What size header do i need for a 8′, 9′, 10′, 12′, 14′, 16′ & 18 foot garage door

What size of header do you need for a single car or double car garage door depends on factors like the door type, species of wood, live load, dead load, width of structure, weight, gable end, slope and local building codes.

If you want to make garage for your car parking, there is a lots of questions comes in mind what is correct header size for garage door and how to install garage framing. There is few points you should know before framing.

Rough openings as the size of the opening before the finished lumber has been added to the jambs. Before you add your framing, the rough opening should be larger than the garage door you’ve chosen. Rough opening should be 3″ wider than the door width measured between the left and right edges. So, in a 10-foot wide garage door, the rough opening will be 10 foot and 3″ wide.

The distance between the garage floor and the rough header should be one and a half inches (1-1/2″) taller than your new garage door’s height. For example, in a standard Eight-foot-tall garage door, the header should be 8′-1-1/2″ feet above the finished floor.

Header are made of different species of lumber like softwood lumber comes from conifer trees like pine, fir, spruce, and cedar. However, for longer span of the garage door the engineered wood like Versa-lam, Glulam (Glue laminated timber) and Laminated veneer lumber (LVL) are widely used for structure application.

Garage door header size

Determining the appropriate garage door header size involves various factors like the type of construction, load-bearing considerations, and local building codes. Others factors such as the weight of the garage door, wind load, and other structural requirements should be consider to determine accurate specifications.

Typically, a double-car garage door (16×7) requires a header of at least 12 inches in depth, while a single-car door may need a header that’s 6 to 9 inches deep.

Garage door header:- the garage door header itself should be nine inches wider than the door. Typically, header is provided at least twice size. Common size of garage door header should be 2 2×8 (4×8), 2 2×10 (4×10), 2 2×12 (4×12) and LVL and Glulam are used.

The standard garage door width and height

The standard garage door width and height can vary by where you live, but is usually it is 8 feet wide by 7 feet tall, or 9 feet by 7 feet tall for a single car garage door and 16 feet by 7 feet for a double garage door.

A header is a horizontal beam generally made of timber or Laminated veneer lumber or LVL that provided along the opening in full length for garage door, doorway, window, skylight or stairway. LVL header provide structural support in wood frame construction.

Typically header is provided at least twice size then any other surrounding members such as rafter purlin and stud. It is often made of two joists, rafter or studs. It runs between full length supports and along its length and carry the load of shorter studs, joists or rafter that terminate at the opening.

The header helps to provide support, stability and strength to the top and side sections of the garage door frame. The header for a window & door is seems like a bridge that transferring the weight above it to the floor and foundation below. Doors in a load-bearing wall that holds the weight of the house, created by beams and trusses, need a larger header than those in non-load-bearing walls.

The header is usually made out of dimensional lumber or LVL installed on its edge. Calculating and know the size of the header depends on what the header needs to support.

Headers carry the weight of the structure above and transfer it to the trimmers down to the floors and foundations below. Longer openings such as in garage required larger headers. Load bearing walls those that carry the weight of joists and trusses require larger headers than non-bearing wall.

LVL, Glulam or Versa-lam Garage door header size

A 5 1/2 inches depth, 7 1/4 inches depth, 9 1/4 inches depth or 9 1/2 inches depth of LVL (Glulam or Versa-lam) header used for single car garage door while 11 1/4 inches depth, 11 7/8 inches depth, or 14 inches depth of LVL (Glulam or Versa-lam) header used for double car garage door.

Lumber Header size

Common size of garage door header made of lumber should be two 2×8 (or 4×8), two 2×10 ( or 4×10), two 2×12 (or 4×12). An 8″ depth of lumber is good for 8′ garage door, a 10″ depth of lumber is good for 10′ garage door, and 12″ depth of lumber is good for 12′ garage door.

In this article you know about what size header do i need for a 8′, 9′, 10′, 12′, 14′, 16′ & 18 foot garage door that will help you in better understanding and to figure out or estimate of LVL header size and their depth and help in important for you to use the right size header.

What size header do i need for a 8′, 9′, 10′, 12′, 14′, 16′ & 18 foot garage door

You will need a 2-2×8 size of wood header for an 8 foot wide garage door, a 2-2×10 header for a 9 foot garage door, a 2-2×10 header for a 10 foot garage door, a 3-2×12 header for a 12 foot garage door, a 3 1/2 × 11-7/8 LVL header for a 14 foot garage door, a 5 1/4 × 11 7/8 LVL header for a 16 foot garage door, a 5 1/4 × 14 LVL header for a 18 foot garage door, and a 5 1/4 × 16 LVL header for a 20 foot garage door.

8 foot garage door header size

The header size for an 8-foot garage door should be 2- 2×8 (or 4×8), which includes an 8 inch depth and a 4 inch width. So, for an 8 foot wide garage door (8’×7′) you will need a 2-2×8 wooden header.

9 foot garage door header size

The header size for a 9-foot garage door ought to be 2- 2×10 (or 4×10), which includes a 10 inch depth and a 4 inch width. So, for a 9 foot wide garage door (9’×7′) you may require a 2-2×10 wooden header.

10 foot garage door header size

The header size for a 10-foot garage door should be 2- 2×10 (or 4×10), which includes a 10 inch depth and a 4 inch width. So, for a 10 foot wide garage door (9’×7′) you may require a 2-2×10 wooden header.

As per general thumb rule and guidelines, for a 10 foot garage door, header should be double- 2×10 in size, in which 10 inches deep and 4 inches width, thus you will need something like double- 2×10 or 4×10 lumber header for a 10 foot garage door.

12 foot garage door header size

The header size for a 12-foot garage door ought to be 3-2×12 (or 6×12), which includes a 12 inch depth and a 6 inch width. So, for a 12 foot wide garage door (12’×7′) you may require a 3-2×12 wooden header.

As per general thumb rule and guidelines, for a 12 foot garage door, header should be double- 2×12 in size, in which 12 inches deep and 4 inches width, thus you will need something like double- 2×12 or 4×12 lumber header for a 12 foot garage door.

14 foot garage door header size

The header size for a 14-foot garage door ought to be 3-1/2″ × 11-7/8″ made of engineered wood (LVL, Glulam, or Versa-lam) which includes a 12 inch depth and a 4 inch width. So, for a 14 foot wide garage door (14’×7′) you may require a (2) 1-3/4″×11-7/8″ LVL header.

16 foot garage door header size

The header size for a 16-foot garage door ought to be 5-1/4″ × 11-7/8″ made of engineered wood (LVL, Glulam, or Versa-lam) which includes a 12 inch depth and a 5 inch width. So, for a 16 foot wide garage door (16’×7′) you may require a (3) 1-3/4″×11-7/8″ LVL header.

18 foot garage door header size

The header size for a 18-foot garage door ought to be 5-1/4″ × 14″ made of engineered wood (LVL, Glulam, or Versa-lam) which includes a 14 inch depth and a 5 inch width. So, for a 18 foot wide garage door (18’×7′) you may require a (3) 1-3/4″×14″ LVL header.

20 foot garage door header size

The header size for a 20-foot garage door ought to be 5-1/4″ × 16″ made of engineered wood (LVL, Glulam, or Versa-lam) which includes a 16 inch depth and a 5 inch width. So, for a 20 foot wide garage door (18’×7′) you may require a (3) 1-3/4″×16″ LVL header.

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Conclusion:-

In general, a 4″×8″ lumber header may utilized for an 8 foot garage door, while a 4″×10″ lumber header may utilized for a 9 to 10 foot garage door. Likewise, a 6″×12″ header may span for a 12 foot garage door, while a 3-1/2″×11-7/8″ LVL header may span for a 14 foot garage door. In addition, a 5-1/2″×11-7/8″ LVL header may used for a 16 foot garage door and a 5-1/2″×14″ LVL header may used for a 18 foot garage door.