How a tilt door works
A tilt door is one solid panel that swings out at the bottom and rises up into the garage, balanced by springs. Dominator still lists tilting doors among the four main kinds of home garage door it sorts its range into.
B&D NZ says its tilt door hardware holds the springs so the parts stay contained if a spring breaks, and that it still makes tilt door operating hardware. A tired tilt door doesn't automatically mean a new door.
Keep, repair or replace: your options
| What to expect | |
|---|---|
| Service it | B&D NZ suggests servicing tilt door fittings every 12 months, more often with heavy use or harsh weather |
| Repair the fittings | Leave the springs to approved B&D dealers with the proper tools |
| Add an opener | Dominator's Select, Secure, Smart and Smart Pro are made for sectional and tilt doors |
| Replace it | Dominator sells its Flex-A-Door as a replacement for an old tilt door |
Space around a tilt door
A tilt door needs clear ground outside, because the bottom of the door swings out as it lifts. Keep cars, bins and bikes back from the opening before it moves.
If that swing has become a nuisance, or the room above the opening rules out a roller door, Dominator's Flex-A-Door needs 80mm of headroom with its retractable head infill panel, or 130mm with an opener. Replacing an old garage door covers the swap in more detail.
Signs an old tilt door needs a look
- It has started to feel heavy, or drops faster than it used to
- One side lifts before the other, or the door sits crooked
- It rubs on the frame or the ground
- Fittings look rusty, or a spring looks stretched
- The opener strains or stops part way
Stay out of a moving tilt door's path
B&D NZ says not to stand in a tilt door's path or walk through the doorway while it moves. Its springs are always under tension, and B&D NZ keeps adjustment and repair for approved dealers with the proper tools, so never try it yourself.
What we would do
Get the springs checked before adding a motor to an old tilt door. Dominator's opener warranty assumes 20kg of force or less by hand, and a tilt door that has lost tension can sit well above that, which makes a new opener work harder than it was built to.