Door size

[Reaper9]

Still in the planning stages for 36 x 55 RV/Car Garage. I'm looking at 2 doors 12 ft wide and 14 Ft high. Will that be adequate for any size RV?

 

[BobnCO]

Yes most states have a 13.5’ max height for RV’s.

 

[Bert_]

That's a nice size door. Should cover anything you would get

 

[sailor_lou]

That's the size I used for my RV bay (40' class A motorhome). Also, the garage has 16' height so there is room to get up on the RV roof when needed.

 

[Reaper9]

The ceiling height will be 16 ft with some high intensity lighting hanging a foot or so below that.

 

[cvairwerks]

Need to verify that the 14' door will actually give you 14'. Lots of doors don't go high enough to give you the full opening. The 7' door on my garage only gives me about 6'5" with the way it's installed. I can get the full 7', but I have to take the opener arm off and push the door to the tack limits to get that.

 

[Reaper9]

I think that is why the designed ceiling height is 16 ft is for the garage door clearance.

 

[cvairwerks]

It's all in how the door is installed. I have 8.5' ceilings in the garage, but because of the door installation, I have the height problem. Some of the doors won't give you full opening heights without going to high lift or custom track installations. It's something you need to work out with the door supplier and installer before you commit.

 

[Reaper9]

I am still looking for a builder in SW Florida can do the project. I will put this on my list for discussion.

 

[whateg01]

I think that is why the designed ceiling height is 16 ft is for the garage door clearance.

Ceiling height has little to do with how the door opens. In this pic that I pulled from the web, you can see the lower edge doesn't go all the way to the top of the door opening. In this case the tracks are lower than mine but my door is the same way.

 

[Reaper9]

Yes, something to be aware of

 

[Sumboodie]

12ft is fairly narrow. It's what I have at work and the mirrors on my truck (T880) have maybe 8-10" each side.

Definitely doable, i back in sometimes 5-6 times a day, just not a ton of wiggle room.

 

[dura eagle]

I put in a 14’ x 20’ door in my new shop. Maybe you don’t want a 20’ wide door but I would absolutely for sure put in a 14’ tall door. No way a modern 5th wheel camper will go in a 12’ door.

 

[Chilliwack Murray]

How much space is in front makes a big difference when it comes to backing an RV into a tight spot. If you have room to pull ahead and get lined up to the door the width is adequate but if, like me you don't have endless space in front you will find most of the extra width is used up with the tail swing as you try to straighten out. Perfectly 'doable' but you may have to jockey back and forth numerous times to get it relatively straight before you actually get through through the doorway and one or the other of your mirrors will be useless for most of the turning process. A spotter is a good idea until you figure out your landmarks and know where you're safe and when to be careful.

My door is a 12' wide commercial model and its adequate for backing an RV in but there's a big tradeoff in strength when you start getting wider than a 12' door. Drive around and look at all the wider doors that sag after a few years. At 12' it's solid and not affected by wind, the installer had lots of horror stories about wider doors even if the people selling them don't.

Most RV's and RV trailers typically have a lot of tail swing since they centre the axle to maximize length and minimize weight on the tow vehicle.

 

[Reaper9]

I will have plenty of room to maneuver. I think the 12ft doors look better than have entire front of the building all door.

 

[CraigStu]

Another thing to keep in mind re; door tracks is type of opener. The common Liftmaster 8500 needs some of the door dropping down the track curve toward the vertical section. There is nothing powering the door close movement other than gravity so if the door goes all the way onto the horizontal track surface it won't close but it sure will make a rat's nest out of the cable when it goes slack.

 

[Reaper9]

So if the door is all the way up in the horizontal position the Liftmaster will not power it forward enough for gravity to take over?

 

[kj_mustang]

You just use a door pusher spring at the end of the track.

 

[VT JD]

Commercial doors the size you are looking for normally have "helper springs" on the end of the track that compress when the door is fully open and help it close with no issues. You will be fine.

 

[Reaper9]

Ok thanks for the info.

 

[dcg9381]

Yes most states have a 13.5’ max height for RV’s.

Yea, but if you add slightly different tires, replace an AC with a different profile, blah blah, it's pretty easy to end up above 13.5'. I've never been "height checked".

I like to think that a 14' H door fits anything that "normally" travels down the road and isn't oversize.

12'W x 14'T is what I have in my shop. Specifically for RV pass-through.

One suggestion though: That door is all the way up or all the way down.... Ask me how I learned that lesson.

 

[reader2580]

I did 14 foot wide doors at both ends of my buildings for a motorhome. If I was doing it again I would probably do 12 foot wide doors as they are easier to find. My doors are 14x14 so close to 14 feet in height. My front door is a roll up door so no issues with clearance. I suspect the sectional door would be pretty close to 13'-6" of clearance. You would need a pretty big RV to be a full 13'-6" tall. My converted coach bus is only 12'-9" tall.

I have 14 foot wide doors yet I managed to start turning too soon driving out this weekend and ripped the Smartside trim off the side of the door opening. No damage to my converted coach bus.

 

[Reaper9]

Generally 13'6" is max height on the nations highways. There are rare occasions where you can be 14 ft.

 

[dave*99]

Another thing to keep in mind re; door tracks is type of opener. The common Liftmaster 8500 needs some of the door dropping down the track curve toward the vertical section. There is nothing powering the door close movement other than gravity so if the door goes all the way onto the horizontal track surface it won't close but it sure will make a rat's nest out of the cable when it goes slack.

Pusher springs can help fix that. But it's better if you can arrange not to need them.

How to Install Push Down Spring Bumpers

If you are using a jackshaft opener, such as the Liftmaster 8500, it might be necessary for you to install push down spring bumpers.

ddmgaragedoors.com

 

[kwb]

First off - who cares how hard it is to find. You buy a door once, maybe twice in a lifetime. Door is expensive no matter the size increment when you get into big doors. My door is 16w 14h. I have to basically back around a corner to get things in there so the width is really important. I also had a plan for a boat that was 10' wide when I built the shop so 12' wide would have been really a challenge to get in and out.

12' is narrow unless it is a very straight shot. I just added some covered parking for trailers with posts at 12' apart. I don't think I have made the maneuver in a single smooth sweep yet and I have been parking these same trailers in this same spot for years.

All of my comments are based on 99% of my stuff is trailer related. A motor home is a bit easier than trailers (especially bumper pull) but the long wheelbases present some challenges as well. If I had the option I would spend the money for the wider door every time. One small "oops" is going to cost a lot more than the incremental increase in the cost of the door.

 

[whateg01]

...

All of my comments are based on 99% of my stuff is trailer related.

Your trailers, and your skills. Somebody else? TMMV

A motor home is a bit easier than trailers (especially bumper pull) but the long wheelbases present some challenges as well.

Bumper pull is better in tight spaces than gn or 5th wheel just because of the wider swing it takes with a longer trailer. Otherwise, the longer trailer is better in every way.

If I had the option I would spend the money for the wider door every time. One small "oops" is going to cost a lot more than the incremental increase in the cost of the door.

Agreed, but op stated they don't like the look of a wider door.

 

[Reaper9]

My building will be only 36ft wide. I really did not want most of the front of the building to be all door. However at this point I am not going to rule out 14 ft doors.

 

[kwb]

Your trailers, and your skills. Somebody else? TMMV

Not sure which way to take that from an internet stranger but I am pretty good with putting a trailer where it needs to be. I also have seen a lot of people break a lot of **** trying to park cars, trucks, trailers, boats that were not that technically challenging. That is why I will always recommend the wider door even if it doesn't look as good in some peoples opinion. Tall skinny doors look bad to me, they look like a service bay. With the right ratios to the whole building a big square is more balanced.

A 12' door sounds like a lot until you have an 8'6"wide box that has another 4-6" of stuff that is mounted off the side like an awning and a big overhang at the back end. If it is Motorhome Mirrors will stick out another 16" on each side and all of a sudden your load is 11'2 and that 12' wide door is trimmed out and has weather stripping and you only have <3" on each side.

 

[Tennesseepowerstroke]

I did 14' by 14' doors on a 40' wide pole barn. That left three 4' solid walls across the front. You could do this with three 2' solid walls on the front. In my opinion, the 14' by 14' doors look more appealing to the eye than 12' wide by 14' high doors.

 

[jstroede]

Ceiling height has little to do with how the door opens. In this pic that I pulled from the web, you can see the lower edge doesn't go all the way to the top of the door opening. In this case the tracks are lower than mine but my door is the same way.

Yes, ceiling height absolutely does matter. That garage has a very low ceiling height, so it has double track low headroom track installed. The vertical tracks are generally 6" - 8" less than a standard door on those. On this type of track, yes the door will hang in the opening as shown.

 

[whateg01]

Yes, ceiling height absolutely does matter. That garage has a very low ceiling height, so it has double track low headroom track installed. The vertical tracks are generally 6" - 8" less than a standard door on those. On this type of track, yes the door will hang in the opening as shown.

I guess I should have worded it differently. Yes a low ceiling will dictate that the door doesn't open fully. But on most does with "regular" ceilings, the door still stops short of the top of the opening. That's my point.

 

[Bert_]

I back into a 12' wide door daily. Sometimes with a 102" wide trailer. 12' is a ton of room.

Really the only compelling reason for something wider is farm or construction equipment.

 

[VT JD]

I agree with Bert. 12' wide door is lots especially given the fact you are going to have 2 doors. If you were only going to have one door it might be better to have a wider door to maneuver things to get closer to the outside walls but you will be fine with 2 - 12' doors.