Trend: Carriage House Doors

© 2001 Door & Access Systems
Publish Date: Summer 2001
Author: Tom Wadsworth
Page 48

CLIPPINGS
Garage Doors and Openers in the Media


Trend: Carriage House Doors

According to this article in the popular Christian Science Monitor, the market for high-end garage doors is small but growing.

Reporter Atkin says that garages are becoming prominent features in today’s homes. Consequently, more people are buying a "wooden garage door that resembles a piece of finely crafted furniture."

Atkin says homeowners are increasingly recognizing the warmth and character of beautiful garage doors. He quotes Amy Jamieson of Clopay who notes that garage doors can even "steal the show" and become the dominant attraction of a home. She counsels that garage doors should harmonize with the house doors and windows.

The story credits Kent Forsland of Designer Doors of River Falls, Wis., as among the first to recognize the new trend of handcrafted wood garage doors that "look like the kind grandma or grandpa used to swing or slide open, but in fact they are the sectional roll-up overhead variety." Forsland founded his company in 1992.


The Disappearing Garage Door

Published in this popular magazine for home builders, this brief new-product story describes "GarageScape … a one-piece garage door system designed to blend seamlessly with the rest of a home's exterior."

The door is said to be custom-made for each home, carefully "matching the existing exterior's materials, details, styles, and colors." When the door is closed, a passerby can’t tell it’s a garage door. The door is manufactured by Cybiag Garage Door Systems at a cost of "about $5,500 per door."


"Sexy" Garage Doors

In this Calgary Sun article, the homes editor says big garages now have the same appeal as big trucks. They’re "powerful, wonderful, and sexy."

Similarly, writes Editor Holden, 8-ft. and 9-ft. high garage doors are gaining popularity, and "front-drive, garage-style homes … are an incredibly popular design."

She says that bigger vehicles and garages are defeating the old design trend to de-emphasize the garage. In Calgary, she notes, most new homes don’t have the room for rear-drive or side-drive garages.

As a result, garage door manufacturers are creating "new garage door designs rivaling front doors." In upscale Calgary neighborhoods, "carriage-style specialty doors are standard."


GDO: The Key to Burglary?

According to this story, a 17-year-old male took a garage door remote control and a receipt from an unlocked car in a parking lot. The receipt identified the home’s address in Mundelein.

Police said the teen drove past the house, tested the opener, and learned the traffic patterns of the home’s residents. One day, at 1:00 p.m, when the house was unoccupied, the teen entered the home through the attached garage.

While collecting four laptop computers, jewelry, and $15,000-worth of property, an 18-year-old female came home and surprised him. Police said the burglar pointed a pellet pistol at the female, tied her with phone cord, locked her in a closet, and fled.

After an investigation, the burglar was later identified by the female, and he confessed and was jailed. If convicted, he faces 6-30 years in prison.


Garage Doors: "Vital Areas"

This story says that Florida homeowners are getting complacent about the possibility of damaging hurricanes and are not fortifying their homes. Safety experts say homeowners need to think of these fortifications as affordable investments that increase their home’s value and limit potential future losses.

Johnston, the reporter, says a garage door on an attached garage is a vital area: "Unless you get extra bracing installed on the garage door and tracks, the door is a likely candidate to be yanked off by high winds. Then more wind is allowed into the home, exerting pressure from inside onto the house walls, roof, and garage roof."

The price of a new fortified garage door is cited as about $1,300 instead of $500 for a standard garage door.


White Garage Doors Discouraged

Gillespie is a Canadian media personality who speaks on home/interior and lifestyle shows. In this feature article, she touts the advantages of an appealing front exterior of a home. "Homes with good curb appeal not only sell faster but for a lot more money," she says.

To achieve curb appeal, Gillespie recommends de-emphasizing the garage door. "Many new homes today have very prominent garage doors," she says. "Since the garage door is not the desirable focal point of the front of your home (your front door should be), we may need to take a few steps to visually make the garage less prominent."

She discourages white garage doors because they "reflect more light and draw attention." Instead, she recommends painting the garage door two shades darker than the house.