wood garage doors? (Austin, Willis, Fate: new house, contractor, subdivision)

[2austin]

Thought I can use some advice from you folks.

We are building a house and the builder is asking $4600 to upgrade our 3 (2+1) garage doors to wood.

Is this a fair price? Can we get it done cheaper hiring an outside contractor? What other issues have you seen with wood garage doors in Austin weather?

Thanks!

[texasdreamin]

Mine warped. I had it replaced with a double door steel, at the cost of $2k.

[Trainwreck20]

Wood garage doors are

• More expensive
• Heavier (so you need a heavier assist mechanism)
• Will eventually rot out somewhere (usually the bottom)
• Need painting

I replaced mine with a metal door and would not go back. You can get insulated steel doors, as well, that help keep the garage cooler (about the only good thing about wood doors is their insulation)

[DarleneMontgomery]

You can always get it done cheaper outside the builder. Their mark-up is ridiculous!

[Sandy Willis]

Yes, real wood garage door is a pain to maintain. You have to constantly upkeep to prevent the elements from destroying it. To begin with, real wood doors are pricey. Because of exposure to the sun, rain and big changes in outdoor temperatures, real wood doors will be problematic in a short time. The key is making sure the doors are properly sealed (caulked) and varnished with a good UV coating/sealant. But this is a big chore. I have to recoat my wood door every 9 months. For my new house, I chose Fatezzi wood garage doors (Faux Wood Custom Carriage House Garage Doors). I think this is the best option for folks wanting the look of real wood garage door but not the price and maintenance headaches of real wood doors. They are made of synthetic material which will not shrink, crack or rot.

[springbean]

Originally Posted by Sandy Willis

Yes, real wood garage door is a pain to maintain. You have to constantly upkeep to prevent the elements from destroying it. To begin with, real wood doors are pricey. Because of exposure to the sun, rain and big changes in outdoor temperatures, real wood doors will be problematic in a short time. The key is making sure the doors are properly sealed (caulked) and varnished with a good UV coating/sealant. But this is a big chore. I have to recoat my wood door every 9 months. For my new house, I chose Fatezzi wood garage doors (Faux Wood Custom Carriage House Garage Doors). I think this is the best option for folks wanting the look of real wood garage door but not the price and maintenance headaches of real wood doors. They are made of synthetic material which will not shrink, crack or rot.

Where do they sell these locally? I need a double and a single door and love the Fatezzi doors. Do you mind me asking what you paid for yours?

[Sandy Willis]

Originally Posted by springbean

Where do they sell these locally? I need a double and a single door and love the Fatezzi doors. Do you mind me asking what you paid for yours?

I installed two doors. A 16x7 for about $4,300 and a 8x7 door for roughly $2,300. I don't remember the model number but it has a curved top with clear cypress overlays on top of pecky cypress boards. I was able to get a discount because I told them my house is next to the model home in my subdivision and people would see the garage doors when they stop by the model home office.

The faux wood garage doors are awesome and they truly look like real wood doors. I get a lot of compliments on my doors often from neighbors, friends and even strangers (LOL). I guess it must have peaked their interest after stopping by the model home.

So far, there has not been any issues with the doors. Only minor scratches which were caused by the garage door installer. There is also a section where there is a hairline crack that exposes the white caulk. I called the manufacturer Ackue and they were kind enough to send me some touch-up paint. It was very easy to touch-up including the scratched section. My doors face the sun from 10am-6pm so it gets a heavy doze of Arizona sunlight and heat. I mention this because I had issues with my wood doors after about 9 months. And the wood doors only got about 4 hours of sun exposure a day at my old house.

If I'm not mistaken turnaround was about 3 weeks from date of order. Make sure you ask Ackue to send you their faux wood samples including color samples. I was able to get them to color match my garage door color to my front door.

I had to hire a garage door installer to install my doors. Any garage door installer should be able to do the job; I found my installer using the yellow pages and hired someone with experience with wood door installation.

I don't think they have many dealers nationwide. I know they did not have a dealer in Arizona when I ordered. You have to ask them about that or check their web site (Fatezzi Faux Wood Garage Doors). I don't have their phone number.

[dpepin]

Call Austin Doorman and get their take on price. Wood doors add so much class to a house and if both built and installed correctly they will be gorgeous forever! Tell Lauren I sent you to her (Debbie)....585 8086 or 990 3667.

[loves2read]

MY BAD
made a post and did not see that the thread was started in 08 and revived for probably some advertising

[Roadking2003]

I don't agree with the negative comments on this board. I've had my three wood doors for seven years. They are stained, so I had to re stain them after 5 years. There is no chance for rot. They are attached to very strong steel doors, so it's just a veneer (3/4" thick). We used standard door openers and they work wonderfully. I've never even had to adjust them.

They look sooooo much better than ugly painted steel and plastic.

I paid $4950 for three doors seven years ago, so your price sounds OK. That included custom design, all hardware, remotes, motors and installation.

Here is the company we used: Doors R Us Of Austin