At Richardson's Garage Doors, Inc., we firmly believe that the installation of a garage door is not a do-it-yourself job. A garage door is the largest moving object in your home and because of the large number of small parts, its installation is highly technical. Connecting the springs can be particularly dangerous and proper installation is critical to the performance of your door. One of the other services a professional installer can provide is the disposal of your old door, if you are replacing a door.
Professional installers can typically install a door in a few hours and are careful to make sure safety requirements are met. Installations by most homeowners typically span several days and cause much frustration. In addition, incorrect installation can void certain warranties, so we recommend a professional handle the job for you.

1. Steel doors are low maintenance. Typically a wood door needs to be painted as frequently as the wood trim on your home due to weathering.
2. Amarr steel doors have longer warranties than wood doors.
3. Steel doors can be insulated, making them far more energy efficient than wood.
4. Amarr steel doors are pre-painted and most are available in your choice of three colors. Wood doors are unfinished or primed, both of which need to be finish painted upon installation.

Yes. Your professional garage door installer can install a sectional door for you by installing track and springs to accommodate a sectional door. Depending on the construction of your garage, other modifications might be necessary. We would advise you to ask your installer to evaluate the job prior to installation, so that any modifications can be performed before installation.

Standard headroom applications require 12" to 18" of space between the bottom of the opening header and the unobstructed ceiling. However, Amarr specializes in custom-built applications. A variety of special track options are available and make it possible for many unusual garages to be fitted with doors. By using low-headroom track, it is possible to install a door in an area that has as little as 61/2" of headroom.
Other special track applications include:

1. Vertical lift track, for use in situations where the ceiling is extremely high and the garage door has room to lift straight up.
2. Follow-the-roofline track, which is used when the ceiling of the garage is pitched at the angle of the roof, making it desirable for the door to follow the same angle, thus providing additional overhead room and
3. Hi-lift track, which is used when the ceiling is unusually high, but the door must still retract to a horizontal position.

Many manufacturers use R-values to show the energy efficiency of their product. This number is arrived at through a calculation that looks at the thickness of the insulation and its chemical properties. Therefore, most of the R-value numbers you see, reflect only the R-value of the section...not of the installed door. A door's insulating capabilities can be greatly affected by the door's construction.
For that reason, Amarr's insulated doors have a 5-step system that works together to maximize energy efficiency. Our double thermal break and tongue and groove construction are critical parts of that system and help to keep your garage as comfortable as possible.

There are several tests you can perform to tell if your door is balanced:

1. You should be able to raise your door in 1' increments and the door should stay in place where you stop it.
2. When the door comes down, it lowers in a controlled manner and doesn't slam.
3. When the door goes up, it is at a controlled pace.
4. The bottom of the door should align with the bottom of the header when the door is in a raised position.

There are two types of springs used on garage doors today...extension and torsion. Most people are more familiar with extension springs. These are the springs that are attached on either side of the door and stretch along the horizontal part of the track when the door is closed. Torsion springs are typically located just above the top section of the door and are mounted to the header. They are wound springs and do not expand or contract when the door is moved.
A torsion spring is a superior spring, primarily because it offers more safety to the homeowner and better balances the door to provide smoother operation. Amarr single-car doors are equipped with extension springs as part of the standard hardware, but torsion springs are available by request. All double-car doors are equipped with torsion springs.

There are 3 types of carriage house doors:

1. All wood faced doors
2. Steel and vinyl faced doors
3. Steel faced doors

Amarr makes the wood faced doors under its Bob Timberlake™, Biltmore Estate For Your Home®, and By Design brands. These doors are beautiful and offer the most flexible design options. However they are the highest priced type of door. they must be painted or stained, and are typically heavier than most doors.
Steel and Vinyl faced doors typicaly take a flush steel door and use some combination of glue and screws t o attach vinyl overlays to the flush sections. While the price is lower, the design combinations are fewer. The vinyl cannot be painted dark colors, there can be fit and finsh issues, and fading may occur with the vinyl.
Steel faced doors- The Classica is an all steel door that utilizes a unique stamping process to create its beautiful looks without the hassles of painting, heavy weight or overlays . It has no overlays like some steel carraige house pretenders and comes in 32 different designs. All the doors come in a prepainted white, but can be painted (see Question No.9 for paint instructions) to match a home's exterior.