High Lift Garage Door Conversion: The Complete Guide for Car Lifts and Tall Garages (Utah)

What is a high lift garage door conversion? A high lift garage door conversion changes the track and spring system so your door travels straight up the wall before it turns back along the ceiling. Instead of folding into the space right above the opening, the open door sits higher, which frees up ceiling room for a car lift, overhead storage, or ceiling equipment. The door itself usually stays the same. What changes is the vertical track, the horizontal track position, the cable drums, the cables, the springs, and in most cases the opener. Because the springs have to be re-sized and wound for the new travel, this is a job for a trained technician. Advanced Door is Utah’s #1 rated garage door company: family owned since 1994, 4.9 stars, 30,000+ five-star reviews, and the only company in Utah offering a lifetime warranty on parts and labor. Call (844) 971-3667 for a free estimate.

Last updated: October 2026

You finally bought the car lift. Or you are planning a shop with a four-post lift so you can park the summer car above the daily driver. Then you stand in the garage, look up, and realize the problem: when the garage door opens, it rolls right into the space where the lift needs to go. The lift and the door cannot share the same ceiling.

That is exactly what a high lift garage door conversion solves. It moves the open door up and out of the way, so the ceiling space right behind the header is free. It is one of the most common upgrades we talk through with Utah homeowners who have tall garages, home shops, big trucks, or overhead storage plans.

This guide explains how a high lift conversion works, how it compares to standard and full vertical lift, how to do the basic ceiling math, what parts change, what happens to your opener, why it is not a DIY project, and what to think about if you live in Utah. No sales pitch, just the information you need to decide if it makes sense for your garage.

Want a technician to measure your garage and tell you what will fit? Call (844) 971-3667. Estimates are always free.

What Is a High Lift Garage Door Conversion?

On a typical residential garage door, the tracks run up both sides of the opening, curve over just above the top of the door, and then run back along the ceiling. When the door opens, the sections roll up and lie flat just under the ceiling, right behind the header. That design works in almost any garage, which is why it is the default. This is called standard lift.

A high lift setup keeps the vertical tracks going higher up the wall before they curve. The door rises farther in the vertical position, then turns and runs back along the ceiling at a higher point. The open door ends up closer to the ceiling, so it no longer sits in the zone where a lift, a raised vehicle, or a storage rack needs to be.

A high lift garage door conversion is the process of changing an existing standard lift door to high lift. In most cases the door sections, hinges, rollers, and bottom seal stay. The hardware that guides and counterbalances the door is what changes. From the driveway, the door looks exactly the same as it did before.

If you want a refresher on how all of those parts work together, our guide on how a garage door works walks through every component.

Standard Lift vs High Lift vs Vertical Lift

There are three main track styles for sectional garage doors. Think of them as a scale. The higher the door travels up the wall before it turns, the more ceiling space you free up, and the more headroom you need.

Vertical lift is common in commercial buildings with tall walls. For most homes with tall ceilings, high lift is the sweet spot. It frees up a lot of ceiling space without needing a wall that is twice as tall as the door.

At the other end of the scale is low headroom track, which is used when there is very little room above the door. If you are dealing with a short garage instead of a tall one, our track repair and replacement guide covers the different track types, including low headroom.

Who Needs a High Lift Conversion?

A high lift garage door conversion makes sense when the ceiling space just behind the door is worth more to you than it is now. The most common reasons we hear:

• Car lifts. This is the big one. A two-post or four-post lift needs clear space overhead when a car is raised. A standard lift door rolls right into that space. With high lift, you can raise a car and still open the door.
• Stacked parking. Parking one vehicle above another on a four-post storage lift is a way to fit two cars in one bay. It only works if the open door is out of the way.
• Overhead storage. Ceiling racks for bins, bikes, kayaks, and ski gear usually cannot hang where a standard lift door opens. High lift frees up more of the ceiling.
• Home shops and hobby garages. Tall shop garages often have room to spare overhead, and high lift puts that space to work.
• Heaters, fans, and lights. Garage heaters, ceiling fans, and light fixtures need clearance from the door. Moving the open door up can make room for them.
• A more open feel. Some homeowners simply want the open door out of the way so the garage feels bigger and brighter.

If none of these apply and your door works fine, there is no reason to convert. Standard lift is simple, proven, and less expensive. High lift is a solution for a specific problem, not an automatic upgrade.

Doing the Ceiling Math

The amount of high lift you can get depends on how much room there is between the top of your door opening and the ceiling, and on what is in that space. Before you buy a lift or plan storage, it helps to understand the basic measurements a technician will take.

The Measurements That Matter

1. Door height. Measure the height of the door opening, not the door itself. Common residential heights are 7 and 8 feet.
2. Ceiling height. Measure from the floor to the lowest point of the ceiling where the tracks will run. Beams, joists, and drywall soffits all count.
3. Headroom. The space from the top of the opening to the ceiling. This is the number that decides how much high lift is possible.
4. Backroom. The depth from the door opening toward the back wall. The horizontal track still needs room to run back.
5. Sideroom. The wall space on each side of the opening. Wall-mount openers and track brackets need room here.
6. Obstructions. Lights, opener outlets, heaters, ducts, sprinkler lines, attic access hatches, and existing storage racks all affect where the tracks can go.

Our how to measure a garage door guide explains how to take these measurements with a tape measure. You do not need to be exact. A technician will confirm everything before ordering parts.

A Simple Way to Think About It

The high lift amount is roughly the headroom you have, minus the clearance the track, springs, and hardware need near the ceiling. More headroom means more high lift. Some garages have room for a little high lift, which frees up a modest amount of space. Others have enough height for so much high lift that the setup gets close to full vertical lift.

For a car lift, the question is not just how high the door goes. It is whether the raised car, the lift’s runways or arms, and the open door can all fit at the same time. That is why it helps to have the lift specs in hand when you talk to a garage door technician. The lift manufacturer lists the ceiling height the lift needs, and the vehicle you plan to raise matters too.

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What Changes During a High Lift Garage Door Conversion

A high lift garage door conversion is mostly a hardware swap. The door panels stay. Here is what typically changes and why:

If your door currently uses extension springs, the conversion also includes changing to a torsion spring system, because high lift uses torsion springs. Our guide to torsion vs extension springs explains the difference, and our cable drum guide covers drum types in more detail.

This is also a good time to look at worn parts. If your rollers, hinges, or bearings are tired, it makes sense to replace them while the door is apart. See our roller replacement guide, hinge replacement guide, and bearing replacement guide.

What Happens to Your Garage Door Opener

This is the part many homeowners do not expect. A standard ceiling-mount opener hangs in the middle of the garage and pulls the door along a rail that runs from the header back toward the ceiling. That rail and motor sit in the very space a car lift or storage rack needs. In many high lift conversions, keeping the ceiling-mount opener would defeat the purpose of the project.

Wall-Mount Jackshaft Openers

The most common answer is a wall-mount jackshaft opener. It mounts on the wall beside the door and turns the torsion shaft directly. There is no rail and no motor hanging from the ceiling, so the space above the garage stays open. These openers are a natural fit for high lift and vertical lift doors.

Wall-mount openers have their own requirements, including enough side wall space, a power outlet nearby, and a torsion spring system. Our wall-mount jackshaft opener guide covers how they work, what they need, and how they compare to ceiling-mount models. For a broader look, see garage door opener types compared.

Can You Keep Your Current Opener?

Sometimes. On a smaller high lift conversion where the goal is a bit of storage space, a ceiling-mount opener may still work if it is set up correctly. For most car lift projects, though, the ceiling opener is in the way. A technician should tell you honestly whether your current opener can stay or whether a wall-mount opener is the better choice.

Either way, the opener’s travel limits and force settings have to be reset after the conversion, and the safety reverse and photo eye sensors have to be tested. See our guides on travel limits and force settings and aligning garage door sensors.

Is Your Garage a Good Candidate for High Lift?

Not every garage can take high lift, and not every garage needs it. Use this checklist as a starting point:

• Your ceiling is noticeably taller than your door. Garages with ceilings around the height of a standard room have little or no room for high lift.
• The wall above the door is clear. Windows, vents, or beams above the opening can limit how high the vertical track can go.
• The ceiling along the track path is clear. Lights, ducts, attic hatches, and sprinkler lines may need to move.
• There is room on the side walls. Track brackets and a wall-mount opener need side wall space.
• The door is in good shape. A door with cracked panels, bad sagging, or rot should be repaired or replaced before converting.
• You have a clear reason. A lift, a storage plan, or ceiling equipment that needs the space.

If your door is near the end of its life, it may make more sense to replace it and order the new door with high lift track from the start. Our guides on repair vs replace and when to replace a garage door can help you decide.

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Why a High Lift Garage Door Conversion Is Not a DIY Project

You can find conversion kits and instructions online, and plenty of handy homeowners are tempted. We understand the appeal. But this project involves almost every high-tension part of the door at once.

Beyond the safety risk, there are a lot of ways to get it slightly wrong:

• Wrong spring size. The door ends up heavy, so it drops or slams, or too light, so it flies up and will not stay down.
• Track pitch and alignment. If the track is not set correctly, the door can bind at the curve, drag on the header, or come off the track.
• Cable wrapping. High lift drums have to wrap the cable correctly through the vertical part of the trip. A cable that wraps wrong can come off the drum.
• Hanging the horizontal track. The higher track needs solid support. Weak hangers can let a track sag or fall.
• Opener setup. Travel limits, force settings, and safety reverse all have to be set and tested on the new system.

Our safe DIY vs professional repair guide and can you replace garage door springs yourself explain where the line is. A high lift conversion is firmly on the professional side.

How a Technician Does a High Lift Garage Door Conversion

Every job is a little different, but here is what a typical high lift conversion looks like from start to finish:

1. Measure and plan. The technician measures the door, headroom, backroom, and sideroom, checks for obstructions, and talks through your lift or storage plans. This is when the high lift amount and opener choice are decided.
2. Order matched parts. Tracks, drums, cables, and springs are matched to your door’s size, weight, and the planned lift amount.
3. Release the spring tension safely. With the door closed and secured, the existing springs are unwound using proper winding bars.
4. Remove the old hardware. Cables, drums, the old horizontal tracks, and usually the ceiling opener come out.
5. Install the new vertical and horizontal track. The new vertical track goes up, and the horizontal track is re-hung higher with solid supports.
6. Install the shaft, drums, cables, and springs. Everything is lined up with the new track height, then the springs are wound to the correct tension.
7. Balance the door. The door is tested by hand to confirm it lifts smoothly and stays put when stopped partway.
8. Install or reset the opener. A wall-mount opener is installed, or the existing opener is adjusted. Travel limits, force, and safety sensors are set and tested.
9. Walk you through it. You get a quick explanation of how the new setup works, how to use the manual release, and what to watch for.

For a general idea of timing, see our how long does garage door repair take guide. A conversion takes longer than a simple repair because several systems are changed at once.

If you are not sure whether your door is balanced right now, our balance test guide shows a safe way to check. It is a good thing to know before and after any conversion.

Utah Considerations for a High Lift Garage Door Conversion

A high lift conversion works the same way anywhere, but Utah has a few factors worth thinking about.

Truck, RV, and Toy Culture

Utah garages work hard. Trucks, side-by-sides, trailers, boats, snowmobiles, ski gear, and mountain bikes all compete for space. A high lift conversion can free up ceiling space for racks and lifts, which can make a crowded garage a lot more usable. If your vehicle does not fit through the opening, though, high lift will not fix that. Look at a taller door instead.

Winter Car Storage

Plenty of Utah homeowners store a summer car or a classic during the winter to keep it away from snow and road salt. A four-post storage lift with a high lift door lets the stored car sit up top while the daily driver parks underneath, so you are not choosing between the two all winter.

Tall Garages in Newer Construction

Many newer homes along the Wasatch Front were built with tall third bays or RV bays. Those garages often have plenty of headroom but still came with standard lift track, because that is the default. Homeowners in places like Lehi, the South Valley, and Davis County are often surprised by how much ceiling space they can get back.

Mountain and Shop Garages

In mountain areas like Park City and Summit County, big shop garages and detached buildings are common. Some have walls tall enough for full vertical lift. Heavier insulated and wood doors are also common there, which makes correct spring sizing even more important.

Permits and HOAs

Because a high lift conversion changes the hardware inside the garage and not the opening or the exterior, it usually does not change how the home looks from the street. That said, rules vary by city and HOA, and any changes to framing or electrical work can bring other requirements. Our permits and building codes guide and HOA garage door rules guide explain what to check.

Living With a High Lift Door: Maintenance Tips

A properly installed high lift door should run as smoothly and quietly as a standard door. A few habits will keep it that way:

• Watch the cables. High lift drums wrap more cable. Look at the cables from a safe distance every few months for fraying or loose wraps. Our guide on what happens if a cable breaks explains why this matters.
• Lubricate moving parts. Hinges, rollers, bearings, and springs benefit from a garage door lubricant, not a general degreaser. See our lubrication guide.
• Keep the track path clear. Do not hang storage, cords, or lights where the door travels. The new, higher path is easy to forget.
• Mind the lift. Never open or close the door while a car on the lift is moving, and confirm clearance whenever you change vehicles or lift height.
• Test the safety reverse monthly. Place a board or a roll of paper towels in the door’s path and make sure the door reverses.
• Schedule a yearly tune-up. A technician can check balance, spring condition, cables, and track alignment. See our tune-up guide and maintenance schedule.

What Affects the Cost of a High Lift Conversion

Every garage is different, so we do not quote high lift conversions without seeing the space. These are the main factors that affect the price:

• How much high lift you need. More lift means longer track and different springs and drums.
• Door size and weight. Larger, insulated, and wood doors need heavier springs and stronger hardware. Our garage door weight guide explains why weight matters.
• Current spring type. Converting from extension springs to torsion adds parts and labor.
• Opener changes. Moving to a wall-mount opener, or keeping and resetting the current one.
• Obstructions. Lights, outlets, ducts, and storage that need to be moved.
• Condition of other parts. Worn rollers, hinges, or bearings that are worth replacing at the same time.

Estimates are always free, and we explain exactly what we recommend and why before any work begins. If you are comparing quotes, our guide on why garage door estimates are so different shows what to look for.

How Advanced Door Helps With Your High Lift Garage Door Conversion

When you call us about a high lift garage door conversion, here is what to expect:

• An honest measurement. We measure your garage, look at your lift or storage plans, and tell you how much high lift is possible. If it will not work in your garage, we tell you that too.
• Matched parts. Track, drums, cables, and springs matched to your door and the planned lift amount.
• Long-lasting springs. We install high-cycle springs backed by our lifetime warranty on parts and labor.
• The right opener setup. We help you choose between keeping your opener and switching to a wall-mount model, then set limits, force, and safety sensors.
• A balanced, tested door. We do not leave until the door runs smoothly and the safety reverse works.

We serve homeowners and businesses across Utah, including Ogden, Draper, Logan and Cache Valley, Layton, Sandy, Provo and Utah County, Lehi, St. George, and Park City.

Call (844) 971-3667 any time, or reach a local team directly: Ogden (801) 430-9021, Logan (435) 363-4929, Draper (801) 967-8998.

Related reading: garage door sizes guide, torsion bar guide, garage door opener installation guide, and garage door repair in Utah.

Frequently Asked Questions: High Lift Garage Door Conversion

What is a high lift garage door conversion?

It is a change to your door’s track and spring system so the door travels higher up the wall before turning back along the ceiling. The door sections usually stay the same. The vertical track, horizontal track position, cable drums, cables, springs, and often the opener change. The result is more open ceiling space behind the door.

How much ceiling height do I need for high lift?

It depends on your door height, the hardware, and what you want to fit overhead. The amount of high lift is roughly your headroom minus the clearance the track and springs need near the ceiling. A technician can measure your garage and tell you how much lift is possible.

Do I need a high lift garage door for a car lift?

In most garages, yes, if you want to open the door while a car is raised. A standard lift door rolls into the space where a raised car or the lift itself needs to be. If you only lift a car occasionally and keep the door closed while it is up, you may not need it. Check the lift manufacturer’s ceiling height requirements first.

Can I keep my existing garage door with a high lift conversion?

Usually, yes. Most conversions reuse the door sections, hinges, and rollers. If the door is damaged, badly worn, or near the end of its life, it may make more sense to replace it and order the new door with high lift track.

Will my garage door opener still work after converting to high lift?

Sometimes, but most car lift conversions use a wall-mount jackshaft opener, because a ceiling-mount opener’s rail and motor sit in the space you are trying to free up. Either way, the opener’s travel limits, force settings, and safety sensors need to be reset and tested.

What is the difference between high lift and vertical lift?

High lift raises the door higher up the wall, then turns it back along the ceiling. Vertical lift runs the door straight up the wall with no horizontal section, so it needs a wall tall enough to hold the whole door above the opening. Vertical lift is more common in commercial buildings and very tall shops.

Can I do a high lift conversion myself?

We do not recommend it. The job involves unwinding and re-winding torsion springs, swapping cables and drums, and re-hanging track. Springs, cables, and bottom brackets are under high tension, and DASMA advises that spring systems be repaired only by trained professionals.

Does a high lift conversion change how my door looks from outside?

No. The door and the opening stay the same, so the outside looks exactly as it did before. The changes are all inside the garage. Rules vary by city and HOA, so check if any framing or electrical changes are part of your project.

Reference: DASMA, Garage Door Safety Tips (springs and cables under high tension, bottom brackets for trained technicians only, spring systems repaired only by trained professionals, and track designed as a system with the door).