Clopay partnered with builder Todd Fratzel to help a New Hampshire couple find the perfect garage doors for their timber frame custom dream home.

Initially, the clients were torn between real wood carriage house style garage doors or a faux wood construction material, which has surged in popularity over the last few years.

A wood door is certainly a one-of-a-kind architectural feature and provides the design flexibility, character and charm New England homes are known for.

The house exterior has a modern colonial farmhouse appearance with traditional details like cornice work, stained fir beams and porch columns that could be easily matched in wood.

But, the garage is also attached and heated, so insulation, energy-efficiency and quiet operation were important. The weather in New England can be hard on wood, so on-going maintenance was also a consideration.

The challenge became finding an energy-efficient, insulated, low-maintenance, stained wood-look door without sacrificing the character needed to match the house.

The homeowners opted for Clopay Canyon Ridge Collection Limited Edition Series 10' x 8' faux wood garage doors with Mahogany cladding and overlays, factory-stained in a Medium finish.

The Canyon Ridge Collection features a five-layer construction with durable, low-maintenance composite cladding and overlays molded from pieces of Mahogany wood adhered to a two-inch thick, three-layer polyurethane insulated door with a 20.4 R-value. The total door is about 4" thick.

Contractor Todd Fratzel says the homeowners are delighted with their newgarage doors and shocked at how real the stained faux wood cladding looks. They’ve received lots of compliments about them and how well they go with the house.

"For me, as a builder, they are VERY impressive," adds Todd. "The dealerLizzie’s Garage Doors did a wonderful job with the installation, were very professional, very courteous, and delivered above and beyond my normal experience with overhead door companies."

Watch Todd’s video review on YouTube.

See more of the entire project on Facebook.

About Todd Fratzel

Todd is a full time builder for a large construction company in New Hampshire. He runs their design-build division that specializes in custom homes, commercial design-build projects and sub-divisions. He is also a licensed civil and structural engineer with extensive experience in civil and structural design and home construction. His goal is to share his experience in the home construction, home improvement and home renovation profession with other builders and homeowners. In addition toHome Construction Improvement, he also the author of Tool Box Buzz, and Today's Green Construction.