Before you buy

Always research your options. There are a lot of choices to choose from. The web is a great place to look to see what you like and even some of the manufactures even have a design centers or pictures of garage doors. Don’t let the first sales rep tell what you want. Tell him/her what you are looking for and that you have looked on line and have an idea of what you want and a price in mind of what you want to spend. Ask questions

1. What is the door made of steel, wood, fiberglass, vinyl or composite?
2. Does it have insulation and what is the insulation value R-9?
3. What kind of warranty does the garage door have?
4. Does it have a labor warranty that matches the garage door warranty (in writing) in case anything should fail?
5. Hire a licensed garage door contractor. Locate by using the web or call to get the company’s state contractor’s license number. Verify that they are in good standings with the state contractor’s board.
6. Always hire a contractor that has the proper insurance. All companies that have employees are required by law to carry workman’s compensation insurance. This will help the consumer from lawsuit if the worker should get injured on your property. The contractor should also carry General liability insurance. Please ask for their policy number. All the insurance information is located on the same report as the license information above at the state Contractors Board.
7. Google search the company’s reputation and history. Find out what previous customers are saying. face book or twitter is a great way to do some research.
8. Last thing get everything in writing. Make sure that the warranty of all the moving parts, springs and the labor as these are going to be an expense later. Ask if the company has a maintenance program and what the garage door needs for maintenance to keep in proper working condition.