4 Winterizing Tips for Your Garage Door

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WinterizeGarageDoor

In many areas, the weather is getting colder, and it’s time to make sure homes are winterized.  Winterizing is all about preparation, so don’t forget the garage door in your winter checklist!  Take about an hour to make sure the garage and garage door are ready for winter weather (and any surprises Old Man Winter may bring) with these 4 garage door winterizing tips.

Check the weather stripping.
Weather stripping on the garage door seals out most of the wind, cold air, and precipitation from the garage.  Check the weather stripping around the door frame and at the bottom of the door to make sure it is not misshapen, cracked, or hardened.  If it is, call an Amarr garage door dealer near you for assistance.

Check the garage door cables.
Visually inspect the cables that attach the spring system to the bottom brackets on both sides of the door.  If the cables are worn and frayed, they could be in danger of breaking, which can cause injury.  Cold weather can increase this risk of breakage.  Do not attempt to repair or replace the cables yourself call an Amarr garage door dealer near you to come take a look.

Perform a garage door counterbalance test.
Checking the counterbalancing system of the garage door will make sure your springs are in working order.  Perform this test by pulling the red emergency cord on the electric garage door opener to disable the opener.  Next, carefully attempt to open the garage door from the inside.  If it’s difficult to open, call an Amarr dealer to identify the issue and fix it for you.  Click here to view a video that shows you how to safely perform this test.

Lubricate metal hardware.
The metal hardware parts of a garage door system are tough and hard-working, but these parts, including rollers, tracks, and springs, may need lubrication to keep them in tip-top shape.  Clean the metal parts with a dry cloth, then apply a moderate amount of oil-based lubricant.  Make sure the lubricant in use does not contain petroleum or silicone try to use a lubricant designed for garage doors and garage door parts.

Add these tips to your winterizing checklist to encompass your entire home and be prepared for winter weather.  If you need more help with your garage door, find an Amarr dealer near you.

Oversized Amarr Commercial Doors

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For some commercial buildings, you need an oversized door!  Luckily, Amarr 2742 and Amarr 2042 polyurethane insulated commercial doors are available in widths up to 40 feet wide!  Below are some installed applications of oversized commercial doors.

 

Amarr 2742, 40′ wide x 15′ tall
Installed by Garage Door Express – Lone Rock, WI

40' wide Amarr 2742 operating, from the inside

40′ wide Amarr 2742 operating, from the inside

Outside - 40' wide Amarr 2742

Outside – 40′ wide Amarr 2742

 

Amarr 2742, 35’2″ wide x 15′ tall
Installed by Zeeland Garage Door – Zeeland, MI

Installers hard at work on this oversized Amarr 2742 commercial door

Installers hard at work on this oversized Amarr 2742 commercial door

Finished product: 35'2" wide Amarr 2742

Finished product: 35’2″ wide Amarr 2742

Got oversized Amarr commercial door installations to share with us? Comment below!

How to Repurpose Old Garage Scraps Into Cool New Shelves

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By Vanessa Brunner, Houzz

When Ryan Hill decided to design a new office bar for his magazine, The Garage Slab, he didn’t want to use the same old minimalist wall shelving he’d seen everywhere. Hill’s magazine is dedicated to giving a real-life inside look at multipurpose garage spaces, so he decided his office should have the same industrial feel. “We wanted to use materials someone might have in the corner of their garage,” Hill says.

The Grage Slab Office Bar contemporary

The pipe and connectors were bought at a local hardware store, and everything was measured and cut to size. (You can ask your own local hardware store for help with this.) The pieces were attached to the shelving and walls with 1-inch zinc screws.

The Grage Slab Office Bar contemporary-wine-cellar

The Garage Slab team framed the space with 1-inch-thick MDF instead of standard drywall. They wanted to screw all the bar components into the wall, and the MDF gave them a more stable surface.

Hill and his co-workers made the shelves out of recycled wood they salvaged from a project Hill’s business partner was working on. They cut the wood to size, put a drip edge on it, and gave it a few coats of black paint before installing the pipe brackets.

The Grage Slab Office Bar contemporary-wine-cellar

They added in a few sconces for ambiance, placed their glassware on the shelves, and the bar was complete.

“The bar is open,” says Hill. “And we always welcome guests!”

Tell us! What can you make with the stuff in your garage?

Related Links:
Stylish Bar Cabinets for Extra Storage
Finish the Industrial Look With Metal Dining Chairs
What to Store on Open Kitchen Shelves

6 Creative Garage Makeovers to Inspire Your Own

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By Vanessa Brunner, Houzz

Most of us could use a little extra space — for an office, for entertaining or just for relaxing — but few of us have the budget or room to add on to our existing homes. But there may be a blank slate nearby, just waiting to be reinvented: the garage.

These six Houzzer garage conversions have gone above and beyond the average remodel. No longer in need of a parking spot, or tired of looking at the mess that had piled up, these homeowners took advantage of their empty or dilapidated garages. The resulting dream rooms gave these families the extra space they were looking for.

Houzzer: Suzanne Dingley, Suzanne Dingley Interiors 
Location: Salt Lake City
Garage size: 180 square feet, detached
DIY or professional project?Both

A new work-from-home job meant that Suzanne Dingley’s husband needed a new office. Instead of cramming one into their house, the couple turned to their detached garage, which had become a dark and dirty dumping ground for junk. They gutted the space, exposed the rafters and pitched roof, and installed new flooring and built-in storage.

The red and white color palette evolved from this Ikea photo of a London bus — a tribute to the couple’s British roots.

The pair replaced the existing garage doors with two sets of French doors and two new windows to let in natural light. The newly insulated ceiling and floors control the internal temperature, but a window cooler and space heater help out, too. “My husband is very happy with his space, especially with his short commute across the yard,” says Dingley.

Houzzer: Rick Giudicessi
Location: Des Moines, Iowa
Garage size: 240 square feet, attached
DIY or professional project? Professional

This 1930s garage wasn’t just worn out and beat up; its odd layout and tiny garage door made it impossible for Rick Giudicessi to park his car inside. Instead of using it for storage, he turned it into a tiki bar with an attached patio where his family can entertain year-round. “When the weather ends the use of the patio and tiki bar area, we move inside to the heated area,” he says.

Taking the garage down to the studs and designing an open ceiling turned the bland space into what the family now calls The Annex. Although Giudicessi designed much of the new space himself, all of the structural work required professional help.

New cabinetry, a bar top, a satellite TV and bar stool seating make The Annex the perfect sports bar, ideal for entertaining in rain or shine.

Houzzers: Michael and Kathy Brown
Location: Cincinnati
Garage size: 600 square feet, attached
DIY or professional project? Professional

Although Michael Brown used his attached garage, it became a quick solution for some extra space when his in-laws moved in. The home’s original kitchen was too small to host two extra people, so Brown had the garage transformed into a professional-grade kitchen, with a new garage attached to its side. The dramatic remodel required help from architects and contractors, but the result was well worth it. “We’ve never regretted doing this, not even for a second,” he says.

Houzzers: Megan and Rich Hirsch
Location: Bexley, Ohio
Garage size: 525 square feet, detached
DIY or professional project? Both

Megan Hirsch loves having outdoor parties, but her yard and main dining room were too small to contain the large groups she wanted to host. The garage, which opens into the home’s backyard, had plenty of room to spare. Reserving part of the street-facing portion of the garage for parking still left space for indoor-outdoor entertaining. A 14-foot viewing screen rolls down inside the rear of the garage so the family can host outdoor movie nights and Ohio State University football parties.

The new black standing-seam-metal roof contrasts with the fresh white siding, setting the garage apart from the brick main house. Since the garage is visible from the street, the Hirsches wanted something that would make an impact.

Fans, a disco ball, vintage fixtures and a large dinner table set the ambience for dinner parties inside. The Hirschesinstalled the hanging lantern on a pulley so they can raise and lower it over the dinner table, lighting nighttime feasts.

Houzzer: Nancy Rice
Location: West Wareham, Massachusetts
Garage size: 300 square feet, attached
DIY or professional project? Professional

Nancy Rice didn’t need a place to park her car, so she took advantage of the opportunity to turn her garage into her dream room: a private library.

With the help of a contractor, she designed a classic Victorian-style library, complete with floor-to-ceiling shelves and a bank of windows with a window seat for reading. “I’m a retired schoolteacher and a lifelong bookworm,” she says. “I’ve always dreamed of having my own library. I guess it was from watching classic movies and reading British literature.”

Houzzers: Michelle and Rich Walton
Location: Long Beach, California
Garage size: 400 square feet, detached
DIY or professional project? Professional

Three active kids, a pool and consistently warm California weather demanded an outdoor hangout space for this Long Beach family. Instead of building something new, Michelle Walton and her family worked with Royce Flom Construction to turn their garage into a combined pool house and storage space for their outdoor gear.

“I’m from Ohio and grew up with basements. My husband is from California and says, ‘The garage is the California basement. No one parks in their garage in California,'” Walton says.

New French doors create a pass-through from the pool to the house on the other side of the garage. Walton painted the floor with nonskid paint, so the kids wouldn’t slip and slide while coming in from the pool.

The white, casual, beachy vibe was a given for the family. “We love the beach, and we have a lot of surfboards,” Walton says.

Related Links:
Complete the Look With Outdoor Torch Lighting
Pump Up Your Home Bar for Entertaining and More
Need More Space? Utilize These Outdoor Storage Solutions

Entrematic Team Members Exemplify “Caring Culture of Service”

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At Entrematic, our company culture is extremely important to us.  A large part of that culture is what we call our “Caring Culture of Service.”  That means that everything we do is rooted in caring caring for our customers, our partners, our fellow Team Members, and our communities.  Entrematic Team Members across North America have come together in the wake of the recent natural disasters.  We would like to take a moment to acknowledge some of our Team Members who exemplify our “Caring Culture of Service.”

Hurricane Harvey
Hurricane Harvey hit the Houston, Texas area in August 2017 and destroyed many homes and businesses in its wake.  While the Entrematic Houston Door Center facility was unharmed, a Team Member’s house was unfortunately heavily damaged and irreplaceable personal belongings were lost.  Many Team Members far and near wanted to assist in any way possible.  With the help of the Houston team, Entrematic’s Human Resources department set up a GoFundMe page for the Team Member.  The goal was surpassed in just hours!  Team Members from as far as Canada donated to the fund to help this Team Member and family get back on their feet.  Thank you to all the Team Members who helped out a fellow Entrematic family member!

Entrematic Houston Team Members

Team Members of the Entrematic Houston Door Center

Mexico City Earthquake
A warehouse Team Member at our Monterrey, Mexico Door Center had the wonderful idea of collecting donations at the Door Center to benefit the people living in the areas affected by the September 2017 earthquake in Mexico City.  “Everybody at the Monterrey DC gladly participated by providing either food, medical supplies or construction tools,” said Antonio Sepulveda, Director of Mexico Operations for Entrematic.  Team Members wrote messages of support on many of the items as well.  The donation drive was highly successful and Team Members delivered the items to a nearby donation facility.  We are so proud of the Team Members in Monterrey for bringing this selfless idea to fruition!

3Monterrey 4Monterrey

These are just a few examples of our Team Members doing great things for others, but we are amazed every day by our Entrematic family’s commitment to our Caring Culture of Service.  We are proud to have amazing Team Members!

Entrematic Helps Revive Customs Garage in “Garage Rehab with Richard Rawlings” on Discovery

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Three Amarr 3552 Aluminum Full View commercial doors were featured on an episode of Discovery’s new show, “Garage Rehab with Richard Rawlings.”  The new show, hosted by Richard Rawlings of “Gas Monkey Garage” and “Fast ‘n’ Loud,” premiered on August 30, 2017.  Entrematic was featured in the September 27 episode entitled “Offset Kustoms.”

Rawlings, accompanied by his team of experts (Russell J. Holmes, project manager, and Chris Stephens, garage designer), looks for struggling automotive shops across the country that could benefit from his industry expertise and knowledge.  For each shop, Rawlings takes the reins and steers the business from lagging to lucrative.

In “Offset Kustoms,” the targeted shop is a garage in New Caney, TX that outfits trucks and jeeps with custom lift setups.  Owners Ryan and MJ acknowledge that the shop has fallen on hard times and needs Rawlings’s help to get back to its former glory.

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To do that, however, Rawlings must first remodel the shop.  A large part of that remodel included the three Amarr 3552 Aluminum Full View doors.  The doors have black anodize frames with 1/8″ thick clear tempered glass.  Amarr 3552 doors are a great choice for automotive shops because the large glass panels allow workers high visibility to see in or out of the bays in the shop.  The black anodize frames were chosen to give a sleek, modern feel to the façade of the garage.  The tempered glass was selected to increase safety.  “If broken, tempered glass shatters into granular chunks, which are less likely to cause injury than shards of regular glass,” says Steve Roesner, Commercial Product Manager for Entrematic.

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The curb appeal of the Amarr 3552 doors did not go unnoticed.  “One of my favorite things are the doors,” Rawlings says in the episode.  “Amarr garage doors killed it with these super large glass [and aluminum] doors for our shop area!”

To watch the episode “Offset Kustoms” and see how Rawlings was able to revitalize and improve the shop, visit Discovery.com to watch on-demand at any time.

How to Protect Your Home from Hurricane Winds with Amarr Wind Load Hurricane Rated Garage Doors

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Coastal homeowners are familiar with how damaging a hurricane can be to their homes.  The combination of wind and water can be destructive.  In the last two decades, building codes and requirements have been strengthened to ensure that homes and other buildings are ready to face hurricane winds.  What does this mean for homeowners, and how do homeowners protect their homes from these devastating hurricane winds?

A great place to start is with the garage door.

Why the garage door?
Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) experts say “the loss of a garage door during a hurricane can lead to an uncontrolled buildup of internal pressure resulting in the blowout of a house’s roof and supporting walls.”  A reinforced garage door that can handle higher wind load requirements reduces the risk of structural damage to a home.

What are wind load requirements?
When an area has a wind load requirement, building materials like garage doors must meet and be tested to uphold structural integrity up to a certain wind speed.  Wind load requirements vary by area, and homeowners should check their local building codes for their wind load requirement.

Dr. Steve Lyons, Hurricane Expert at The Weather Channel, says, “Wind pressure is often the most devastating culprit in a hurricane.  A Category 3 hurricane with winds of 130MPH exerts pressures equivalent to the weight of a typical family car on a two-car garage door.”  Having a reinforced garage door that meets wind load requirements reduces damage that your garage door and your house would take from hurricane winds.  Below is a video of Dr. Lyons conducting a wind tunnel test to show the effect of high wind speeds.

How are hurricane rated garage doors reinforced and tested?
Wind load approved doors use a variety of reinforcement materials, including Struts and R-Trusses which are engineered to meet specific building code requirements.  When installed according to our instructions and local building codes, Amarr hurricane rated garage doors withstand rapid cyclic pressure and static load forces for different wind speed ratings (with some models up to 245MPH that can also resist large missile impact at 50 feet per second).  Impact glass is also available for many wind load approved garage doors.  Impact glass may shatter in incredibly high speed winds, but remains intact despite the force, providing more safety for your home.

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With Amarr garage doors, you don’t have to compromise curb appeal for hurricane preparedness.  Almost all Amarr residential garage doors are available with a wind load reinforcement system.  Check your local building codes to see what Amarr garage door models meet or exceed your area’s requirements.  Take the next step in preparing your home for a hurricane by making sure the largest opening in your home is reinforced.  Contact an Amarr dealer near you.

Embrace Your Inner Designer with Amarr Color Zone

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Amarr Color Zone

For many homeowners, the design of their home is an expression of their personality.  Since garage doors are often the largest opening in a home, they shouldn’t be neglected when it comes to home design!  With Amarr Color Zone, they don’t have to be.

What is Amarr Color Zone?
Amarr Color Zone is a custom color program for all commercial and residential steel Amarr doors (not available on Amarr Carriage Court).  Amarr Color Zone uses high-quality Sherwin-Williams SnapDry™ paint.  Sherwin-Williams SnapDry™ paint is resistant to dirt, fingerprints and UV weathering, so your new garage door or commercial door will stay beautiful and vibrant for years to come.

Amarr Color Zone Residential Garage Door

By choosing an Amarr Color Zone garage door, you can match your home’s shutters, trim, or entry door, giving any home a more cohesive design and increase curb appeal.  For commercial buildings, Amarr Color Zone can make a bold statement and help any business stand out!

How does it work?
Visit your local Sherwin-Williams store to choose from over 600 Sherwin-Williams SnapDry™ paint colors on our color list.  In a multi-step process, the chosen custom color is applied as a top coat to the Amarr pre-painted, galvanized steel sections, giving your door one more layer of protection from the elements.  Your new Amarr Color Zone garage door will even come with a bottle of touch-up paint to keep your door looking good.

Amarr Color Zone Commercial Door

How do I get an Amarr Color Zone garage door?
Visit our Dealer Locator to find an Amarr dealer near you.  Choose the Amarr garage door and color that’s right for you.  Then, let your inner designer shine!

8 Ways to Get Creative with Your Driveway’s Contemporary Curb Appeal

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By Lauren Dunec Hoang, Houzz

Driveways can take up a lot of front yard real estate but are rarely given as much thought as other areas of the garden. Instead of seeing the area as simply a track for cars, look at the driveway as an opportunity to increase curb appeal and set the tone for your front yard. Here are eight examples of driveway materials and placement that go beyond the usual pavers, cobbles and gravel to complement different styles of front yards.

1. Linear pattern play. Give a classic driveway material, such as poured concrete, a twist with a pattern that makes a design statement. This concrete driveway was poured in a linear pattern, leaving gaps for planting plugs of turf. The finished effect reads almost like an oversize bar-code pattern and complements the home’s clean lines.

2. Eco-friendly. Traditional paved driveways contribute to rainwater runoff, rather than draining water on-site. This permeable surface in Maryland shows a much greener alternative. The designer laid pavers designed with hollow centers and then planted them with plugs of blue fescue (Festuca glauca) sod. The driveway visually melds right into the front lawn and can be mowed to keep fescue low.

3. Contemporary geometry. Set a graphic theme to the front yard with a driveway made up of a repeating pattern of shapes and lines. For example, this geometric driveway transecting a low-water landscape is composed of narrow rectangles of concrete set in a compacted base and then surrounded with crushed limestone.

4. Green strip. Break up an expanse of driveway paving and increase permeability by removing stones and replacing them with planting pockets. The architects of this driveway in Manchester, England, created an irregular edge for the green strip by leaving the outer paving stones of various sizes in place as wheel tracks for cars. Plant the interior strip with lawn or a walkable ground cover such as Roman chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile), silver carpet (Dymondia margaretae) or woolly thyme (Thymus pseudolanuginosus).


5. Courtyard driveway. Treat your driveway more like a courtyard by extending the footprint beyond the edges of the garage and choosing a stylish paving material. In this Northern California landscape, the architect used a grid of light concrete pavers to form a graphic courtyard at the front of the home. Gaps left between the pavers promote drainage. The area acts as a walkway to the front door and a space for an outdoor table, as well as a car-friendly surface to connect to the garage.

6. Permeable bands. Rather than covering the driveway and carport with concrete, the architect for this home in Austin, Texas, came up with a clever solution to increase permeability and give the surface more visual interest. Alternating stripes of pale-colored poured concrete with dark-tinted concrete pavers (Uni Eco-Stone pavestones) create a graphic pattern and encourage rainwater to drain through the pavers.

7. Postage-stamp garden. On tight city lots, the driveway can take up much of the front yard. To carve out more space for plants, the architect of this San Francisco front yard left green strips down the driveway and planting pockets between concrete stepping stones. The neutral mixed pavers used for the car tracks and the multiple sizes of concrete steppingstones work well together surrounded by plenty of green.

8. Asian-inspired. Granite slabs and smaller cut stone pavers laid in an irregular pattern work well to complement a modern Japanese-influenced garden. Selecting a paving material that relates to the home’s architecture and complements the planting theme can integrate the look of the front yard.

Plant These Perennials for a Colorful Fall Front Yard
Unique House Numbers to Help Your Home Stand Out
Consult Local Architects for an Estimate Today

How would you re-design your driveway? Let us know in the comments below!

4 Ways the Amarr Smart Wi-Fi Garage Door Openers Help Your Home

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This post is part of a series about Amarr garage door openers.  To read other posts, click here.

Amarr 840 & Amarr 860 Smart Wi-Fi Garage Door Openers

Not all garage door openers are created equal!  A new garage door opener can do great things for not just your garage door, but your home as a whole.  The new Amarr Smart Wi-Fi Garage Door Openers feature many benefits for your garage, home security, and smart home capabilities.  Let’s take a look at four of these benefits:

Amarr 860 Wi-Fi garage door opener with downward dispersing LED light

Brightness

The days of a poorly lit garage are over.  The Amarr 840 & 860 smart Wi-Fi garage door openers bring workspace lighting into your garage.  Both openers boast bright LED lighting, with 1600 Lumens (100W) on the Amarr 840 and a whopping 3000 Lumens (200W) on the Amarr 860!  The Amarr 860 opener also provides a 24-foot wide diameter of downward-dispersing LED light that brightly illuminates the garage.

LED lighting saves energy and lasts over 100,000 hours.  Both Amarr openers allow you to adjust the LED lights to six different brightness levels, letting you select your preferred workspace light setting.  The Amarr 840 & 860 make your garage one of the most well-lit rooms in your house.

Amarr Wi-Fi opener quiet operation

Quiet but powerful

No one wants a noisy garage door.  The Amarr 840 & 860 openers are designed with sound dampening technology to keep noise vibration to a minimum.  The openers are also equipped with a powerful 800N DC motor, with smooth start & soft stop.  Available in chain or belt rail, the openers have intelligent, self-learning, self-adjusting torque settings to work just hard enough without using too much power.  The Amarr 840 & 860 also have a low-power standby mode to reduce energy consumption, making them a sustainable and energy-saving option for your home.

Entrematic Garage Door Controller app for Amarr 840 & 860

Smart control

The Amarr 840 & 860 garage door openers do more than work bright; they work smart.  Control your garage doors and lights from your smart device, from anywhere in the world with the Entrematic Garage Door Controller app!  You can also control access permission to relatives, friends, care providers or service workers, tracking their access activities in real time and removing their access at your will.

Amarr smart Wi-Fi garage door openers also connect to existing smart home technology to make your life even smarter.  The Amarr 840 & 860 are compatible with Amazon Echo, Amazon Dot, Google Home, HomeLink and IFTTT.

Amarr garage door and garage door opener solution

Trusted name in garage doors

Amarr, a leading brand in garage doors, now brings the high quality and safety homeowners expect from garage doors to garage door openers.  Now you can have an Amarr door and opener solution for your home!  With safety features like infrared photo beams, down safety reversal, up safety stop, and emergency quick release, along with a lifetime motor warranty, you can feel confident in choosing Amarr garage doors and garage door openers.

There’s more to learn about the Amarr 840 & 860!  Visit our website for more information.

Which feature would benefit your home the most?  Let us know in the comments below!