What a barndo door project with us looks like
Most of our barndo door projects follow the same steps, from the first call to the final walkthrough.
If you're still working out door sizes, framing and clearances, start with our guide to planning barndominium garage doors. This page covers the work itself.
The first call
We'll ask what you're building or what you already have, how many doors you need and what each bay will hold. Let us know whether the building is still on paper, framed, dried in or finished, since that decides what we do next.
Looking at your plans or the building
For a new build, we go over your drawings with you and, if you like, with your builder. For a building that's already up, we come out and look at each opening, the framing around it and the ceiling above it.
Measuring
When an opening is framed, we measure it ourselves before anything is ordered. Drawings and finished openings don't always match, and a door that's off by an inch won't seal right.
We also note outlet locations, how level the floor is across the opening and anything mounted nearby.
Choosing doors and openers
We go through door types, insulation, windows, colors and openers for each bay with you.
Once you've made your choices, we put them in writing so you can review every door and opener before anything is ordered.
Ordering
After you approve the doors, we place the order. When the doors arrive, we set an install date with you.
It helps to clear vehicles, equipment and stored items away from each opening before install day.
Install day
If old doors are coming out, we take those down first. Then we hang the sections, mount the track and set the springs for the weight of each door.
We check that each door travels smoothly, sits level when closed and holds its place when stopped partway.
Setting up openers, remotes, keypads and safety devices
Next we mount the openers and run the low-voltage wiring to the wall buttons and photo eyes. We set the travel limits and force settings, program your remotes and keypads, and connect phone-app control to your Wi-Fi if you're using it.
Then we test the photo eyes and auto-reverse on each door.
The walkthrough
Before we leave, we go over each door with you. We show you how the remotes, keypads and wall buttons work, how to test the safety reverse and where the opener's manual release is, including when not to use it.
We also point out the parts you should never touch: the springs, the cables and the brackets at the bottom of the door.
Doors we commonly install on barndos and shops
Most barndos need more than one kind of door. These are the three we put in most often.
Residential-style sectional doors for the living-quarters garage
The garage on the house side usually gets the same kind of door you'd see on a home in town. These doors come in standard garage sizes, can be insulated and come in styles that match the front of the house.
They make sense anywhere the garage feels like part of the home.
Heavier sectional doors for shop bays
Shop and RV bays call for bigger doors, and bigger doors need heavier parts. Wide shop doors often use heavier steel, reinforcing struts across the sections to keep them from bowing, sturdier hinges and springs sized for the extra weight.
These doors suit bays with daily traffic, tall equipment or a work area you heat and cool. They can run on standard, high-lift or vertical track.
Rolling steel doors for some shop and storage openings
A rolling steel door coils into a drum above the opening instead of sliding back along the ceiling. It takes up almost no room inside, which helps where a loft, car lift or storage racks fill the space overhead.
Rolling doors are common on storage bays, equipment sheds and openings that don't need a house-style look. They can be opened by hand or with a motor operator, and they need clear room above the opening for the coil.
Openers and controls
Ceiling-mount and wall-mount openers
A ceiling-mount opener hangs behind the door and pulls it along a rail. It's the familiar choice for house-side garages with standard track.
A wall-mount opener sits beside the door and turns the spring shaft directly. In a shop, that means no motor or rail hanging in the middle of the ceiling for a loader or a lift to hit. Very large doors may need a heavier-duty operator, and we match the opener to the door.
Ways to open the door
- Remotes: one remote can be programmed to open several doors.
- Wall buttons: mount them where you can see the door all the way down, and high enough to keep them out of small children's reach.
- Keypads: a code lets family or a hired hand get in without a remote. Change the code when someone no longer needs access.
- Phone-app control: many openers let you open, close and check the door from your phone. A shop far from the house may need its Wi-Fi signal extended.
- Battery backup: some openers include a battery that can run the door for a limited number of cycles during a power outage, which is handy on rural lines.
Each opener also needs a nearby outlet put in by your electrician. We can tell you where each one should go.
Safety devices
Under the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's rule at 16 CFR Part 1211, automatic garage door openers sold in the U.S. since 1993 must include entrapment protection. In practice, that means photo eyes near the floor and an auto-reverse that sends the door back up if it meets something while closing.
If a door won't close and the opener light flashes, a blocked or bumped photo eye is a common cause.
Replacing or upgrading doors on an existing barndo
Many barndos were finished with whatever doors came with the building package. Here's how we handle the common upgrades.
Swapping a builder door for an insulated one
An insulated door weighs more than a single-layer door, so its springs have to be sized for it. We check whether the existing track and opener can stay or should be replaced along with the door.
Adding windows
On some doors, a solid section can be swapped for a window section, if that section is still made for your door. Otherwise, windows come with a new door.
Adding or replacing openers
An opener is meant to guide the door, not lift its full weight. The springs do the lifting, so if a door is hard to move or won't stay put, we fix that before adding an opener.
An old opener with no photo eyes, or one where the eyes have been taken off, should be replaced.
Converting manual doors
Many shop doors went in as manual doors with a slide lock on the inside. To add an opener, we check the door's balance, plan the opener and wall button locations, and remove or disable the slide lock so the opener can't fight a locked door.
Some hand-operated rolling doors can take a motor operator too, depending on the door.
Repairs on big and tall doors
Parts on big shop doors work harder than those on a house door. These are the repairs we see most.
- Heavier springs and cables: a tall, wide door weighs far more than a single-car door, so its springs and cables carry much more load.
- High-lift track: these doors travel up the wall before turning back, so they use longer cables and special drums. If a cable goes slack, it can come off the drum and leave the door hanging crooked.
- Worn rollers: rollers on a heavy door wear faster. Cracked, wobbly or flat-spotted rollers get noisy and can pop out of the track.
- Doors hit by equipment: a loader bucket, a trailer or a camper backing out can catch the bottom section or bend a track. A door that's been hit may have a bent track, a damaged section and loose cables all at once.
If a door has been knocked off track, stop using it, keep people clear and don't run the opener.
Why spring and cable work is for a trained technician
Springs on a big door are wound tight enough to lift hundreds of pounds. If a spring or cable lets go while someone is working on it, parts can spin or snap with enough force to cause serious injury, and the door can drop.
Never try to adjust, release or replace springs, cables or bottom brackets yourself. Leave the door where it is and call us.
If a spring breaks or a cable comes off, stop using the door and the opener, keep people clear, and call (903) 294-1846.
We're open Monday to Saturday from 7 AM to 5 PM. Emergency service is available by appointment after 5 PM Monday through Saturday and on Sundays.
Care in North Texas dust and heat
Country buildings deal with things a garage in town rarely sees. A few habits help:
- Sweep gravel, caliche and dirt off the threshold so the bottom seal closes flat on the slab.
- Check photo eye housings, the opener and the ends of the track for wasp nests, mud daubers and fire ants.
- Watch for mice and rats in barns. They chew the thin wires that run to wall buttons and photo eyes.
- Opener backup batteries wear out faster in a hot building. Replace one when the opener warns of a weak battery.
- Close tall doors all the way before a storm. A big door left partway open catches a lot of wind.
Pairing barndo doors with a drive gate
Many barndos sit on acreage with a long drive and a gate at the road. We build and repair metal drive gates and gate operators and install telephone entry systems, so the entrance and the garage doors can be planned together.
- Metal drive gates and operators: a gate operator lets you open the entrance from the truck, the same way you open the shop. See our commercial gates and wrought iron fencing page.
- Telephone entry: a call box at the gate lets visitors and delivery drivers ring your phone, and you can let them in without walking down the drive. Learn more about telephone entry systems.
Where we work
Our main location is at 1940 Everheart Rd in Bells. We work across Dallas-Fort Worth and North Texas, including rural properties around Bells, Sherman, Denison, Anna, Princeton and Farmersville.
If your building sits off a county road or behind a gate, send directions and let us know how we'll get through the gate. Also mention loose animals or ground that gets soft after rain.
What affects the cost of a barndo door project
These are the main things that change the total:
- Size: taller and wider doors use more material and heavier springs, track and hardware.
- Insulation: insulated doors cost more than single-layer steel doors.
- Windows: window sections and the type of glass add to the cost of a door.
- Opener type: wall-mount openers, heavier-duty operators, battery backup and phone-app features each affect the price.
- Track type: high-lift and vertical track use more track and different hardware than standard track.
- Condition of the openings: openings that aren't plumb, level or ready to mount to need more work before a door can go in.
- Number of doors: each door and opener adds to the project.
Once we've seen your plans or your openings, we can price each door and opener for you.
How to get started
Call us at (903) 294-1846, Monday to Saturday from 7 AM to 5 PM, or send a request. You can also email prodoorsandgates@gmail.com.
A rough idea of your door sizes and what each bay will hold is enough to start.
Pro Doors and Gates is family owned and based in Bells. We'd be glad to help with the doors on your barndo, shop or barn.
