
Contact us today to learn more. You can also request an estimate or request service on your existing garage door. Whatever your garage door situation demands, we hope you’ll choose Garage Door Specialists to help.