Every garage door professional knows of the amount of planning that goes into building a garage. One of the things that builders and contractors need to be sure of is that the garage door will easily fit the space. However, it can be understandably upsetting if you go through all the phases and find that the garage door you have is much broader than the opening. So, how can you remedy the situation?

To answer the question posed earlier, a garage door can’t be wider than the opening. In fact, your garage door should be the same size as the opening, or maybe even a hair smaller. Also, the rough opening should be a few inches wider than the door to accommodate the frame to ensure a tight fit with a seal.

Now that you know that a Well-fitted Garage Door is Essential To Preventing Damage, we’re also going to answer a couple of commonly asked questions below too.

Why Buy a Side Mount Garage Door Opener

A Rough Opening Compared to a Finished Opening

It is a term that’s also referred to as Rough Farming or rough opening. It is the size and shape of the garage opening before the door frame has been installed. The rough opening has to be larger and usually by a few inches than the size of the garage door’s frame. So, knowing the difference between the size of the door and the rough opening is important.

After you’ve completed the finished opening, you should have the same total width as the garage door or maybe slightly smaller. There also should be enough space to accommodate the garage door’s opening mechanism.

Door Width is The Same As the Finished Opening

If the width of the garage door is much larger than the opening, there is the risk of the edges scraping the frame and not being able to close smoothly. Though having a garage door that’s too wide isn’t as serious as having a frame that’s too wide, it can still cause the garage door to malfunction, or it may come across as rushed or sloppy.

Exceptions for Door and Opening Width

Many contractors may leave a rough opening, and the finished opening is just a couple of inches shorter than the width of the door on purpose. However, this is not necessary; builders feel that there are a few advantages to this approach. For starters, it allows the metal door’s end stiles to rest against the jabs easily. The result is less rattling when it is windy.

If you live in an area that receives a lot of snowfall, the approach creates a much better seal. The perimeter seal should be able to remedy most of these issues. However, it isn’t strictly necessary to have a difference of those few inches.

Finally – How Wide Should Your Garage Door Opening Be?

As a standard measurement, the width of the garage door opening is going to vary mainly based on the type of house you live in and the area. The majority of single garage doors are up to 8 feet wide.

Double car garages are usually 16 feet wide. You also need to keep in mind that many companies also create custom garage doors, that way, you don’t have to strictly adhere to these measurements.