Wood vs. Steel Garage Doors: The Pros and Cons

When it comes time to install or replace your garage door, one of the biggest questions is: steel or wood? With so many styles available nowadays in a wide range of colors and finishes, it can be hard to determine which is the best for your home.

To help you choose, we’ve put together a list of the pros and cons of each material:

Steel Garage Doors

Pros:

 Low maintenance: In general, steel garage doors don’t require much maintenance. Their corrosion-resistant coatings keep them from rusting and acquiring small dings or blemishes.

  • Insulation: Steel offers good temperature and sound insulation. Adding additional insulation is easy and many Clopay steel garage doors come with insulation pre-installed.
  • Resistance: One of the greatest advantages of steel is the resistance to warping, splitting and other effects from harsh weather. Steel doors are the best option in extremely humid climates.

Cons:

  • Damage: While thicker gauge steel doors are durable and resistant, thinner gauges steel doors can get dented. Small dents can be removed, but larger ones may be difficult to repair.
  • Rust: Over time coatings can eventually wear off or get scratched, at which point lower-quality steel doors can start to rust. Maintaining coatings can help older steel garage doors from rusting.

Wood Garage Doors

Pros:

  • Appearance: Many customers prefer the natural style and beauty of a natural wood garage door over steel. This is especially true for older homes with a traditional style.
  • Aging: Wood garage doors tend to ‘age’ well. Due to the natural grain and varying patterns, small scratches and scuffs don’t tend to show up as much as with steel doors.

Cons:

  • Maintenance: There’s no denying that wood garage doors can require more maintenance. This is why it’s important to choose a wood that is adapted to the humidity and temperature climate of your area.
  • Insulation: While the natural insulation properties can vary, in general, wood will offer slightly lower insulation versus similar-priced steel doors. Added insulation to the door can help with this.

Choosing the Right Door for Your Home

As you can see, choosing a garage door can depend on a variety of factors and can vary based on geographic location and preference. If you are really undecided, there is also an option to cover a steel or aluminum door with an Ultra Grain wood finish which helps give you the best of both worlds.

No matter what you choose, be sure to select a high-quality garage door brand, such as Clopay. These doors are designed to look great and work well for years, with much lower maintenance than less comparable brands.

At A-All Style Garage Door, we carry a large section of steel and wood doors from Clopay. In all cases, you’re getting top-quality materials, construction and finishes that maximize durability and minimize maintenance.

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