Manual Garage Door Vs Electric Garage Door; Pros and Cons

Garage doors come in all materials, sizes, styles and even shapes! You can get custom garage doors made of glass as well as golf cart doors and even huge RV sized garage doors. One thing that every garage door owner must decide for themselves is if they want a manually operated garage door or an automatic (or electric) one.

Manual garage doors

There was a time when all garage doors were manually operated. You had to actually do the lifting and lowering of your garage door each time you used it. You might be wondering what possible benefit this offers any homeowner but actually there are a few. Cost is one. Manually operated garage doors are not as expensive as having to purchase and install an automatic garage door opener. Upkeep is less, as well. You might even want the extra exercise that these manually operated garage doors offer you.  Another small benefit is that installing your manually operated garage door is less involved, less expensive, and easier done than having to add the automatic, electric version.

Most manual garage doors in Woodstock, GA are found in older neighborhoods and typically involve older, single garage doors. Home builders will typically install the automatic kind as this is more in demand with new home buyers for a couple of reasons; builder mark-up is present and this translates into more money not only for the contractor but also for everyone else involved in the home buying process including realtor, mortgage broker, banks, etc. Also, a home sold with an automatic garage door opener presents a more attractive package for a buyer as one of the main drawbacks with electric garage doors is the hassle and care that must be taken when actually installing the garage door. Obviously this is already done by the builder and the new buyer doesn’t have to bother with this at all.

Electric garage doors

As you know, most new home buyers will want the upgraded convenience of an automatic garage door opener. Many younger buyers will not even consider anything else, in fact, they may not even be aware that they have this option. Electric garage doors offer convenience, safety, and added security that many consider well worth the additional cost.

Consider for a moment how easy it actually is to gain access to your garage using an electric garage door. You simply drive up, push a button and drive on into your property. If it’s raining; you don’t get wet. If you are on your smartphone you simply keep talking as you arrive home. Maybe you are listening to your favorite song or the news on the radio. No need to interrupt that; just push that opener button and continue!
Safety is another feature that automatically comes with having an electric garage door. Like it or not, you are exposed and vulnerable when you leave the security and comfort of your car in order to open your garage door. It is the ideal time to accost you as you are occupied with doing another task – opening your garage door. You can be kidnapped, assaulted or worse! In addition, once your garage is opened the crook now has access to your home and its contents. He can drag you inside, close the garage door and you are completely at his mercy. Then there’s the vulnerability of your car! You are not in it but they keys are! So are you smart phone, purse, wallet, registration, driver’s license and maybe even your child! Carjacking is easy to do when the real driver has his, or her back turned!

Other factors

Many Woodstock, GA residents choose electric garage doors over manual ones for another reason; the automatic safety provided by your photo electric eyes. These are not an option when you only have the manual garage door as they are a part of the automatic garage door opener system. The safety sensors do their job by stopping your heavy garage door from descending directly on to whatever is underneath it. This could be a pet, child, neighbor or even a car. Remember that time when you didn’t pull into the garage far enough and the trunk was sticking out enough for the garage door to hit? The crash didn’t happen because your safety sensors prevented it.