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Other Design Dilemma

Advice on replacement garage door and glass inserts

3 years ago

We have an owner-occupied duplex and are going to replace the two single garage doors with one standard garage door to more easily accommodate our two vehicles. We are getting new exterior front doors on both sides of the duplex. From some angles, you can see both a front door and the garage door so I'm looking for a garage door and glass inserts that will go with the front doors we ordered (which are the same on both sides of the duplex). I have attached a picture of the front doors we ordered ~ the only difference from the picture is that the wood will be painted black. I have also attached a photo of the house. NOTE: I have removed the black star and plant hangers above garage, etc. Those were from the previous owner. :)

Any ideas for garage doors styles and glass inserts would be much appreciated. I will eventually be updating the landscaping and paint to add some curb appeal, but that may be awhile. Thank you!

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Comments (3)

PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
I think I need to clarify what it is you are doing. Do you mean you live in both sides of the duplex or are you now going to share a garage with someone else . IMO you have a craftsman entry door on a MCM ranch so doesn’t really work for me I would do a MCM garage door and matching MCM front door For sure get rid of the shutters they do not belong at all.So this is what I would have done I guess now that the front doors are ordered you need to find a garage door with some close connection to the front door you have coming.
Amber Lynn thanked Patricia Colwell Consulting
Amber Lynn
Original Author
3 years ago
Thank you ~ I understand the confusion about the property. I co-purchased the duplex with a close family member. We each live in one side and it is a long term living arrangement. The garage divides the property down the middle so we have no shared walls, which is a wonderful unique feature.:) The inside of the garage has no dividing wall, so this solution will allow us to more easily get our 2 cars in the garage as the current setup is very narrow for my SUV.

It's interesting ~ I live in Northern California and walk alot in our community, which was developed in the late 50's/early 60's. There are about 1600 homes in the community and I've only seen a couple that have gone the MCM route. I see so many shutters this size on homes on every street, some added later with elements like carved out tulip shapes, etc.. I see craftsman door upgrades on a majority of the homes and the garage door upgrades are either white or painted (few are wood), long or short panel, a good number with window inserts and now I'm seeing some carriage style doors coming in. Knowing nothing about design, I didn't realize this was mixing so many styles, but I do understand what you are saying.

Ours is a very generic (boring) looking duplex, so I am hoping to give it some pizazz with landscaping, which will be after the garage door is modified. With the front doors ordered, I'm stuck now on whether to do the garage door as a plain paneled door or with window inserts that complement the front door.

Thank you again for taking the time to comment, Patricia ~ I greatly appreciate it!
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I shall probably attempt the gentle but purposeful tapping with a rubber mallet that you suggest, Brickeyee, after calling around to other shops.....I wonder whether a manufacturer's name could be on the underside of the door....I'll keep looking. I can't be the only person who has wanted to change out their glass insert rather than sacrificing the whole door, which in my case is a perfectly okay piece of heavy wood and not otherwise landfill-ready. Seems like a business that ought to exist somewhere. Thanks.
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If 8 or 9 have already gone, it is likely that the rest are not far behind. Some times you will see accelerated seal failure on elevations that take a beating from the sun. If that is the case here, the others may live a while. Replacing the glass with a sealed IGU with Low-e is likely going to cost as much as an entirely new insert. Insert window utilizes the existing frame and sets the new window inside that frame. Primary drawback is the loss of glass when compared to a full tear out. Full tear out installation replaces everything right down to the studs and all interior trim. Primary drawback, expense.
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Is there currently living space above the garage nearest the door? I think it would make a huge difference to add some kind of contemporary dormer above that garage, that ties in the angles on the right side of the house. Even without immediately removing one of the garage doors, I think it would make a big difference in breaking up the long line of the roof that draws even more attention to the garage doors. Once the garage door becomes a wall, it will also provide more dimension. I think this will be a really interesting update to follow, I’m glad I stumbled on it! Please post pictures as you go along :)
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Thanks for the response. At the moment, we are in a position where we can replace the doors if we decide to go that route. We had someone give us an estimate for the repair and at the same time, he offered an estimate to replace. It was not as expensive as we had anticipated, which is what got us thinking about replacement. The current blue color on the garage doors matches the front door color. and the garage doors are on the side of the house. They do not face the road. The peaked building on the left of the house in the 2nd picture with the 2 windows with shutters is the side of the garage, which faces the road. And both house and garage are the same cream color, the lighting on the front of the garage was just in full sun when the picture was taken, which caused it to look whiter. All 3 garage bays have openers, which have all been replaced at various times. The only item that we think we would like to see in new doors would be windows, just to break up that solid mass of the 3 doors. As to materials, we're at a loss. Wood is all we've known, but we've been exploring lower maintenance products, hence the uncertainty.
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chloebud
3 years ago
Front facing garage doors usually look better with some glass IMO. I have to agree with PCC regarding an MCM ranch with a Craftsman door. Not a pro but am guessing your best bet at this point is to look for garage door glass that mimics the front door glass.

I also agree removing the shutters is a good idea. It's really the wrong style house and windows for them.
Amber Lynn thanked chloebud

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