vintagegaragedoor.com Blog

Real carriage house doors were historically built using exterior strap hinges with lag bolts or screws as fasteners to secure the face of the strap to the face of the door, and, the face of the hinge to the face of the building.  Use of these types of fasteners and screws into the face of the door and building create a number of holes for water to go directly into the wood core of the door and the building generating wood rot and door failure.  You will see this on any door with an exterior facing. Think about it – you only see this type of fastener on a barn door or garden gate, never an entry door to a house.  Hinges are mortised into the side of doors for a reason – protection from the elements and strength.  If you don’t mind replacing your door in a few years, or placing a door finish at risk of failure, hinges that screw into the face of the door is a cheap risk-laden way to go.

Craig, Master Craftsman at Vintage Garage Door, understands the requirements to design, build, finish, and install at door to last for 25+ years.  Contact him at www.vintagegaragedoor.com to see the superior quality standards that are built into their carriage house doors.

Your investment in my superior hand-made Seattle custom garage doors and/or Seattle carriage door will save you money!  Knowledgeable and informed clients are avoiding the regret of spending thousands of dollars on doors built to fail.  You deserve the best!

Contact today craig@vintagegaragedoor.com to schedule a Seattle garage door or Seattle carriage door evaluation and design consultation.    Craig

News Release:  January 18, 2007  10:41am

 The Seattle Home Show and www.vintagegaragedoor.com have combined marketing efforts to promote the hand-made custom Seattle garage doors produced by Vintage Garage Door, LLC.  Craig Erwin, Master Craftsman, creates beautiful handcrafted custom Seattle garage doors with true divided lites that far exceed other garage doors and carriage doors in quality of materials, craftsmanship, finish, and installation.  With many doors constructed to last only a few years, VINTAGE GARAGE DOOR, LLC uses professional methods and processes with superior craftsmanship and premium materials to construct custom garage doors, traditional garage doors, carriage house doors, and swinging carriage doors of unlimited custom designs.  Where many garage door manufacturers and garage door installers charge expensive custom fees, Craig follows the time-honored path of a true craftsman by not charging extra for custom work since each door is hand-crafted one a time.  Professional finishing services are also available to protect these works of art.

Contact Craig to discuss how your investment in superior hand-made custom garage doors may save you money.  Knowledgeable and informed clients have avoided the regret of spending thousands of dollars on door built to fail.  Don’t you deserve the best? 

The Seattle Home Show runs from January 17 – 25 in Seattle, WA.  Additional information may be obtained at  www.vintagegaragedoor.com.

Each Seattle garage door or Seattle carriage door should be built one at a time to your requirements.  Your choices and selections should not limited to a couple of selections for garage door element dimensions, materials, build techniques, or finishes.  Your Seattle garage door should be built to be dimensionally appropriate and aesthetically pleasing for your Seattle garage door or Seattle carriage door opening size and your home.

You may also want to choose your dimensions for all door elements; including Kickboard height, Stile width, Rail width, Muntins, Window size, and Arch Radius if appropriate.  Your goal is to find a craftsman, not an installer working with a manufactuer to provide you with a hand-made Seattle custom garage door, or, Seattle carriage house door of the highest quality customized for your requirements; environmental, asthetics, finish, usage, and longevity.

www.vintagegaragedoor.com specializes in this type of hand-made Seattle custom garage door or carriage house door.  They may be contacted directly  craig@vintagegaragedoor.com

At a minimum, look for the following:

• Custom solid vertical grain Douglas Fir jamb with airtight replaceable weatherstripping
• Four heavy-duty, 4 ball bearing, non-ferrous, non-removable pin, mortised hinges per door that allow the 150+ lb door to open and close with one finger for YEARS
• Custom threshold consisting of both custom concrete work & a custom threshold to seal the bottom of the door
• Fully mortised Flush Bolts on inactive door located at the top and bottom of the door for impenetrable access
• Custom Astragals; inside or outside mounting

Your new Seattle crafted carriage door will be strong, warm, quiet, and weatherproof with the addition of these quality standards.

Craig Erwin, Owner & Master Craftsman, at www.vintagegaragedoor.com in Seattle builds hand-made custom carriage house doors from scratch using the highest quality materials and craftsmanship.  His Seattle carriage doors are built to last, not to fail!  And, he is the only craftsman providing true value and a quality based product including Design, Build, FINISH, and Install services.  Craig “finishes” the job where others leave the job “unfinished”.  Contact him via email,  craig@vintagegaragedoor.com  for additional information.

Real Seattle carriage house doors were also historically built without a jamb around the doors because the structure was nothing more than a barn or a large shed with a non-square opening.  Besides Seattle, this was the standard across the country.  The structure provided roof and wall protection only.  The doors were also trimmed to the size of the non-square opening so you ended up with cock-eyed doors!  The result – wind blew in from all edges of the door, and, there was nothing to stop water from entering also even if the installer could create a uniform gap all around the door; very unlikely.

For a Seattle garage door, read more at www.vintagegaragedoor.com located in Seattle, WA.

Installation of a carriage house door is not a normal install; unless of course you are an installer paid by the job, not a job done right!

A hand-made carriage house door weighs an average of 300lbs for an 8ft wide by 7ft tall door.  This is not your normal door, and, requires additional engineering and specification of all the opening hardware and components.  If your door weighs under 200lbs, ie. one third less the weight of an average hand-made carriage house door, it is highly likely you have purchased a mass produced so-called “custom” door.  The majority of “custom” garage doors do not come with commercial grade track and opening components.  Although, there are a few custom craftsmen who rise to the top providing an exceptional high quality, hand-built custom garage door with the appropriate tracking and components that will adequately carry the weight on the door without racking, bowing, twisting, flexing, or deflecting, etc.  Craig at Vintage Garage Door is one such craftsman who has a clear understanding of the requirements necessary to design, build, finish, and INSTALL a custom garage door to last over 25 years.  Let us take a look at one aspect of Vintage Garage Door’s approach.

Vintage Garage Door believes services, at a minimum should include the following major areas:

• Custom & Quality
• Materials
• Build
• Finish
• Install

Let us look at just one of the many INSTALLATION methodologies Vintage Garage Door employs today (con’t) -

Upgraded commercial grade components including track, torsion springs, hardware, and nyloc ball-bearing rollers to ensure your hand-made custom door will open and close with one hand; effortlessly.  Craig, Master Craftsman at Vintage Garage Door designs the door, builds the door, finishes the door, and INSTALLS THE DOOR; all for a reason – Professional Quality.  Vintage Garage Door’s installation is far and above a “standard installation” from an installer who typically gets paid per job, not a job done right. When Vintage Garage Door finishes installing the custom garage door, it will be perfectly balanced and operate effortlessly without binding, pinching, racking, or zooming like a rocket.  Also the track will not bend, bow, or deflect on the weight of the door.  Each door tracking system receives a final test of suspending several hundred pounds of dead weight mid-span on the overhead track to ensure everythin is to spec before the first door operation!  Your custom garage door will also operate effortlessly and quietly with a garage door opener of your choice; 1/2hp minimum.  (note:  please remember it is the torsion springs that provide the counter-balance weight and torque to open and close the door.  Specification of high horsepower commercial openers is in most cases a high commission “attaboy” sale by installers.)  Vintage Garage Door carries a professional line of openers with all accessories, Liftmaster by Chamberlain, to provide a complete solution for your garage door requirements.  Liftmaster by Chamberlain is the leading manufacturer of garage door openers in the industry.

www.vintagegaragedoor.com provides a custom garage door solution that includes all of this, and more.  Built in Seattle, take a look at their custom garage doors, and services to see how your garage door dreams can become a reality!

Craig@vintagegaragedoor.com, owner and master craftsman, will be a great asset for your custom garage door!  Contact him today to put worry behind and start saving.

Weather and the sun are two major factors that rapidly destroy many garage doors built to fail.  Although the majority of garage doors do not stand the test of time, there are a few custom craftsmen, NOT MANUFACTURERS, who rise to the top providing an exceptional high quality, hand-built custom garage door.  Craig at Vintage Garage Door is one such craftsman who has a clear understanding of the requirements necessary to build a custom garage door to last over 25 years.  Let us take a look at one aspect of Vintage Garage Door’s approach.

Vintage Garage Door believes services, at a minimum should include the following major areas:

• Custom & Quality
• Materials
• Build
• Finish (con’t)
• Install

Let us look at just one of the many Finish methodologies Vintage Garage Door employs today (con’t) -

My professional finishes and hand-made quality stand the test of time.  My own personal doors are South and West facing enduring surface temperature readings of over 100 degrees in the dog days of summer, and, low teens in the winter with winds up to 70mph off Puget Sound.  My professional finish still looks new after 10 years of enduring the weather and sun.  How does Craig obtain these types of results?  That is a closely guarded, proprietary and patent pending, trade secret.  What really matters is the results you will enjoy for years to come.

www.vintagegaragedoor.com provides a custom garage door solution that includes all of this, and more.  Built in Seattle, take a look at their custom garage doors, and services to see how your garage door dreams can become a reality!

Craig@vintagegaragedoor.com, owner and master craftsman, will be a great asset for your custom garage door!  Contact him today to put worry behind and start saving.

Weather and the sun are two major factors that rapidly destroy many garage doors built to fail.  Although the majority of garage doors do not stand the test of time, there are a few custom craftsmen, NOT MANUFACTURERS, who rise to the top providing an exceptional high quality, hand-built custom garage door.  Craig at Vintage Garage Door is one such craftsman who has a clear understanding of the requirements necessary to build a custom garage door to last over 25 years.  Let us take a look at one aspect of Vintage Garage Door’s approach.

Vintage Garage Door believes services, at a minimum should include the following major areas:

• Custom & Quality
• Materials
• Build
• Finish (con’t)
• Install

Let us look at just one of the many Finish methodologies Vintage Garage Door employs today (con’t) -

The result is a beautiful balanced and sealed finish that will last for years WITHOUT nuisance maintenance painting or
“touch-up” coats; ie. the coat of paint every two years mentality…

www.vintagegaragedoor.com provides a custom garage door solution that includes all of this, and more.  Built in Seattle, take a look at their custom garage doors, and services to see how your garage door dreams can become a reality!

Craig@vintagegaragedoor.com, owner and master craftsman, will be a great asset for your custom garage door!  Contact him today to put worry behind and start saving.

Weather and the sun are two major factors that rapidly destroy many garage doors built to fail.  Although the majority of garage doors do not stand the test of time, there are a few custom craftsmen, NOT MANUFACTURERS, who rise to the top providing an exceptional high quality, hand-built custom garage door.  Craig at Vintage Garage Door is one such craftsman who has a clear understanding of the requirements necessary to build a custom garage door to last over 25 years.  Let us take a look at one aspect of Vintage Garage Door’s approach.

Vintage Garage Door believes services, at a minimum should include the following major areas:

• Custom & Quality
• Materials
• Build
• Finish (con’t)
• Install

Let us look at just one of the many Finish methodologies Vintage Garage Door employs today (con’t) -

For clients requesting a professional hand-application paint finish, I apply a four coat process utilizing brushing, back-
brushing, and roller application of two coats professional grade primer/sealer and two coats of professional grade 100%
acrylic latex, with optional light sanding between coats, on ALL SIX SIDES OF THE GARAGE DOOR.  Prep work prior to
painting includes surface touch-up as required, two complete sandings, with an optional micro-bead of commercial
caulking for those clients wanting an additional flexible barrier against moisture.  Your door will look beautiful on both the
inside and outside!

www.vintagegaragedoor.com provides a custom garage door solution that includes all of this, and more.  Built in Seattle, take a look at their custom garage doors, and services to see how your garage door dreams can become a reality!

Craig@vintagegaragedoor.com, owner and master craftsman, will be a great asset for your custom garage door!  Contact him today to put worry behind and start saving.