Wood Garage Doors

[DavidPWinters]

Hello All,

So I want to build my own Wood Garage Doors for my One car garage and I contacted my local building department and they said that not only would I need to pull a permit but in order to build my own I would have to have an engineer certify that it meets the wind requirements.

Does anyone have any ways I can get around having to pull a permit and get the building department involved? Thanks.

 

[RKA]

If you live in one of these persnickety towns that keep an eye on everything you do and what time of the day you wipe your a$$, you probably don't have a choice. I would recommend getting a copy of the section of building code your town subscribes to and review the section pertaining to garage doors. Sometimes the person at the other end of the phone actually knows what they are talking about, sometimes they think they do. Ultimately, reading rules in black and white tends to shed some light on the matter.

 

[my68spit]

Just build it in the garage so no one can see it, then put it up at night.

 

[kbs2244]

The short answer to your question is
No
You cannot hide it and if you are in a wind zone you need a signed off design.

Most jurisdictions do a comparative of overhead photos every year or two.
Any structures added are easy to see.

 

[upndown]

Where the hell do you live? I've been replacing doors for 35+ years, between Arizona and Illinois, never once had to pull a permit. Unless you need a permit to do Woodworking how is anyone going to know who built the door?

Building a Garage Door is a bit of an undertaking, Finding good materials, building rails, styles and panels.Then buying proper hardware..The door will need to be weighed to get the Correct Spring..etc.If any thing goes wrong your on your own! Buying from a Mfg. at least you get a Warranty, especially being a wood door. Just a few thoughts to consider.. good luck!

 

[cburnscrx]

Mistake #1, contacting the building department.

Permits for a garage door. Who knew? As somebody stated, unless you live in one of those places where they have nothing better to do, how would they have known. Do you need a permit to put up ANY garage door? If you did a decent job, how would they know you built it vs. buying one and putting it up?

Cats out of the bag now...good luck!

*I am glad I don't live where you do.

 

[cburnscrx]

The short answer to your question is
No
You cannot hide it and if you are in a wind zone you need a signed off design.

Most jurisdictions do a comparative of overhead photos every year or two.
Any structures added are easy to see.

I really want to know...where do you live that they do this. At my last house I built a deck and a shed...no permit at all. Now, techinally I didn't need one for the deck (less than 2ft off the ground and not attached to the structure), but unless you really came and inspected it, it looks like it's attached (it's not, main floor ledger boards are asking for rot and completely unnecessary!). The shed I just built and nothing was ever said. I have the drawings and plans should it ever come up, and I can get a post construction permit if need be. Until then, no issue. Do people who go buy these shed kits from Lowes really get permits? I doubt it, and none of my neighbors did...oh well, I digress...

 

[Moose97]

Man, I'm a building official in Texas and I would never require a permit to replace a garage door. If you are in a hurricane prone area it may be different. Go ahead and design your door, draw it out on paper and then run it by an engineer and see what he will charge to stamp it. May be cheaper than you think.

Oh, and next time, move to an unincorporated area where you can do what you want to do.

 

[slickgt1]

Now that is some ****. We have been building and installing our own custom wood doors for, um like ever, and never even thought about it. I am sitting here drawing up new carriage doors for my pops garage. Never even thought about contacting an engineer. But my 4" thick doors would need something heavy duty to push in, or out.

 

[DavidPWinters]

Thanks for the info. I live in Florida, so I can see the need for a wind rating, but I contacted the building dept hoping I would not need a permit. Any way I told her to send me the actual code that says that I need a permit and what all the requirements are. I am hoping I can find a loop hole or something.

I hate the crappy premanufactured metal door that is currently on my house and I was hoping to build a carriage style swinging door. We will see!

 

[509SC]

We built a new house recently, and the garage doors were wood over a 2" insulated metal door. The springs, hardware and openers had to be better to handle the additional weight. I'm very happy with them

 

[kbs2244]

Virtually all of FL towns now have a “hurricane code.”
Among other things it covers all windows and exterior doors.

If your one car garage is detached you may not need the wind code door.
But if you are in an incorporated area and it is attached it is a real good chance it is a requirement.

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

Do you have a door on there now? Any rules against repairing it one panel/section at a time?

 

[jstroede]

Well if you live in Florida, that is a whole different world. They have state wide building code requirements, and don't fool around when it comes to wind ratings. There is only one company that I know of that makes wind rated swing out doors approved in the state of Florida. They are out of North Carolina and make top notch stuff, but they are $$$$. Trying to get around the wind requirements will do nothing but cause you headaches and could cause you problems with the insurance companies. I have dealt with wind rated doors in Florida for over 10 years, and it isn't getting any better down there.

John