Garage doors can be simple and ordinary, or they can be a decorative focal point of your home or cottage. But no matter the style or design, they all need to do one thing well: open and close smoothly, every time.
Even the most basic garage door should do that when it’s new. Keeping it working that way, though, requires some regular TLC.
Ensuring that happens for every door was one of the reasons Jacob and Luke Schneider founded Canadoor Garage Doors in 2009. The brothers had been in the garage door business for a while and grew frustrated with the lack of consistency and professionalism in the industry, particularly when it came to post-installation service.
“Too many companies were just installing doors and thinking the job was done,” says Jacob. “We knew there was a better way of looking after customers.”
Canadoor sells and installs a wide array of garage doors in homes, cottages, and commercial settings. Their Barrie showroom features an incredible range of different styles, from classic wooden carriage doors to modernist doors with asymmetrical windows, from traditional-looking steel doors with high insulation values to frosted glass doors that look at home on the most exclusive boathouse.
But what really sets them apart is the service they offer after the sale is complete.
Superb trainingThat service starts with training. The company employs 38 staff, including an army of field technicians who service garage doors from the GTA to the Sudbury area, where Canadoor just opened a new showroom. But no matter which technician fields the call, the client receives the same level of service.
“Our goal is that the service is consistent, no matter which technician comes to your home,” says Jacob.
Every technician undergoes an intense apprenticeship, spending four weeks working through various installation and service scenarios at Canadoor’s Barrie facility, under the watchful eye of an experienced technician.
After that, they spend an additional two to three months doing service and installation calls alongside another installer. Only then are they permitted to take on projects on their own.
“We want to ensure they can handle any installation or repair situation they come across,” Jacob explains. “It’s a program unlike any other in the industry.”
Maintenance mattersThe range of maintenance and repair tasks is wide, depending on the age of the door, its design, and the amount of maintenance it has had.
Basic maintenance starts with simply lubricating all moving parts annually to keep them moving smoothly. It’s a straightforward procedure that homeowners can often perform themselves, but it’s also an easy task to overlook, or perform every few years at best.
To ensure the work is done regularly, Canadoor offers a Golden Key Membership, with maintenance appointments scheduled every year.
Oiling hinges and wheels will extend the life of the door considerably, but even with regular maintenance, parts need to be replaced from time to time. “There are items that just wear out. It might be after five years or 15, but sooner or later, wear items like torsion springs need to be replaced,” says Jacob.
Doors in moist environments, such as boathouses, may require more frequent maintenance or repair. Wooden doors are particularly prone to moisture damage, since the panels themselves naturally swell and shrink with changing conditions.
Repair or replaceHuman nature being what it is, of course, most people wait until there are signs of trouble – a door that squeals, for example, or one that doesn’t move at all – before calling for repair.
No matter who installed the original door, Canadoor’s large team will respond quickly, even the same day. Very often they can repair the door and give it a new lease on life. But not always.
“Sometimes a door has just reached the end of its life – often because of improper maintenance – and it needs to be replaced.”
Clients who visit the Barrie showroom can tour through an incredible array of door options, all of which can be customized to blend perfectly with any home or cottage, garage or boathouse. Steel and aluminum come in a broad selection of colours, and wood can be painted or stained any colour you desire.
Doors can have short panels that will make the opening appear taller, or wide panels that will make it seem wider; glasswork can be ornate, minimalist, or absent entirely.
Even the interior frames and tracks can be customized. “We have powder coated black tracks that look fabulous,” says Jacob. “We’ve even installed these in residential spaces, so people can open their living space to the outdoors in a unique way.”
No matter what your home, cottage, or boathouse looks like, there’s a door that will enhance it. And the experts who will keep it working for years are just a phone call
TEXT A. WAGNER-CHAZALON
PHOTOS ANDREW FEARMAN
