Q: Can I replace a garage door panel with a panel from a different brand?

A: Roll up sectional garage doors are made up of 3 or more panels attached on the inside by series of hinges. Most garage doors are made of steel but wood constructed doors are still part of most manufactures product line. Wood doors are mostly custom made and cost a lot more than steel doors. Some manufacturers now make custom doors that are metal on the inside and custom wood finish on the outside.

Replacement of any garage door panels

This can be tricky. If you have a basic steel garage door sometimes you can mix and match manufactures. But they may all look the same from outside to the naked eye but they are all different in small ways. Custom wood doors is almost impossible to mix and match. You would have to custom order a replacement panel from the original door manufacturer. Some door manufactures engineer their doors totally different than all others and impossible to mix and match panels. And then there are about 3 of 4 manufactures that you can mix and match panels but remember the raised squares on the outside will never match perfectly. Unless you know what to look for the average person looking at door from outside would find it hard to compare panels.

When i have found myself in this position in the past i always make it clear to the customer that the outside will not match up perfectly. And most of the time homeowner does not care too much about matching perfectly. And sometimes they have told me that they didn’t think they would care about matching old panel . Then after i install them they call me back to just replace whole door.

The manufactures that i know that are somewhat interchangeable are Clopay, Doorlink, Mid-America and Amarr doors made before 2000. If you have an Amarr brand door made before 2000 they make a conversion piece that will allow you to put their newer engineered doors with the old design. and the outside will match up perfectly. Manufactures like Wayne Dalton and overhead door brand are changing the engineering of their door every couple of years and makes it hard to match up old panels with there new panels. If you have any concerns about mix and matching panels than just replace all the panels if possible.