With fall leaves weighing heavy upon us we know winter is right around the corner. Every time you open your garage door the cooler air creeps in and soon the cold air of winter fills your garage. If you use your garage door throughout the winter, you realize it is a never-ending battle between cold air and energy efficiency. We, at Delden Garage Doors, have come up with a couple tips for checking the winterization of your garage door, the largest doorway in your home.
Weather Stripping
Having proper weather-stripping can help with keeping leaks out. There are several different types of weather-stripping to consider when checking your garage door.
Top and Side weather-stripping
- These two help to close gaps between the door and the door jamb.
- Check to see if there are any tears, rips, gaps or if the strip is dried out along both the top and side weather-stripping. If you do not notice any issues, then your weather-stripping is ready for the cold of winter or heat of summer. If you find a damaged portion of weather-stripping then the strip should be replaced. This can either be accomplished by you, the home owner, or by a garage door expert.
Bottom weather seal
- The strip that is closed in between the door and the concrete slab
- Check to see if there are any gaps, rips, tears or if any exterior light is seeping through the bottom of the door while closed.
- If you notice any damage to this bottom seal then we recommend you replace it. Not only does this bottom weather seal help with energy efficiency it also keeps out bugs and rodents while the door is not in use.
Insulate Your Garage Door
- Do you have insulation in your garage door? If your door is not insulated, you can purchase an insulation kit from your local Delden garage door dealer. It is recommended that you have this done by a professional to ensure your springs are adjusted for the added weight. This foam board can have a considerable effect on the temperature control in your garage, but for a longer term solution, consider replacing your old door with a new, insulated Delden Garage Door.
- R-Value is always a question when it comes to insulation. Click here for our FAQ page and scroll to the section titled Garage Door Energy Efficiency. You may also click here for more in depth information on the energy efficiency of Delden Garage Doors.
Consider a New Delden Garage Door
- If you realize your door is just not doing its job consider purchasing an energy efficient Delden Garage Door. Please visit our Delden Advantage page for more information on our company and our products. Also make sure to check out the Delden Door Designer to view a new door on your home and create your own door.
I don’t think we’ve even looked at our bottom weather seal since we moved into our home nearly ten years ago! Thanks for the suggestion to check that for gaps, rips, tears, and light coming through. I definitely know the light coming through is happening just from what I’ve noticed in passing. Hopefully this will help us keep a bit more heat in there this winter! Thanks!
Hi Veronica! We are happy to hear our tips were helpful! Thank you for taking the time to comment! We just posted another blog last night about our first annual Ugly Sweater Garage Door contest. You have a chance to win a new garage door opener. Here is the link to our Facebook page on what to do and how to enter!
https://www.facebook.com/deldenmfg/
Is that really all there is to it because that’d be flaaiergbstbng.
Thank you for the great tips. Can you replace the bottom weather seal yourself or do you want to have a garage door repair professional do that? I’ve heard a bit about insulating your garage for the winter but does that work for older garages? I’ve heard that it can be great or not do much at all.
Hi Jennifer!
You will first need to know the date of production and the door manufacturer. Assuming the type of seal is still produced, this can be done yourself. You don’t need a garage door professional but you will want someone there to feed the seal to you, it can be a real nuisance to do all by yourself.
A number of factors determine the effectiveness for insulating an older garage door. If you have a wood flush or wood panel door, there is no available place to fill in with insulation. Also, you need to determine if your garage is insulated and if you have an air vent to heat/cool your garage. Another factor is to determine how often you open your garage door. The effectiveness of insulating your old garage door is greatly affected depending on your response to these factors. If you need a highly insulated door, your best option is to replace it with a newly manufactured, insulated garage door. Your Delden dealer can help you determine which of our insulated products is the best fit for your garage.
Hope that answers your questions! If you have any other questions feel free to ask!
Felt so hopeless looking for answers to my quii.sons.t.untel now.
Any recommendations for where to find replacement weatherstripping for the bottom of the garage door? The universal replacement weatherstripping sold at Lowe’s and the like does not fit. The ‘T’ that feeds into the rail is too wide. Thank you!
Hi Holly!
If you are attempting to avoid a service call, the best way to determine what seal you need is to find the Manufacturer, Date, and Model # of your garage door. This can likely be found with a sticker located on the edge of your door (not the face or back). Your next step will likely be to contact a dealer who sells that brand of door and order the seal from them. If you have a Delden or Amarr garage door, you can purchase the bottom seal through one of our dealers at http://www.deldenmfg.com/residential/find_a_dealer.
Hope that helps! Let us know if you have any other questions!
Fastidious answers in return of this difficulty with genuine arguments and explaining everything concerning that.
Normally I do not read article on blogs, however
I wish to say that this write-up very compelled me to check out and do
so! Your writing taste has been amazed me. Thank you, quite nice article.
A mid-range entry door replacement ranks first. However, the curb appeal of an entry door can’t compare with the impact of a front-facing two-car garage door.
Making sure your garage door is weather proof is extremely important when winter time comes around, especially if you have pets that like to sleep in the garage. I’ve used weather strips before like the article suggests, but it can be a little tough to find tears or gaps sometimes so you really have to keep an eye out. I had no idea that you could actually get a garage door insulated though; that’s something I should look into doing before the next cold spell sets in.
Hi Simon!
Thank you for your comment. Our new blog is on R-Values. If you are thinking about insulating your garage door give our current blog a read. It will help with understanding a little bit more about what the values mean.
Nice Post.. Excellent Info.. Really amazing.. This was a fantastic article… really superb….
you’re article is nice.
We have to make sure before installing garage doors that it can adapt to all the weather conditions.Everyone should be very careful in choosing the right garage doors.We also have to make sure that it is long lasting.
Thanks for the helpful tips! Garage door should be a safe refuge during the winter and able to help you weather any storm or freezing temperatures. But a wintertime garage door breakdown can mean you’re left trudging through the snow, getting things out of your car and into your house without the comfort and protection of a fully operable garage. That’s why it’s important to take action before winter strikes.
Great tips for winterizing your garage. Insulation is always the best way to go but it’s just a start. Thanks for the rest of the advice.
I really like your tip about checking to see if there are any gaps or rips in the weather seal. My husband and I have been thinking about getting a new seal strip on garage door so we will have to keep this information in mind. Hopefully, we can find a good service to help us with the repair, thank you for sharing!
Especially in winters, we need to take very good care of our doors and windows. Otherwise, we are facing damage problems. Not only in winters during rainy season also we are problems with our wooden doors, here from this article also we can get some quick review on how to protect our doors especially in winters and other seasons. Thanks for such a wonderful overview.
First off thanks for sharing these worth to follow tips for garage door. I must say very very helpful for many individuals. Thanks for sharing in a detailed manner.
Great Information. I like the way you explain the article. Thank you for sharing this information.