When deciding on commercial doors for your loading dock overhead doors or security entrance, your top two choices are going to be fiberglass and steel. They’re all-around the strongest, most durable, and most low-maintenance options for sectional garage doors, rollup overhead doors, and back-entrance security doors. But you’ve still got to make a choice. How to choose? Let’s look at the pros and cons of each exterior fiberglass doors vs steel:
Pros and Cons of Fiberglass Security Doors
Fiberglass might not have been around nearly as long as steel, but that doesn’t mean it can’t stand up. Since it’s a composite material, fiberglass outer doors have a lot to offer:
- Impact-resistant and durable
- Can’t rust, rot or corrode
- Lightweight
- Isn’t susceptible to extreme temperatures or humidity
- Comes in many color and texture options
However, there are a couple drawbacks of fiberglass for overhead and security doors:
- More expensive than steel
- Will crack when hit hard enough
How Do Steel Exterior Doors Stack Up?
There’s a reason skyscrapers are built of steel frames – steel is as heavy-duty as anything when it comes to building materials. Some advantages of choosing steel for your facility’s exterior doors are:
- Impact-resistant and durable
- Dents when overloaded (read: can be repaired)
- Can’t rot or warp
- Less expensive than fiberglass
- More secure than fiberglass
The drawbacks of choosing outer steel doors are:
- Potential for rust if not properly maintenanced
- Not as energy-efficient as fiberglass.
Deciding which Outer Door Material is best for Your Business
Every business is different, and so is every new commercial door installation. Budgets, design preferences, size, and other factors mean there’s not just one answer as to what material is best for exterior doors at a business. And you may not even have to choose – they also make exterior fiberglass doors with inner steel framing. The good news is, fiberglass and steel are both solid options for those back entrance doors and overhead loading dock doors, so whatever you choose, you can’t really go wrong.