Low Headroom Garage Doors - DDM Garage Doors Blog

We frequently get inquiries about low headroom garage door applications. A low headroom garage door is one where there is not enough clearance above the door to install a normal torsion spring assembly. The most common type of low headroom door is one with double low headroom garage door tracks. Here are a few of the solutions we use in our industry.

Double Low Headroom Tracks

Double low headroom garage door tracks are the most common low headroom solution. The low headroom door has two sets of tracks, which minimizes upward travel.

On low headroom applications, the cable drum is normally installed outside the end bearing plate. The bottom of the cable connects to an outside lift bottom fixture that wraps around the outside of the track.

The cable comes off the garage side of the drum. A wide low headroom plate connects the two horizontal tracks to the top of the vertical flag bracket. The torsion springs are mounted opposite to the way they are on standard doors, and the springs are wound down instead of up.

The drum is tight against the race of the end bearing. This prevents the shaft from floating horizontally, which could cause spring bind as well as excess wear on the bearings and the ends of the shaft.

On double track systems, the drums can also mount inside the end bearing plates if there is enough headroom. Sometimes the jamb end of the upper track needs trimming about 1/2″ to 1″ in order to allow room for the cable to travel. Notice the low headroom top fixture and the mounting of the top strut.

The drum butts against the race of the end bearing on each side. This design allows the cables to travel behind the rollers and connect at the bottom of the garage door to standard bottom fixtures. Notice also the wide low headroom plate connecting both horizontal tracks.

This plate and the upper horizontal track connect to the top of the vertical flag bracket as pictured. In addition, the race of the end bearing faces and touches the drum.

You can buy double low headroom tracks on our tracks and track hardware page.

Double Roller Top Fixtures

Double roller top fixtures are especially useful for steel doors, where a double track system might not work. Instead of installing two tracks, this low headroom solution uses a hinged top fixture to support the steel door. The video below shows how these top fixtures work.

If you have a low headroom steel door, you can find instructions for modifying the top fixture in our Low Headroom Modification for Steel Doors tutorial.

Connecting to the Vertical Flag Bracket

Sometimes there is not enough clearance above the garage door to mount the torsion springs. As a result, in these ultra-low-headroom applications the spring assembly mounts in the rear. The cable from the bottom of the door runs up and over a pulley mounted to the horizontal angle.

From there, the cable runs out to the cable drum and torsion assembly, mounted to the ends of the tracks. The cable drum secures to a shaft supported by the end bearing plate, which bolts to the ends of the horizontal tracks.

Notice below, the spring and stationary cone mounted to the end bearing plate.

Here is the other end of the shaft, end bearing plate, and horizontal tracks. They are supported by angles that are turned away from the cables in order to allow room for the cables to move unobstructed.

Finally, here is a picture of the complete low headroom garage door assembly mounted with four inches of headroom.

Other Low-Headroom Issues

Customers often want to know if they can install a LiftMaster 8500 operator on their low headroom doors. This depends largely on whether the shaft turns the same direction as on regular doors. To help low-headroom doors close properly, we recommend installing push-down spring bumpers. Occasionally, you will need to find creative solutions when regular bumpers do not fit.

Crawford garage doors are similar to low headroom garage doors, since their cable drums are also outside the end bearing plate.

You can find detailed instructions for installing low headroom double rollers in our DIY section. We also have instructions on how to replace your vertical tracks.

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