Garage door repairs
High lift garage door conversion for the space over your head.
A standard door rolls back along the ceiling just above the opening. A high lift conversion runs the track up the wall first, so the open door ends up near the ceiling and the space under it is yours again.
Get in touch with us at (615) 810-6415
What is a high lift conversion?
On a standard door, the track turns from vertical to horizontal right above the opening, and the open door hangs just over your head. On a high lift door, the vertical track keeps climbing the wall and only turns once it’s near the ceiling. Convert a standard door and you get back the height between the top of the opening and the ceiling, which in a tall shop can be several feet.
It works on the door you already have. We modify the existing track system, then the springs, the drums and the cables to suit the new lift, and the opener usually changes with them.
Who needs one?
Any garage that needs the height for something. These are the four we hear about:
- Overhead storage, racks and platforms up where the open door used to hang.
- A vehicle lift, which needs the ceiling clear above the car it raises.
- A golf simulator, where a full swing and the screen need the room.
- Equipment too tall to pass under a standard door’s track.
Both photos on this page are ours: a shop door that rises up the wall before it turns, and a crew member at the top of a high lift track.
What changes on the door?
- The track. Taller vertical track up the wall, and the horizontal run raised to sit under the ceiling.
- The springs, drums and cables. High lift drums wind on the extra cable the taller lift needs, the cables are lengthened to match, and the springs are sized to the door’s weight over that longer travel.
- The opener. A ceiling-mounted opener can’t follow the door up the wall. A wall-mounted jackshaft opener, such as LiftMaster’s, turns the torsion bar directly and leaves the ceiling clear, so it’s the usual pairing. The differences between opener types are on the garage door openers page.
Can every garage take a high lift door?
It needs headroom: space between the top of the opening and the ceiling, beyond what the door itself takes. Lights, ductwork, beams and a ceiling-mounted opener may have to move. The fastest way to find out is a photo of the opening and the ceiling, with the measurement from the top of the opening up; send it to ccaro@kingdom-doors.com or call (615) 810-6415, and Clay can tell you what a conversion would involve before anyone drives out from College Grove.
If the springs on your existing door are tired anyway, the conversion is a good time to replace them; our spring replacement page explains how they’re sized.
Answers
High lift garage door conversion: questions people ask
What is a high lift garage door?
A door whose track climbs the wall above the opening before it turns, so the open door sits near the ceiling instead of just above the opening. It frees the space overhead for storage, a vehicle lift, a golf simulator or tall equipment.
How much headroom does a high lift door need?
More than a standard door: the space between the top of the opening and the ceiling has to fit the extra vertical track. Send a photo and that measurement, and Clay can tell you whether your garage will take a conversion.
Can my existing garage door be converted to high lift?
Often, yes. A conversion keeps the door and modifies the track system, the springs, the drums and the cables. The opener usually changes too, since a ceiling-mounted unit can’t follow the door up the wall.
What opener works with a high lift garage door?
A wall-mounted jackshaft opener, such as LiftMaster’s, is the usual choice. It mounts beside the door and turns the torsion bar directly, so the ceiling stays clear for the door and whatever is underneath it.