Garage door install

[Kapt]

How much stress is on the garage door tracks? I'm planning on installing drywall and was wondering if the garage door tracks can be installed over the drywall or must the tracks be installed directly into the framing without the drywall in between?

If it matters, both my doors are 9X7 and will follow the roofline.

TIA, Tom

 

[kyeakel]

I installed mine over the drywall but not using it for support. I used slightly longer lag bolts into the framing behind the drywall. My door is a commercial 10x8 that lifts straight up to 16' high ceilings.

 

[cw_racefan]

How much stress is on the garage door tracks? I'm planning on installing drywall and was wondering if the garage door tracks can be installed over the drywall or must the tracks be installed directly into the framing without the drywall in between?

If it matters, both my doors are 9X7 and will follow the roofline.

TIA, Tom

Typically I think they're installed over the drywall as mentioned in the previous reply. Also, if it's an attached garage, it may be a requirement that it's installed over drywall due to fire code (not sure but would follow given the ceiling requirements on an attached garage). I'm trying to decide what to do with mine in my detached, since the garage shell has been done for over a year and I'm just now finishing the inside. I really don't want to have to pull the door tracks down before doing the ceiling!

 

[boiler7904]

If it were me, I'd get some smooth plywood and sandwich it between the wall framing and the track. It would be the same thickness as the gyp and when painted, you wouldn't be able to tell the two apart. It also won't crack because of the repetitive movement / vibration of a door opening and closing.

 

[nova65ss]

How much stress is on the garage door tracks? I'm planning on installing drywall and was wondering if the garage door tracks can be installed over the drywall or must the tracks be installed directly into the framing without the drywall in between?

If it matters, both my doors are 9X7 and will follow the roofline.

TIA, Tom[/QUOTE

Sounds like your talking about the vertical tracks mounted to the jambs, and I would not put sheetrock between them.

 

[NHCharger]

I've been a builder for 22 years, seen almost everything. I was putting an addition on a house several years ago and the home owner asked me to look at his garage doors, said there was a problem. The tracks were mounted over 5/8" sheetrock. Over the years the L brackets that secure the tracks to the wall had dug into the drywall causing everything to be slightly loose, so when the garage door was opened, everything vibrated.
Many of the houses I have built have a drive in/under basement. I secure a 2x6 to the wall for the door track to attach to and sheetrock to the edge of the 2x6. For the top rails I attach a peice of angle iron to the 5/8" sheetrock ceiling. The angle iron spans at least two floor joists and using lag bolts, bolt the angle iron to the floor joists, should penetrate at least 2" into the joist. The larger flat surface of the angle iron will not dig into the sheetrock. From this you can anchor your top track.