garage door repair long beach ca

What Is Headroom and Why Does It Matter?

If you’ve been looking to start a home improvement project involving your garage space, you’re going to need to first understand the importance of headroom. The amount of headroom you have will determine what you are able to fit into your garage. You can see by now that this small detail is worth researching as it can either keep you within budget or cost you more after you figure out that you can’t fit your vehicles. Therefore, the following includes a couple of important bits of information regarding garage headroom.

Headroom Misconceptions

Perhaps the most common mistake that homeowners make when renovating their garage space is thinking that headroom is the distance from the ground to the ceiling of the garage. In fact, it includes the distance from the ground to the lowest obstruction. This can be a variety of things such as steel beams, a fan, piping, etc.

Choosing the Right Torsion Springs

Your headroom will determine what type of torsion springs you are going to need. Tension springs allow your door to open and close properly. Torsion springs are a tricky thing to install on your own. Therefore, it is recommended to seek the services of a Long Beach garage door installation company to ensure proper installation. However, you can still take action in the type of springs you choose for your particular measurement. If the height is 13 inches or more, then a 12-inch radius track with torsion spring should do. Those with 6 to 12 inches in height will require front torsion springs.

How to Measure the Garage Door

In order to properly obtain the measurement of your headroom, you must first measure the width of the garage door at its widest point. You can easily determine these points by finding the right and the left side of the completed opening part of the door. Next, measure the door’s height at its highest opening point. Measure the headroom, starting from the center ground to the nearest obstruction.