During the COVID quarantine of 2020, you may be among the masses who took a deep dive into the home improvement projects that have stock-piled during our regularly scheduled lives. From painting rooms to planting seeds, we kept our local home improvement stores busy!

Maintaining operations as an essential business throughout, we also heard the stories from our dealers about homeowners revamping their garages. While we fully support the desire to DIY, we urge caution when it comes to the garage door. If you are eager for the reorganization of your garage, please visit our Pinterest page for lots of ideas (it's possible I may be an organization fanatic), but if you need your garage door serviced or replaced, we have some tips for you!

1. Safety First

In our organization, safety is our guiding light. All of our decisions must first pass through the net of safety. If it isn't safe...it doesn't happen. With this mindset, we encourage you to hire a professional for your garage door needs. While regular maintenance can be handled at home, such as the checking of the photo-eyes or confirming the track is lubed, when it comes to springs, track, and the sections, finding a pro is key.

While many feel the installation of a garage door simply couldn't be rocket science, we have to disagree. We work with many experienced professionals who will share stories told to them of hands being crushed between sections, fingers being lost when a spring is wound too tight, and whole sections being damaged beyond repair when they fall out of the opening. All of these occurrences are avoidable when done by a professional.

2. Not all openings are created equal

There is a good chance, if you have a newer home, that the opening of your garage door will either be 8' x 7' or 9' x 8' if you have a single door or 16' x 8' for a double door. For the most part this is easy when the opening is standard. What gets complicated if there are any imperfections in the level of the floor, the room above the door, and the area designated for the track. Any limitations here may require special set-ups or perhaps a special door.

To be sure your door moves safely, quietly, and consistently, the right tracks, springs, door sections, and operator will be necessary. A professional will be able to assess and prescribe the correct combination for your project. If there are questions, our engineers are standing by to help resolve issues and find solutions!

3. Experience brings efficiency

In a perfect world, life runs smoothly - like clockwork. But we know the world is not a perfect one. During most garage door installations, some aspects of the install may need adjusting. From snipping bottom rubber to accommodate hardware, clipping extra length of bar off the operator in a low ceiling garage to avoid hitting the car, or replacing angle iron to secure the install. Additionally, most installations require working with electricity which should always demand a professional.

Many of these on-site obstacles require the tools and materials to navigate without delaying the install. When the installer is prepared, you can be sure the efficiency (and cost) of the job remains on point.

4. Know when to repair and when to replace

We know it's not always clear when to replace or when to repair. Making this decision on your own may prove fatal. If you have concerns about the state of your door, please call a professional if any of these 'symptoms' occur:

• It reverses direction
• It's slow to open
• It closes or opens by itself
• You can see track misalignment
• It makes strange noises
• It has temperature inconsistencies
• It's warped or weather damaged in some way

5. Warranties are your friend

Most garage doors and installations come with a warranty; however, most will be voided if repairs are attempted by the homeworner. In most cases, the installer will offer a service agreement during the warranty period, and the manufacturer will offer a warranty as well. Maintaining this coverage can truly help you maintain the life and safety of your garage door investment.

Find the Right Pro

When you seek out the professional to service or sell you your garage door, we encourage you to ask a lot of questions to vet out the right partner for your project.

      What company reviews are available?

What service packages are included with the installation?

What warranty comes with the installation and the parts?

Does the installer offer a satisfaction guarantee?

What can be done in advance of the installation to prepare?

How long has the company been in business?

How much experience does the installer have?

Are they licensed and insured?

When you attempt the repair or replacement of your garage door, you may end up lucky and only endure some frustrations and added finances, but we caution you as the risks may prove far more damaging. At Fimbel ADS, we have nearly a century of experience to help us guide you through the journey. Our doors are constructed to last, and we strive for your safety and satisfaction.

To find a dealer, please head to our website!

To learn more about our products please visit our Instagram page @FimbelADS. Follow along for more tips and beauty shots! 

Garage doors have come a long way. For decades they simply stood sentinel to welcome vehicles and hide our belongings. Today, 71% of families use the garage as the primary entrance to the home, and the role of the door has changed. Now we see design innovation and manufacturing excellence furnishing garages with absolute beauty and supreme function. At Fimbel ADS we are committed to carrying forth the quality and craftsmanship our great-grandfather built our family business upon while blending in the marvels of today's manufacturing capabilities. You will not find a more beautiful or durable door in the market, and we are sure it will only bring satisfaction to your life.

As summer becomes a thing of the past, and we embrace the chills of autumn, making sure the garage is efficient, secure, and safe should be on the honey-do list. For some garages it may be a simple repair or tweek, but rest assured when you replace your door with a quality, high end door, it will be worth it's weight in gold! "Compared with 22 other common home-improvement projects, an upscale garage door replacement offers one of the biggest bangs for your buck and costs much less than many other home improvement projects" according to the Remodeling Magazine's 2020 Cost vs. Value Report. Coming in at #2 with a 94.5% ROI at resale, the garage clearly deserves some attention!

Whether you are building (or rebuilding) your dream home, we want to help enhance your curb appeal, ensure sustainability and energy efficiency, and allow for a low-maintenance lifestyle. With a Fimbel door you can count on more!

The most obvious reason to replace your garage door is to improve the curb appeal of the home. The term applies to the aesthetic appeal of a residential or commercial building as perceived from the street, and it was made popular in the 90's with the release of HGTV's show "Curb Appeal". As you may know, the entry door of most homes only constitutes 8% of the home's frontage while the garage door often consumes 30%, we can see the potential for impact with a new door. With the impressive ROI, utilizing the capabilities we offer through our manufacturing as well as additional options such as finishing and hardware, updating the garage door is a slam dunk! To learn more about designing like an architect, please enjoy the attached blog post where we take you through the process!

With Fimbel ADS we can accommodate any of the design styles you desire. Our doors have the sought after look of painted wood without the maintenance. Our Euro, Presidential, and Roaring Twenties series give you the liberty to design to your heart's delight. Our American Legends series comes not only in the classic carriage style but also recessed panel and modern while offering customizations!

Our finishing options give way for your design to take flight with a standard color, custom color, or hand applied faux stain of your choice. Using sustainable paint products and proprietary application processes, our finish will last and bring peace of mind. To find out more about our finishing options, here's another blog post to help paint the full picture for you!

Color isn't the only way to make a Fimbel door your own. We offer you the opportunity to design your door down to the smallest detail. Whether you want to customize the top section to allow for more or less light, or you want to redesign the top section completely to incorporate scrollwork or a custom design, we have the options for you.

Another way to make it your own is to add decorative hardware to the face of the door. To simplify the installation and application of the add-on features, we can customize our rails and designs to accommodate their size and even pre drill the holes to guarantee a polished final look. To complete the package for the hardware, you have the option to powder coat the track system in virtually any color though we like clean white and solid black!

Make it Smarter:

Our organization hangs our hat on safety and quality not only in how we make our product, and we want you to feel the benefits of that. Fimbel doors are manufactured to be safety first. You, your family, your home, and your belongings will rest safely behind our door. Our doors are engineered for durability! We know that poorly fitted doors are not only unsightly but also allow unwanted openings. Since we can match nearly any opening, weather, burglars, and bugs will not have access to your home through the garage door!

Fimbel doors offer you a low-maintenance lifestyle. The clean appearance of the door should last for years to come with a gentle clean with mild soap and water. No harsh abrasives or undue elbow grease necessary. This aspect may be overlooked, but when we consider the supply chain for cleaning products, the effort to implement the cleaning, and the residual waste moving into the earth, we see our processes make way for sustainability.

Another way that we encourage sustainability is in the benefits you will feel toward energy efficiency! To get a basic idea, the older the door the more likely it is that money is seeping out through it. Our doors are made with insulation that is laminated and completely fill the cavity inside the door to keep air from moving around and through the door. A well-insulated door will reduce energy costs as well as maintain temperatures set in the garage. We want to help you keep cool air in during the summer and cold air out during the winter!

One of the longest lasting aspects of our doors is the contribution made upon purchase. For every door we sell, we work with our partners at One Tree Planted to plant a tree on your behalf. We know the resources generously given my Mother Nature need replenishing, and we want to pay it forward!

iTo back this beautiful, energy efficient, and low-maintenance lifestyle, we offer you a robust warranty that will satisfy! Regardless of your geographical location, we offer a warranty for our products coast to coast and proudly stand behind our warranty.

Make it a Fimbel:

Don't compromise aesthetic appeal for practical needs - you can have it all with a Fimbel door. With our designs, you can find the right door to offer you more. If energy efficiency is what you are after, we have you covered. If your geographic location is limiting your choices, we have you covered. If you are driven by value and longevity, we have you covered. Or if you simply want to make your neighbors jealous, we've got that, too! We are here to provide the door to support your lifestyle and desires – no matter your opening or aspiration, we have you covered!

Find a dealer near you by using our dealer locator!