Garage Door: Shopping Green and Saving Green

There has never been a better time to shop green especially when it comes to replacing outdated garage doors. This is especially true in today's tight economy where every penny has to count and last. The recent downturn in the economy has pushed many consumers to start seeking out ways to conserve energy and money on their biggest investments-their homes.

One of the biggest energy losses in most residential homes comes from an unexpected source for many home owners-the garage door. On a home that has an one there is also an adjoining wall that means the cold air that comes into it also pulls warm air out of the home. Consumers need to look at not only how they can buy an earth friendly product that wont remain in a landfill for the next thousand years, but also on how they can buy a product that won't waste precious resources such as electricity.

An insulated door is something that has proven to make a major impact on the average consumer's energy bill. It door will stabilized the temperature inside and stop the cold air that rushes in when the door is open from leaking into the attached home and creating cold drafts in the home. According to a study by Clopay building products the new doors can save as much as 71% on the average energy bill when compared to the energy bill for homes that use insulated, older garage doors. And since most have a life expectancy of fifteen to twenty years the savings can really add up in a lifetime of usage.

When shopping for an entrance one a consumer should look for one that is insulated with polyurethane foam and not the cheaper and less efficient Styrofoam sheets. Polyurethane foam is sprayed in the layers of the garage door and expands to fill every crack and crevice which will insulate more efficiently than Styrofoam sheets which leave wide air gaps where they don't meet efficiently. Another important tip is to look for one with sufficient seals.

Garage doors that have seals around the sides, header and bottom are also providing a higher quality of insulation than garage doors that don't have the extra seal protection against the elements. When looking for seals make sure the bottom seal is thick enough and flexible enough to contour with the floor.

Finally if just having a "green" door and lower bills isn't enough to motivate, a new piece of stimulus legislation signed into effect by President Obama in February 2010 now gives home owners up to $1,500 in tax credits for installing energy efficient doors on insulated garages in 2009 through the end of 2010. Some qualifications do apply so make sure you get all of the facts on this new tax credit if you plan to utilize it.