I plan on building a small ICF home (for myself) and later using it as a garage/shop and building a nice home. But I would like to have energy efficient "garage doors" with windows.

Any suggestions for types or brands of doors?

I'm planning on using Amarr Olympus doors in the house I'm building. R-15 insulation value. About $1100 per door, 10 wide x 8 high, plus opener. Check out my thread about garage door bucks for a suggestion about using a rubber hose for a bottom door seal.

How about commercial type doors?

I used a Raynor door that is 2" thick and insulated with polyurethane foam. Overhead Door also offers a similar door. Both are in the R-17 to R-18 range. That is the highest insulation value I found for any residential garage door.

Nice doors, but I don't think 8' will be high enough for me, I am thinking 10' -12'.

I think you'll find most all good residential garage doors are available up to 12'. All they do is add more panels and more track, and maybe some reinforcement if weight gets to be an issue.

I suppose, I just saw the max height of 8' on their website.

I've come to the conclusion none of the web site door design programs are worth using.

Here iin Kansas, also looking at the Raynor insulated door. Just learned effective Jan 08, the local code authorities are requiring beefed up panels to meet a 90 mph wind speed. About time! So local distributors are working with manufacturers to get the extra bracing built in. With the taller doors, you might want beefed up panels.

I wouldn't be at all surprised in that case if two 8' wide doors might not just be cheaper than one 16' wide door. Given a uniform pressure on the door from wind the deflection of the door goes up with length to the fourth power. Double the door length, deflection goes up 16x. If the wind pushes the 8' door in by 1/16" it'll push a 16" door in by 1".

DMACELD,

I hear you on the math, but from a designer's point of view, 8' wide garage doors are a hard sell especially with narrow lots that do not leave much space for the parking apron.  The large SUV's have a tendency to lose mirrors by hitting the door jambs.

Life is often a choice between form and function. Unfortunately, form usually wins, although that's only partially the issue you raise.

I'm using 2 10' wide doors with 4' space between them. Width for pretty much the reason why you say 8' doors are a problem, and spaced apart to allow for space between vehicles. I'm designing my house and garage to be accessible. The 4' between them will allow enough space between cars to allow a side exit ramp from one of them. I'm going to sell the house after two years and to differentiate it from the thousands of others that are always on the market I'll advertise it as wheelchair and walker friendly. Hence, I end up with a garage almost big enough to be a 3 car but set up for 2 cars. I know I'm bucking the norm, but I've always been a bit contrary. Makes life more interesting.

But what I was thinking with regard to the 90 mph wind load requirement for garage doors is because of the stiffness issue a 16' wide door would have to have additional stiffening over current design. Two 8' foot doors of current design just might meet the wind load requirement and thus make more sense. Or 2 10' doors if there's space.

We lived in Louisiana during Katrina. There were several 16' or 18' garage doors in our subdivision that were in tatters from the wind, which was only something like 50 mph in our area.

How about all glass thermopane overhead doors, mounted of course on the inside of the ICF walls, and a insulated door on the outside to be closed at night. Know of anything like that?