Guide to Understanding Your Garage Door Track Options

When it comes to garage doors, the track system is a crucial component that ensures smooth and efficient operation. Choosing the right track option for your garage door is essential for functionality, safety, and longevity.  

 

When it comes to selecting the perfect garage door for your home, one of the key factors to consider is the track radius. The track radius directly impacts the smoothness and efficiency of your garage door's operation.

What is Track Radius?

The track radius refers to the curve in the tracks that guide your garage door as it opens and closes. The radius is crucial because it affects the door's movement, the amount of headroom required, and the overall space efficiency of your garage.

At Doorix, we offer various track radius to suit different types of garage doors and installation environments:

1. 12-inch Radius: Ideal for residential garage doors with limited headroom.
2. 15-inch Radius: Offers a balance between smooth operation and moderate headroom requirements, suitable for both residential and light commercial applications.
3. 20-inch Radius: Commonly used for larger or heavier doors, requiring more headroom but providing very smooth operation.
4. 32-inch Radius and Larger: Typically used in commercial settings where ample headroom is available and smooth, efficient operation is paramount.

 1. Standard Lift Tracks

The standard radius is the most common type of garage door track. Installing a track with a radius that is lower than 15″ is ideal because it takes up even less headroom, we prefer to avoid using a 12” radius track because it requires additional work from the operator motor to move door sections through that small of a curve.

2. High Lift Tracks

The high lift track is used when there is ample headroom — over 30 inches — and additional workspace clearance is required. Garage owners often use this type of garage door track to help the track avoid obstacles in the garage, such as an entry/pass door or other structural elements. The 2-inch track requires:

 

3. Roof Pitch Tracks

This track actually follows the pitch of the roof structure. Given the roof pitch, a standard radius curve track section is cut to allow the angled horizontal track to follow the roof structure.

 

4. Vertical Lift Tracks

For Vertical Lift, the door travels straight up vertically without turning, in the configuration, only a vertical track is needed and the door moves up and bumps out from the wall only enough to accommodate the opener. There is no horizontal track. If the door is 8 ft. tall, an additional 8’-9” of vertical headroom would be needed.

 

5. Low Headroom Tracks With Front Mount Spring

This garage door track option uses up even less headroom space than a 12” radius track. Often referred to as Dual-Track, it is best recognized by a second horizontal track. This second track is installed above the horizontal section that is attached to the curve from the vertical track section. This second track is used for moving the top section of the door only, allowing the operator to easily move the top section far enough that the lower sections will follow on the lower track smoothly. This garage door track option also helps with doors that might have taller or oversized top sections, it also contains a spring that's either mounted at the front or rear of the track.