What are some inexpensive options for replacing a single-stall garage door?

Question

The house we recently purchased has a detached 3 1/2 car garage that has seen better days. The entrances to the garage door consist of a 2-stall garage door, and a 1-stall garage door. Luckily, the 2-stall door is in pretty good shape- just needs a new opener, a bit of trimming/sealing, and a coat of paint.

The single-stall door, however, is a complete loss. The door is rotting to the point that it is falling apart, the door sliders are falling off the ceiling, and the garage door spring is broken. The good news is, I plan to use this side of the garage for a small workshop, and to store our lawn tractor. In other words, I don't need an automatic garage door. However, looking at the typical sliding garage doors, they are quite pricey, even in a single stall size. Any thoughts on other options for doors? Would it be practical to build/install a double barn door for the stall? Any other ideas of a non-traditional garage door for the single stall side?

score 4 · Accepted Answer · answered Nov 11 '10 at 21:57

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These look nice

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You could probably build a simpler version pretty cheap.

Also if the doors are large enough, and you are ambitious enough you could put a smaller "man" door in one of the doors. That way when you go in and out you don't have to open the large doors, but you still have the large doors for getting large projects/lawn tractor in and out.

answered Nov 11 '10 at 21:57

Tester101

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Thanks Tester-I think that is along the lines of what I want to go with. While the man-door idea is intriguing, the door that is being replaced is only 8'x7', so I think a man-door would be a bit overkill ;). – MarkD Nov 12 '10 at 15:11
Magic search term here is likely to be "carriage doors". I have similar plans for a 1-car garage door. Some good links: a discussion with diagrams and a how-to page with process photos. – Jeremy W. Sherman Oct 23 '12 at 20:57

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Dec 15 '20 at 15:19

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You could also put in an overhead door without the automatic opener - just handles on the inside and outside. With the springs taking up most of the load, any adult can open them easily, and it would be more "out of the box" than building carriage doors.

answered Dec 15 '20 at 15:19

tilde

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A) This is a 10-year-old question. B) The OP said, " In other words, I don't need an automatic garage door. However, looking at the typical sliding garage doors, they are quite pricey, even in a single stall size." so suggesting replacing it with an overhead door, which the OP explicitly doesn't want to do, doesn't really help much. – FreeMan Dec 15 '20 at 16:33
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I interpreted "sliding garage door" to mean the side to side style, that's the common search result. I'm not sure how likely it is, but OP may not have realized that "regular" overhead doors are available without openers, and would be a cheap alternative. Also, I don't think the age of the question matters, I interpret these posts as a reference for future visitors, not just to help the OP. – tilde Dec 15 '20 at 17:08

What are some inexpensive options for replacing a single-stall garage door?

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