Can I Get A Garage Door For A Quonset Building?

By Tony Hall

If you live in the Texas Panhandle, you have likely seen a Quonset building. Often situated on ranches and farms, this building design has been around for centuries. If you are looking to update your Quonset building, you are probably in need of a new garage or commercial overhead door. In most cases, this will require a custom garage or overhead door.

What Is A Quonset Building?

Quonset buildings are lightweight, prefabricated structures made of steel. They have a semicircular cross-section, a design that was borrowed from what was known as Nissen huts which the British came up with during first world war. Quonset is a name that was derived from the place where the first structure was put up which was Quonset Point in Rhode Island, USA.

The first Quonset buildings were very simple in design. The sides were made using corrugated steel sheets and the ends were covered with plywood. They had windows and doors, sometimes an insulated interior and a wooden floor. The structures stood on wooden or concrete floors.

Today's Quonset buildings which are alternatively known as arch buildings for their shape have improved greatly. Modern ones are made of steel alloy and they combine the design of centuries ago with modern construction technology. They can stand up to the harshest weather conditions like hurricanes and blizzards and the interiors can be made as comfortable as you like depending on that the structure is to be used for.

What Kind Of Overhead Door Does A Quonset Building Need?

The uses of Quonset buildings have also changed. While they started as military structures, they are now used for extra storage, as living space and as garages among other uses.

If a Quonset building is to be used as a garage, it is important that is has a well-fitted door that opens and closes smoothly and that keeps the car and other items in it secure. The structures can also hold RVs, boats, trailers and other large-sized equipment. They can be custom-made to be large enough for the intended use.

The buildings are best fitted with overhead doors. For the garage door to open and close smoothly, the dimensions of the door have to be just right. For standard size Quonset garages, at least 13 inches of headroom above the door opening is required. It is possible to install a low headroom door if there is a limitation of space but this is not recommended.

The best way to be sure you will have a garage door that will fit and work perfectly is to have it custom made. Once your Quonset building arrives, you should call in garage door experts to take measurements and custom make the door for you.

If you have had your structure for some time, you would do well to have the door checked and changed if necessary. Most of the older types of Quonset buildings came with sliding rather than overhead doors. In most cases, the buildings had no insulation so weather extremes like high temperatures and the freezing lows of winter had an effect on the doors which would eventually not open and close as they should.

Overhead doors remain in place because of the position in which they are installed and the way they are installed with springs. If the building is insulated, they are not affected by weather conditions. The fact that the door is made to measure also ensures that it closes securely and presents no problems with opening and closing.

Who Can Install An Overhead Door For Your Quonset Building?

Amarillo garage door company Willow Creek Overhead Door has custom made and fitted more than 50 overhead commercial doors for Quonset buildings in western Kansas, eastern Colorado and Amarillo, Texas. Call owner Tony Hall today for a free installation estimate. 

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