garage door r value

[90limited]

Going from r11 to r17.5 adds about $700 to the cost of an 18 x 8 door... For such a big area, I think the extra r value is worth the money. I plan to have heat at 48 in winter and ac at 80 in summer when I am not in there working....

Is it worth the money?

 

[Falcon67]

I have read several articles that call into question the R values placed on overhead doors. I used $30 worth of 1/2" foam board and have no trouble keeping the shop warm or cool. You'll lose a lot around the door even with weather stripping, unless you line the opening with foam tape and screw the door to the wall when it's closed. Makes it somewhat less useful IMHO. It was 11 yesterday morning and 32 today - the shop was 50 with no heat running at all.

 

[AndyL]

Generally not....

Your ROI on the R12 vs the R9 is usually 5-7 years... Switching to a >16 door you'll never recoup within the lifetime of the door (even for folks like me with electric heat in the garage - in Canada).

 

[90limited]

I should also mention that the walls are 2x4 and will have r13 bat in them.

 

[brawls43]

Check out the article they shared in this post. Made me re-think focusing on the door insulation, vs sealing around it.
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=3638487#post3638487

Article: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/musings/energy-efficient-garage-doors

 

[brawls43]

The recommendation in the other post lead me to Hormann garage doors, and while I haven't priced them out, I like the way they seal between their door panels.

This happens to be one of their higher insulated doors, but all their doors have a system similar.

http://www.hormann.us/residential/residential_garage_doors.aspx

 

[Falcon67]

I should also mention that the walls are 2x4 and will have r13 bat in them.

Same here, and R13 in the ceiling.

 

[90limited]

I am going to blow insulation in the ceiling and will go higher than R13...

 

[NUTTSGT]

My old doors were wood and I screwed 1/2" foil faced rigid insulation on them. Sometimes I wonder if they worked better than the new Wayne Dalton doors that are pre-insulated.

I'm not sure if it will be worth the extra money. I'd like to think it is but sealing around the door is where you're losing it.

 

[JakeKohl]

The recommendation in the other post lead me to Hormann garage doors, and while I haven't priced them out, I like the way they seal between their door panels.

This happens to be one of their higher insulated doors, but all their doors have a system similar.

http://www.hormann.us/residential/residential_garage_doors.aspx

My Overhead doors have rabbeted joints that are simpler and perform very well. I'm really happy with my doors. This cold snap saw us at a low of 9 and a high of 26 over the course of 2 days and it was windy. The temperature in my freestanding garage dropped to 52 degrees with no heat. I have one 16 foot door and one 12 foot door.

 

[brawls43]

My next doors will have some type of rabbeted joints. We saw natural temps down to -20F this weekend. And my heater runs too much in the garage. I need to seal things up way better. Builder grade stuff is kinda junk.

 

[AndyL]

pretty much all the doors have some kind of rabbet seal. OHD espouses how awesome it's is - yet I've pulled more 297's out because of light/airspace between the sections than any other door.

In my not so humble opinion - Garaga has the one to beat (and no, I don't sell garaga doors; but I do love their product)

As usual - I go back to my normal rant - pick your best quality local installer, see what they offer and what they recommend.

 

[JTG]

I put 2 new doors in a few years ago and I went with the highest R rating. My old wooden doors leaked like crazy and I knew this was going to be a one time purchase and didn't want to regret "cheaping out". I also purchase my doors when there was a large government rebate available so it lessened the price increase. I like my doors and don't regret the additional expense. I think the pre-insulated doors are more solid than thinner doors with added on insulation and I believe this cuts down on the doors rattling going up and down.

 

[BigGMC]

In my not so humble opinion - Garaga has the one to beat (and no, I don't sell garaga doors; but I do love their product)

Garaga's have a thermal break between the outer and innner skins. that door pictured above looks to be one solid connection from from to back - steel transfers cold very well......