Garage Door Tracks & Angles - China Chi Company

Tracks Sizes and Characteristics

Garage door tracks can be purchased in three widths, one, two and three inch. One-inch tracks find most common use in truck and semi-trailer door applications. Two-inch tracks comprise most residential and commercial applications. Three-inch tracks support and guide heavier residential and industrial garage doors.
Residential Garage door rails commonly measure 0.055, 0.062 and 0.075 inch in thickness. Over the years, tracks have seen a reduction in thickness, for the many lighter steel doors in use. The standard thickness for heavy wood doors was 0.075 inch. Prior to that the track standard came in at 0.083 inch. Three inch tracks are normally constructed with 0.109 inch steel.

Choosing the Right Tracks

Choosing the right overhead door rails type starts with knowing your space and your needs. Begin by measuring your available garage door headroom, garage door sideroom, and garage door backroom. If your ceiling is standard height and flat, a standard radius track is usually the best fit. For garages with minimal headroom, look for low headroom tracks—front or rear mount depending on your spring configuration. If you have a tall ceiling, high lift or vertical lift tracks can maximize vertical workspace, keeping your garage door out of the way. For sloped ceilings, a follow roof pitch track will match the angle and preserve your overhead storage.

GARAGE DOOR TRACK LIFT TYPES

Manufacturers produce three basic types of garage door tracks lift: Standard lift, Vertical lift, and High lift.

Standard Lift

Standard lift tracks handle the lift for most residential applications. A standard lift consists of a vertical track, rising to about eight inches short of the door height - six feet four inches in most residential locations and a curved section turning back to the remainder of the horizontal track. Together, these allow the door sections to rise and move to a horizontal position above the garage floor.

Vertical Lift

Vertical lift systems, seen in many commercial and industrial applications, consist of a track which rises vertically as with the standard lift, but include an additional vertical track pitched increasingly away from the interior wall, sometimes to a distance of 12-18". This extra space allows for the spring assembly. High lift brackets span the widening distance, at points on the extension.

High Lift

High lift systems combine the features of standard lift and vertical lift. These feature a vertical track, a horizontal track that is shorter than in a standard lift system, and a high lift extension varying in length depending on application and user needs. Practically, based on a residential garage ceiling measuring about 12' high, this extension can measure up to four feet (above standard height of seven, five minus one to allow for the top section passage to horizontal track). Residential applications may either start with a high lift system, or a high lift conversion kit can be used to convert the garage door to high lift. These kits have seen increasing use recently.

Tracks & Angles

Garage Door Vertical Tracks and Horizontal Tracks

Garage Door Vertical Track, Galv, 2-in, 6-ft-4-in x .075 ga

2" Horizontal Track w/ 12" Radius, .075, w/ Angle For 7' Garage Door

2" Double Low Headroom Garage Door Tracks

Flag Bracket for Residential Garage Door

Hot Dip Galvanized Slotted Horizontal Angle Iron With Holes