THE MODERN TYPE OF GARAGE DOOR.
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The Sliding Door Makes For Easier Access to Any Part of the Garage.
ONE of the excellent signs of the times is the gradual improvement in recent years of garage architecture. 'The old garage, with its entrance at right angles to a narrow thoroughfare— and that entrance also narrow, involving an anoranous amount of backing and falling when entering and also in order to take up a position in the garage—is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. Nobody appreciates this fact more than the driver, upon whom is imposed the work of getting his vehicle in and out without injury to the doorway, or to his own vehicle or any other. The sensible way in which to arrange 'the garage entrance is for the front to be capable of being thrown wide open, and recently we came across such a garage at the 'Greyhound," Sutton, which, being typical of quite a number, is well forth describing.
Aa will he Fre.0.11 from the aceampanying photograph, what might be described as the whole of one side of the ground floor of the garage consists of sliding doors, which were manufactured by Messrs. O'Brien Thomas and Co., of 17-19, Upper Thames Street, London, E.C. 4, employing the Coburn system of roller-bearing brackets and hangers. This system is by no means neW, having been an established success in this country for over 20 years, but it is-only recently that it has been employed to any great. extent in garage construction.
The doors run in parallel tracks, which means that, one half of the number of doors being in one track anal the remainder in the second track, one half of the whole of the front can be thrown open at any time ; and as the doors are capable of being slid into, any position, any degree of opening desired, and in any place, can be obtained.
It will he €..eri that the main girder supporting the upper storey is carried on three east stanchions. These are placed, where they are unavoidable, in aposition where they will cause the least inconvenience.
There is a wide diversity of hangers and brackets to carry the overhead tracks. These tracks are of tubular steel, in a slot on the underside of which travel the roller-bearing trolley hangers. These operate in and take their line of direction from the overhead track. Let into the ground is a guide channel, and running in this are metal rollers, whick.
C44 rotate on pivots, two of which are 'fastened to the bottom of each door.
Sliding doors undoubtedly. offer a great advantage in their ease of nilnipuIation and in the saving of floor space, and, obviously, it is impossible for such a door to close or swing to of its own accord.
It is quite easy for these sliding doors to be arranged with ball bearing swivel hangers so that they will swing round and close against a wall at right angles to the door opening, although, obviously, to acquire this advantage' there must be sufficient space available for the dour to
pass over in attaining this new position. This type of door, however, offers material advantages in certain awkward positions., It is also possible to arrange for the doors to be hinged together -concertina fashion, each door banging on a central hanger, when they will then fold up to one end or other of the garage.
When odeexamines the Coburn system ai door suspension one is almost inclined to come to the conclusion that the door hinge is now entirely out of date for garage work.