Build9A

Build9A

Well Known Member
Since I am putting my RV9A in my hangar, I guess this question qualifies as RV related.

I am looking at several options for hangar doors. They come with the door frame skeleton, motor, etc. and then you put the paneling on yourself or have it done. That way I guess you have color options and material options.
For those of you who have done this, what is the best material for the panels for the door and who are some of the material suppliers? thanks
 
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Build9A said:
Since I am putting my RV9A in my hangar, I guess this question qualifies as RV related.

I am looking at several options for hangar doors. They come with the door frame skeleton, motor, etc. and then you put the paneling on yourself or have it done. That way I guess you have color options and material options.
For those of you who have done this, what is the best material for the panels for the door and who are some of the material suppliers? thanks
Click to expand...
Use the same material that your hangar is sided with. It wil look nice and match the rest of the hangar. Mine is "R" panel steel, which is the most common.
 
We have a Wilson Bi fold door and we have cedar siding on it to match the rest of the house. Wilson makes an excellent AL framed door that allows you to clad it with most anything. Ours has plywood and insulation with cedar lap siding over the top.

Roberta
 
I can second the recommendation for a Wilson door--I put one on my hangar about nine years ago, and it has been completely trouble-free from day one. It wasn't the cheapest door, but I have seen problems with many other doors on the airport. It may help that mine is only 42', and the bigger ones seem to be more trouble.

If I were doing it again today, I would look carefully at the hydroswing, which I think is very interesting.

"Stack" doors also have their place, although they do limit the width of your opening. They don't need electricity, which is a plus.
 
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Biggest problem I have with the Hydro-swing door is that you can't park anything close or the door will hit it. It takes a lot of room to clear the opening door.
If you do get one, be sure to get a window so you can check outside to make sure the way is clear.
I designed and built my first bi-fold hangar door and it's still working great after 17 years. My newer hangar has a Hi-Fold door. It still works great after 5 years.
 
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Ditto what Roberta said about Wilson. My new (15 year old) hangar has a Wilson. I've been working on it a lot lately (insulating, replacing old rubber etc) but the door itself (frame, cables, motor etc) have held up very well for 15 years.

Of course, it could be that Roberta and I live in Wilson's back yard...
 
We have a 40' x 18' Hydroswing in our farm shop, and love it. Unless you are planning on parking a cabover truck right in front of the door, clearance is not a problem. Of them is the fact that you can put the windows practically anywhere, no hinges to work around.

We have a neighbor that has a similar sized bifold, and have a bi-fold in a hanger we rent from the city, wow, are they slow.

The biggest advantage of the hydroswing besides speed is the safety. The only way that they can come crashing down is if one of the cylinders breaks. If a hose or fitting fails, the door leaks down, taking about 30 seconds to close. We all know what happens when a cable on a bi-fold fails.

Go with a hydroswing, you won't regret it!!
 
Not sure what you mean about "a" cable failing on a bi-fold door. My door has 5 cables any 2 of which will hold the door up.
Along with the fact, I've been around bi-fold doors for over 40 years and have never seen a failed cable. I know it can happen, just saying it is very rare.
 
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Hydro Swing Door

A neighbor had a problem here last winter when a Ice Storm froze the door to the ground. It took a lot of effort to clear the swing path to raise the door.
The Bi-folds came up much easier since it traveled straight up.
 
I have a friend that installed a Hydro Swing a couple of years ago. It was a little extra effort to install it on an existing hangar that was originally set up with sliding doors. Now that its done I really like it,like all big doors I'm sure there are down sides to it but the one thing I like is due to the way his hangar faces it provides a lot of shade in the afternoon sun.
 
I love my Hydroswing and if I were building again I'd put another on in a minute. What I like best...
1. Close your refrigerator door...that's how well my hydroswing seals. You can feel it's seal in your ears as it closes...no dust, no noise, no weather. Since the hangar is part of my house, that's important to me.
2. I can open it and use it for an awning...so when it's raining, I can have the door open and still have a significant "dry area" in front of the hangar.
3. With the remote control, you can use it for a suntan deck.
4. You can put doors/windows in after the fact.
5. My builder faced the inside of my Hydroswing with polished aluminum diamond plate...so when it's closed it looks great and reflects a lot of light.

I can park the plane about 5' in front of the door and still clear it when it opens...so that's about the only thing I am "giving up."
 
I also installed a Hydroswing 40' door on my hanger and love it . Great company to work with and excellent product .
 
I have a 50 x 13 Hydroswing and love it. It takes up very little headroom (5" I believe). Also with the remote control you can ride the door up and climb up onto the roof of your hangar to clean the gutters. You can also use it as a lift to pick up an rv-6 and load onto a trailer. It has many uses.
 
Hanger Suppliers

See http://www.hangartrader.com/manufacturers.htm for a list of manufacturers/suppliers. Another UK site (http://www.hangardoors.com/) has graphics on the right side that depict common door options.

We just finished putting the skins on a 60' x 16' bi-fold door on our EAA hanger. Bi-fold works well for us here in winter with snow and ice. You should have no trouble with whatever style you choose given the climate there-comes down to personal preference/cost.

We covered our door with the same insulation and steel skin as the rest of the building; both were supplied as part of the building kit, but the hanger door was from a separate vendor. Installation took a few days with our amateur crew, but the door is quiet and operates smoothly:)

Regards,
Mike
 
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