Standard Garage Door Sizes in Australia, and How to Measure Yours

Question 01

What is the standard garage door size in Australia?

The common Australian sizes are about 2400mm wide by 2100mm high for a single garage door and about 4800mm wide by 2100mm high for a double. B&D and Steel-Line, two Australian makers, give the same figures. Treat them as a starting point, because both makers build each door to suit the opening.

Those are door sizes, not the space you get to drive through. Steel-Line warns that the usable opening can end up smaller once a door is fitted, so leave plenty of room around your car. Steel-Line puts the average Australian car at about 1900mm wide and says extra space on either side is essential for comfort.

Question 02

How wide is a double garage door in Australia?

A standard double garage door in Australia is about 4800mm wide, according to both B&D and Steel-Line. B&D notes that your garage may be wider than that. How wide one door can go depends on the type: B&D's double roller doors can be made up to 5.1 or 5.5 metres wide and its Panelift sectional doors up to 6.15 or 6.6 metres, depending on the model.

The widest doors each maker lists for a double opening:

• B&D roller doors: the Roll-A-Door Traditional, Deluxe Double and Rollmasta Double can be made up to 5.1 or 5.5 metres wide, depending on the model.
• B&D sectional doors: Panelift and Panelift Icon can be made up to 6.15 or 6.6 metres wide, depending on the model.
• Steel-Line roller doors: the AA Series residential doors run from 3435mm to 5500mm wide, at heights of 2200mm to 3000mm.
• Steel-Line tilt doors: up to 5500mm wide and 2400mm high, with a maximum weight of 175kg including the cladding.

Steel-Line says anything outside its listed dimensions needs a custom design, and B&D asks you to call it if your opening falls outside its specifications. Steel-Line also says you can choose one large door or two singles, depending on how the garage is built and how wide your vehicles are. The FAQ below covers that choice.

Question 03

What size is a single garage door?

A single garage door in Australia is usually about 2400mm wide and 2100mm high. B&D says that size fits an average-sized car, and Steel-Line says it suits cars and small SUVs. B&D notes that some single openings only allow for very small cars and some are slightly larger than standard, so measure before you compare doors.

• B&D single roller doors go up to 3.15 metres wide. B&D says its sectional doors are not limited to set sizes and are made to fit the space.
• Steel-Line A Series roller doors run from 900mm to 3430mm wide, at heights of 1200mm to 3000mm.
• Your car: Steel-Line suggests measuring the length and width of your vehicle, so the car doors can open inside without hitting anything.

B&D says a single Roll-A-Door is sometimes light enough to run by hand, though it recommends an automatic opener. If yours is a manual door and you're weighing up an opener, converting a manual garage door to automatic covers what that involves.

Question 04

What height options do garage doors come in?

The standard height for single and double garage doors is generally 2100mm, according to Steel-Line, and B&D gives the same figure. Steel-Line puts the standard range at 2.1 to 2.4 metres, and makes taller custom doors for motorhome or caravan clearance, taller trucks and boats. Its roller doors go up to 3000mm high, and B&D's sectional doors go taller again.

B&D says a sectional door is the best option if you plan to store large vehicles or boats. Each door type also needs its own space above and behind the opening to operate, as Steel-Line points out. Roller, sectional or tilt garage door sets out the headroom and side room each one needs.

Question 05

Why do makers say there's no standard garage door size?

Because every opening is a little different. Steel-Line says there is no real standard sizing, and that some openings even differ from one side to the other. B&D says all its doors are made to measure. The 2400mm and 4800mm figures are common sizes, not stock items you take off a shelf.

A few things change the door your opening needs, even when the width and height look standard:

• A sloping floor. Steel-Line says a sloping garage floor is very common, and that a door can be made with an angled bottom rail, or taper, so it seals along the floor.
• An opening that isn't square. Measuring at three points across shows whether it's the same width at the top and the bottom.
• Door thickness. Steel-Line says garage doors range from 30mm to 51mm thick, depending on the type and whether the door is insulated.
• The roof line. Steel-Line says a sloping ceiling may need a pitched track system to follow it.
• Room around the opening. Each door type needs some side room for its tracks or brackets; roller, sectional or tilt garage door lists what each one asks for.

Question 06

How do you measure a garage door opening?

Measure the width of the opening at the top, middle and bottom, then the height from the floor to the header. Write down all three widths. Next come the space checks: how much room sits above the opening, how far each side is from the nearest wall, how long the garage is, and what hangs from the ceiling.

1. 01Width. Run a tape measure across the opening at the top, the middle and the bottom, as Steel-Line suggests. Write down all three.
2. 02Height. Measure from the floor up to the header, the beam across the top of the opening. Do it at both sides if the floor slopes.
3. 03Headroom. Measure from the top of the opening to the ceiling or the lowest beam above it. A roller door's curtain rolls up into this space.
4. 04Side room. Measure from each edge of the opening to the nearest wall or obstruction. Steel-Line says the tracks need room to run.
5. 05Depth. For a sectional door, measure the length of the garage, because the door runs back along the ceiling. Steel-Line lists this step for sectional doors.
6. 06Obstructions. Note storage racks, lights and anything else on the ceiling. Steel-Line names racks and lights as things that can get in a door's way.
7. 07Out front. For a tilt door, measure the clear space in front of the garage. Steel-Line says a tilt door swings outwards and upwards as it opens.

These numbers give you a fair idea of what will fit. Makers still measure on site before they build a door. B&D says a trained expert should measure each site to guarantee an accurate fit.

Question 07

Can you swap a single garage door for a double?

Sometimes, if the garage is wide enough, but it means building work. Steel-Line says turning a single door into a double would need structural changes. Going the other way, replacing two single doors with one double, usually means taking out the centre pillar plus other structural changes. Plan for the structural work, not only the door.

Widening an opening changes the wall the door sits in, so get the building side sorted before you choose the door. Garage door installation explains what happens when a new door goes in, and what to check first.

New doors from Deadlock: Only work valued at $3,300 or less.