Posted by Jessica Mend on Thursday, 03 May 2012
Tags: Paint, Garage Door
One of the quickest ways to add curb appeal to your home is to update the look of your garage door.
And getting a nice looking garage door does not always require buying a new door you may very well be able to make the door look nicer by just giving it a new paint job.
The first thing you will need to do is determine the type and material of garage door you have. Older doors are usually wood and newer ones are usually Aluminum, Steel. No matter the material as long as it still sturdy you will be able to accomplish this task in one afternoon.
After determining the material of your door head to your local hardware / home improvement store and talk to the sales people in the paint department they are usually friendly and will steer you in the right direction.
Step 1) First you will want to make sure the door is super clean. Its strongly suggested that you first use a wire brush to remove all loose paint and debris.
Step 2) Use a fine 130 grit sand-paper to smooth out any differences between the old paint and the places where paint was removed by the wire brush in step 1 above
Step 3) Use a damp, but not wet, towel to remove all dust and any dirt that may interfere with the paint adhering to the garage door.
Step 4) Apply painters tape, newspapers and drop-cloths to all areas close to your garage door you do not want paint to get on.
Tip: its worthwhile spending extra time on this task as it will save lots of time later trying to remove unwanted paint.
Step 4) Apply a primer base coast, this will protect your door and will allow the new garage door paint color you chose to show without the need for many coats of paint.
Tip: Applying "primer" is common among professionals being that its also more affordable being that primer is less expensive then the paint.
Tip: Your best bet is using a spray gun instead of a brush, as a spray paint usually is applied more evenly provided you follow the instructions for your particular gun (usually 6 to 9 inches away from the surface of the door)
Step 5) After your primer has fully dried this can vary from brand to brand please see manufacturers suggestions on the paint can. Apply your paint first coast, this may not look exactly as the color you had selected and that's normal, you will need to wait an hour or two depending on the paint to apply your second coat, you will repeat the wait and apply for the third coat.
Tip: You may apply as little as 2 coats and as many as 4 its all based on your preference and the brand and quality of the paint.
Tip: Don't forget to paint in the joints and the top as these areas are easy to miss and tend to trap water.
6) Once all the paint has dries you can remove the tarps, tape and newspapers and inspect your new garage door, if you missed spots you may be able to touch it up with an artists synthetic brush, if the spot is larger you may want to re-tape around the area ans re-spray the missed spot, note: you must do the same amount of base and coats as you did on the rest of the doors to make it match correctly.
Bonus, In addition to now have a great looking garage door the new paint will protect the metal or wood from corrosive elements. It will help increase the lifespan as well as the aesthetic appeal of your door.
Posted by Sam Wise on Thursday, 22 December 2011
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Posted by Sam Wise on Thursday, 22 December 2011
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Posted by Sam Wise on Thursday, 15 December 2011
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Posted by Sam Wise on Sunday, 11 December 2011
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Posted by Sam Wise on Wednesday, 07 December 2011
Tags: Garage Door Security
There have been a rash of movies based on sadistic home invasions in the last few years- it seems to be all the rage in the thriller genre. While these movies are often stressful and distressing to watch, they also serve as a good warning. Yes, many of them are dramatic and over-the-top, but the principle itself is not flawed- it is very possible for an unscrupulous person to gain access to your home, particularly through the garage door, which is the largest and least-locked entrance in a home.
Keeping your family safe is of the utmost importance to any parents. It doesn't matter if you live in a nice community or a less well-to-do one: making sure no one can enter your home through your garage is key to making sure all of your loved ones stay safe. It only takes a moment or two of a lowered guard for your life to irrevocably change.
Luckily, the new digital era has offered us much in the way of security for our families. Since the advent of wireless communications, there have been better and better advances in the world of garage door safety. We have come a very long way from the simple padlocks and chains of yesteryear, now with remote WiFi control of opening and closing, special key-in pass-codes, and motion detector systems that can alert you if someone is in your driveway. These and more can help work to make sure no intruders ever darken your doorstep.
Posted by Sam Wise on Sunday, 04 December 2011
Tags: Garage Door colors, Garage door Paint
Garage Door Colors Part 4:
The final two colors in our color wheel! To finish up our week of analyzing colors to see which ones fit best for garage doors, we address the last color of the rainbow, and the most popular non-color color. It is really important to keep in mind what colors do for humans, how we perceive them, and what evolutionary histories are attached to them. That way, we can have a much deeper understanding of exactly what it is colors to for/to our brains, and then how we can most effectively use them.
6. Purple is a complex color for humans, mostly because it is made of the strongest two primary colors (blue and red) and is therefore the “strongest”, “deepest” color of the rainbow. In addition, purple is a rarely occurring color in nature. Only flowers and some birds’ plumage become purple. All of the rest of the colors can be seen often in the sky, the earth, the sea, our own skin, in foliage, or in fall foliage. Purple is a rarity in nature. But being a mixture with blue, and being so dark, it’s definitely not a “hot” color, like red or orange. It’s definitely on the peaceful end of the spectrum. A deep purple garage door may go well with your decorating scheme, but probably won’t add any discernible emotions to your palate.
7. White is also a rare color in the environment in which humans evolved. Usually clouds and perhaps some flowers, shells, and animals sport white. In nature, white tends to get dirty and show that dirt quickly. Therefore, a pure white is very very strongly associated in the human mind with “purity”, sanctity, and cleanliness. So make sure if you’re going for a white garage door that you keep it nice and clean, otherwise the effect will totally backfire on you!
Posted by Sam Wise on Saturday, 03 December 2011
Tags: Garage Door colors, Garage door Paint
A continuation of this week's color theme! As we all know, different colors can have different effects on the human psyche, and therefore decisions about what colors to paint your rooms, your house, and your garage doors could be guided by these effects! If you take this into account, you won't accidentally pick colors that don't work with your home.
4. Green is a soothing and cheerful color. Bright greens bring feelings of renewal, like spring. Humans are evolved to identify food sources, and green rolling hills and bright, rustling green leaves invariably signal sources of food, be they fruits, vegetables, or game feeding on those plants. Therefore, bright green is a very joyous, uplifting color to the human psyche. Darker greens tend to be more soothing, but less rejuvenating. Evergreens remain dark green (that’s why they call it pine green!) and therefore such colors may be soothing and easy to look at, but not as thrilling as a bright green. A nice, subtle dark green garage door can work wonders for the curb appeal of a home, particularly if the plant life in the yard speaks for itself.
5. Blue is a natural soother. Everyone, of course, instantly thinks of the sky when they think of blue. But actually, human preferences for blue have less to do with the sky (though that does play a role) than bodies of water. Humans have evolved a preference for being proximal to big bodies of water, for rather obvious reasons. A lot of fresh water, like a lake or a river, means something to drink as well as potential food resources. The sea means transportation, good sight-lines, temperate weather, and a bounty of marine life to feed off of. A light blue can be a comforting, good-vibe color, and a deeper blue brings serenity and peace.
Posted by Sam Wise on Friday, 02 December 2011
Tags: Garage Door colors, Garage door Paint
Here is the continued list of exactly what color do to the human brain, and how that applies to garage door style choices! Yesterday we covered red, which is a very important color in terms of how the brain interprets it. Here we continue the rainbow with orange and yellow, which have many of the same influences and, like red, are "warm" colors. They have certain things in common- like being high-energy, but there are also some definite differences.
2. Orange reads as “red lite”, with a side of crabby. Unfortunately, it’s pretty much acknowledged that, according to the human brain, orange is the worst color. This is because it has enough red in it to peripherally trigger the emotionalism, but it also has shorter wavelengths like yellow that makes it bright and difficult on the eye to process. The upshot of this is that orange really “pops” in the mind. You definitely never miss something that’s orange! If that’s what you’re going for in a garage door, you can certainly try out a classy burnt sienna, or go all the way with a sunset orange.
3. Yellow really is the color of happiness, cheer, and contentment. This is because the wavelengths of light that make up the human perception of “yellow” are also the same patterns that come form sunlight. And because sunlight produces bountiful crops, vitamin D in the skin, and generally good moods, yellow is therefore instinctively associated with these positive things. By that token, however, yellow’s effects vary greatly depending on what “hue” you’re talking about: a soft, buttery yellow will certainly invoke the warm sunshine effect. But a deeper, richer ochre actually will do this far less. A yellow garage door can be tricky, but the positive feelings it can create are wonderful.
Keep reading tomorrow for an analysis of green and blue!
Posted by Sam Wise on Tuesday, 29 November 2011
Tags: Garage Door, Garage Doors, Garage Door Opener, Garage Door Repair, Garage Door Replacement, Garage Door Installation, Garage Door Service, garage door prices
There are many kinds of double decker vehicles out on the road these days: big U-hauls to bring people’s belongings from place to place; giant sixteen-wheelers that cart various products (including produce!) all across the country; trailers or mobile homes that can serve as nice vacation or adventure vehicles for families; double decker transport buses or tour buses; even some super souped-up pickup trucks might actually count as “double decker” if their shocks are high enough.
So what does all of this mean, exactly, for homeowners and consumers of garage doors? For most people, likely not a lot. There are still a lot of people out there who very much will prefer to just stick with their sedans, or their two-car sports cars, or their sports utility vehicles. Or their minivans, convertibles, or motorcycles even. All of these types of cars should do just fine with a standard sized door. So for those people, a normal garage door will do just fine.
But for people with large garages who want to store large vehicles, be they buses, trailers, huge trucks, or even something like horse transportation trucks, they’re going to need not only a garage that can fit such a behemoth, but a door that will let it pass through!
Getting your hands on a non-commercial double decker garage door isn’t easy. And truth be told, many of these doors don’t come in all the same fun variations as a standard sized door. For example, carriage-style double deckers are rare, and so are wooden ones. (Unless you live on a farm and have a barn house, but then that’s not a garage anymore.) Most will likely come in aluminum, alloy, or poly-blend types.
So make sure that if you’re going to invest in an over-sized vehicle, that you’ll have a place to store it! And if you plan for that place to be your garage, make sure you have a door that will fit it.
