Is there a standard roller door size?
No single size suits every maker. Each one builds the door to the opening and prints its own range, so a figure is only useful next to the name of the maker and the model it belongs to.
The rough figures do line up. Steel-Line calls about 2400mm wide typical for a single garage door and 4800mm for a double, with 2100mm the usual height for both. B&D quotes much the same in general terms, and says every door it makes is made to measure.
Roller door widths, maker by maker
| Width | Whose figure | |
|---|---|---|
| A series | Openings from 750mm to 3430mm wide | Steel-Line |
| AA series | Openings from 3435mm to 5500mm wide | Steel-Line |
| B series (light industrial) | Openings from 2855mm to 5500mm wide | Steel-Line |
| Largest standard roller door | 5500mm wide and 3000mm high, then a custom door | Steel-Line |
| Series 1 Roll-A-Door | Up to 3150mm wide counting the overlap, and up to 3000mm high by model | B&D |
| Single roller doors | Up to 3.15 metres wide | B&D |
| Double roller doors: Roll-A-Door Traditional, Deluxe Double, Rollmasta Double | Up to 5.1 or 5.5 metres wide | B&D |
Single, double and small roller door sizes
The narrowest opening on any table we read is Steel-Line's: its A series starts at 750mm and runs to 3430mm, which takes in the typical 2400mm single as well. Its AA series picks up at 3435mm for wider garages.
For a double, B&D names three roller doors made up to 5.1 or 5.5 metres wide. Past 5500mm wide or 3000mm high, Steel-Line says you are into a custom door. A very wide opening may suit a sectional door instead, since B&D makes its Panelift and Panelift Icon up to 6.15 or 6.6 metres wide. Smaller doors for sheds and carports have their own page.
Headroom: the space above the opening for the roll
| Headroom | Whose figure | |
|---|---|---|
| A and AA series | 430mm to 510mm minimum, as a guide only (2026 brochure) | Steel-Line |
| B series | Up to 570mm | Steel-Line |
| Series 1 Roll-A-Door | 430mm to 470mm recommended, by model and door height | B&D |
| Series 2 and Series 3 | 515mm to 620mm recommended | B&D |
| Series A | 400mm minimum | Gliderol |
| Series AA | 450mm minimum | Gliderol |
Roller door drum size and low ceilings
Headroom is the number that pays for the drum and the rolled-up curtain. Steel-Line's general sizes article puts it at 350mm to 450mm typically, and B&D's sizing article at around 450mm directly above the opening. The brochures for each series ask for more than that, as the table shows, so go by the figure for the exact model you are quoted.
A low garage does not always rule a roller door out. Gliderol says headroom down to 300mm can work on its Series A and AA doors, but the underside of the rolled-up door will show when it is open. Steel-Line says a garage with a lower ceiling may better suit a tilt door.
Side room beside the opening
| Side room | Whose figure | |
|---|---|---|
| A series | 90mm worked by hand, 120mm with an opener | Steel-Line |
| AA series | 125mm worked by hand, 150mm with an opener | Steel-Line |
| Series 1 Roll-A-Door | 185mm recommended each side, or a restricted layout of 115mm and 85mm | B&D |
| Series A | At least 75mm | Gliderol |
| Series AA | At least 150mm | Gliderol |
| GDO-6 roller door opener | 135mm from the curtain edge to the door bracket, 175mm to the wall, recommended | ATA |
Why the door is wider than the opening
A roller door laps over the sides of the hole it closes. B&D makes a standard Series 1 door 60mm wider than the opening, giving 30mm or more each side, and a Neo door 80mm wider, at 40mm a side. Its wind-locked doors may need 55 to 68mm each side, depending on what the wall is built from.
Gliderol's figures are 25mm each side on its Series A and 50mm on its AA, with the brackets 150mm above the top of the opening. That is why the door specialist wants the size of the opening rather than the size of the old door, and why B&D says the side room has to carry on above the lintel, where the brackets are fixed.
How to measure a roller door opening
Width, three times
Steel-Line's tip is to measure across the opening at the top, the middle and the bottom. Write all three down.
Height
Measure from the floor up to the header, the beam that spans the top of the opening.
Headroom
Measure from the top of the opening to the ceiling, or to the lowest beam, light or pipe in the way. Hold it against the headroom table above.
Side room, both sides
Measure from each edge of the opening to the nearest wall or obstruction, and check the space keeps going above the lintel.
The motor side
B&D's sizing article puts a roller door's opener beside the door, so note which side has a power point. A new power point is a job for a licensed electrician.
Measure it, but leave the old door up
B&D's way of taking down an old roller door has the curtain rolled up and tied round the middle, propped from below, and the bolts undone slowly to let out the spring tension before it is lowered. Those steps are written for professionals. Steel-Line says the spring forces are generally equal to the door's weight, and that a Series A door can weigh as much as 93kg and an AA door 158kg. Never take a roller door down yourself.
What to tell the door specialist
- The opening's width at the top, middle and bottom, and its height
- The headroom, and the side room on both sides
- Whether the door will have an opener, and where the nearest power point is
- What the walls either side are made of, since B&D's overlap for wind-locked doors depends on it
- Whether you are in a high wind area: see cyclone-rated garage doors
- The brand of the old door, if there is a label you can read
What you can do, and what to leave
You can
- Measure the opening, the headroom and the side room
- Photograph the opening and the wall on each side
- Note where the power point is, or that there isn't one
Leave to a door specialist
- Taking down the old door and letting out its spring tension
- Checking the opening is strong enough: B&D says to ask a builder if unsure
- Fixing the brackets and setting the new door's tension
- Any new power point, by a licensed electrician
What we would do
Take the three widths, the height and the headroom in one go and put them in the note on the form. Every table on this page starts from those numbers, so the door specialist can rule models in or out before anyone visits, and a door that will not fit never makes it onto the quote.