Automating Side Hinged Garage Doors

So You Want to Automate Side Hinged Garage Doors…

Converting side hinged garage doors into electrically operated doors is relatively easy, but only if the original door panels themselves are strong and properly constructed and not of a cheap and flimsy construction. Subjective maybe, but a lot of side hinged doors just won't take the strain of automation.

Automating good quality side hinged doors however is not a problem, providing the doors open outwards. We would recommend one of two makes of operators that are suitable to fitting to side hinged garage doors with the addition of swing arm conversion kit. Either the Hormann Supramatic or Promatic with an FTS10 Boom or the Seip TS75 or the TS 100 will provide a sterling job. Sommer and Carteck also offer various electric operators that will suit the purpose as well as Garador units, which are in fact Hormann anyway.

Firstly we will look at how the simpler swing arm door kit works. The swing arms attach to the door leaves around 1½ inches below the top of the leaf so the arms sit just below the door stays. These are attached to the operator trolley that runs along the operator boom, pushing and pulling the door leaves open - simple! The boom bracket is fitted flush with the bottom of the head frame, just above the doorstop. Each door leaf can open to around 115 degrees assuming that that opening could be achieved manually! However the electric operator will reduce the drive through height by about 4”.

Remote Control Side Hinged Door Security

The security that the electric operator offers is excellent. The spring arrangement in the leading arm combines with the force of the secondary arm to create a very strong closing force. Obviously if desired, the door leaves can be further secured with a padlock, but do remember not to attempt to open the door remotely before removing! The electric operator will also negate the need for door stays as the swing arms will hold the leaves in any position and act as the stays. Various options of electric locks combined with the operator are possible ,but do not always engage correctly if the door panels have any kind of movement in them whatsoever. Modern double skinned insulated steel hinged doors would provide the best stability in the panel rather than a timber or lightweight steel panel.

If your side hinged doors are either timber or steel there should be not be a problem attaching the swing arm plate to the door leaf. 

However – if your doors are manufactured in GRP or ABS proceed with caution – without a reinforcement plate bonded in the correct position the swing arm brackets could easily tear the GRP. If you are ordering new GRP side hinged doors and are likely to want an electric operator at some time do make sure that the strengthening plate is incorporated although nowadays this is a standard design. side hinged garage door operator system Seip swing door kit.
We would not recommend automating GRP or Upvc hinged garage doors... Stick to the insulated double skin steel door models.

A Seip TS75 electric garage door operator with swing door converter kit. The TS100 model is used for larger, heavier doors. Other manufacturers suitable for hinged door operators include Hormann, Sommer, Garador and Somfy. Make sure the swing arm door kit is a recognised and tested unit, Hormann and Sommer sell these units. Swing door kits will give over 90 degrees of opening internal manual release cabling

The swing door converters will offer well over 90 degrees of opening assuming of course the original hinged doors are fitted with hinges that go over 90 degrees in the first place. This really makes a big difference when driving your vehicle in and out of the garage. These arms also act as door stays to prevent damage from windy conditions of course.

Every automation system has an internal manual emergency override in case of power failure, but it may be worth considering one of the latest battery back up systems offered by major manufacturers to obtain several operations after a power failure occurs. side hinged garage door leaf fully open

The manual release is a simple mechanical release device 'unhitching' the carriage block from the main boom to enable manual operation possible until power is restored. It might be worth mentioning here that the Hormann electric operators all have a built in steel latch device to allow locking even when power is not available and the door has been unlatched.

This system is unique to Hormann and worth a lot if you often have mains power failures.

Alternatives?
An alternative method to using the standard overhead boom with swing arm conversion is to consider a hydraulic door operator. The FAAC 560 is one such example, designed for automating bi-folding doors, however, it can be installed to operate single or double leafed side hinged garage doors. It is very suitable for high intensive use and offers very smooth and quiet operation indeed. Swing doors with hydraulic operators 

The electric motor, hydraulic pump and internal rack-and-pinion transmission system are compactly housed in a single block in anodised aluminium. The motor unit is mounted to the inside face of the lintel just above the top of the door using a specially fabricated mounting bracket. 

As the pinion rotates the door leaf is opened and closed by means of a telescopic arm which ensures an even and perfectly linear movement.

Electric Operators Safety

The electric motors are very safe thanks to the built-in hydraulic adjustable by-pass valves. Anti-crushing protection can be set for the most suitable environment. The control board can add more safety depending on your requirements, for instance, safety photo cell beams can be installed between / behind the door frames to prevent the doors closing back on to an obstacle because it has broken the beam. timber hinged door sets all with electric operation Installation carried out by The Garage Door Centre with 3 pairs of electric hydraulic operators

The final option also available for swing garage doors are the tried and tested hydraulic or electromechanical rams using a piston type action to push the door leaves open or closed at high or low level positions, as they would be used for swing gates. This type of automation is reliable but does again rely on the door panels being of a very sound construction for effective use. Many operators are available for this method of automation but getting the angles and power settings correct is essential as these units usually have a lot of torque available and can rip door panels apart if set up incorrectly.

Ultimate Control of your Door