Garage doors: Any improvements on low infiltration, high R-value?
I’ve read a few GBA discussions about the sorry state of garage door R value and infiltration. The conclusion was to look first for infiltration values, and then question the r-value because it probably does not apply to the entire door assembly.
I’m wondering if anyone has any updated information on any products that might be better that others, and hopefully something affordable.
In researching this, I found a commercial company that makes overhead type doors tested for infiltration. They claim infiltration test results as low as 25MPH/1.57PSF – 0.12 cfm/ft2. The downside is all their doors are metal; they don’t seem to offer a fiberglass or other composite door that has been tested for infiltration.
http://www.raynor.com/products/IECC-compliant.cfm
The lowest infiltration is on steel doors, but to get those test results, you cannot add the option of windows on the steel doors.
They offer aluminum garage doors with both higher infiltration (Tested Air Infiltration @ 25 mph 0.24 cfm/ft2), and probably higher cost, but you can apparently add windows to the aluminum door and still meet the infiltration rate.
I’ll be calling next week to learn more about the AV200 and if it is an option for residential use.
Ideally, I would like to find a door that would be appropriate to use as a portion of an exterior wall for a conditioned space, to give the “loft” type feel.
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C L,
The last time I wrote an article on this issue, I noted that Raynor was one of the companies guilty of false R-value claims. My instinct still tells me to approach any R-value claims with suspicion.
That said, I haven't looked into the infiltration claims that you cite. Readers?
The door swing style seems to matter a lot. The barn door style is easy to weatherstrip, the roll doors not so much, and the swing up doors always have a gap in the middle. A sliding door may be an option in your described scenario.
Bryce, are you referring to side swinging doors? I wonder about how the track at the bottom is kept clean... or maybe there is no bottom track?