With the weather as nasty as it gets in Minnesota, it’s all the more important to have a weatherproof garage—where you can put things that perhaps don’t belong indoors, but do deserve safety from the elements. Where else, after all, would you park your car when foul weather is on the horizon?
Indeed, from hail damage to high winds, rain, and snow, your garage needs to hold strong against a variety of hazards, but it can’t maintain that strength on its own. Regular weatherproofing is key to a long and steady life of service. But what does that mean when it comes to your garage? Certainly you’ve dealt with the process inside of your home, and perhaps to its exterior components, too, but this half-inside, half-outside space is a separate beast unto itself!
Door Power is here to help you make the most out of your garage. Below, we’ll describe a few ways that you can shield the space’s contents from the elements outside.
Weatherstripping: The Meat and Potatoes
Weatherstripping is a slightly misleading term; in relation to your garage door, which puts up with a fair deal of strain, it might seem like it refers to some sort of weather-related damage.
When used in an interior context, though, it means to seal the edges of materials against air leaks—and it means the same thing in relation to your garage door. The term can also be used as a noun in reference to the actual materials used to complete the job (perhaps because these materials tend to come in long strips). You may also hear the process referred to as weather-sealing.
Why Weatherstrip?
Weatherstripping, provided you don’t have any gaping holes in your residential garage door that need repair, is the best way to create a space that’s free from drafts and snow and that protects the valuables inside.
But your garage door’s weatherstripping has effects that go far beyond your garage itself. According to The Spruce, “It's also important to weather-seal your garage to protect your home from damaging elements like fierce rain, snow, hail, and wind. If water enters your garage, it could freeze to create ice and water damage that will ruin your floor and potentially seep into your living spaces.”
In short—by weatherstripping your garage door and ensuring the protection of what it guards, you also provide extra protection of your home’s interior. Here are a couple of key areas to pay attention to when completing this important task.
Your Garage Door Seal
This is a long strip of material that lines the bottom of your garage door. It essentially gets mashed into the pavement each time your garage door closes, but no worries—it’s made for it! This process creates a tight seal against exterior weather, preventing water, snow, and the like from seeping inside.
If you begin to notice drafts from the area or that the seal itself is cracking, it’s time for some garage door repair from a professional. This is one area of garage doors that comes in a variety of shapes, sizes, and materials, and not every seal and every door will work together. Avoid wasting money and time and contact your garage door company for a seamless fix.
Doorstop Weather Stripping
This stuff is found along the top and sides of your garage door, and it serves a similar purpose as your garage door seal: it creates a watertight barrier against the outdoors. Signs of a lack of function are thus also similar—cracks, drafts, tears, the like.
Consider Smart Garage Door Technology
With companies like Liftmaster offering remote-opening-and-closing technology, it’s now all the easier to be ready for anything. You can have all the weatherstripping in the world, but if your garage door is open when a storm blows in and you’re away from home, it won’t matter in the slightest.
Smart garage door tech also makes it possible for you to set a schedule for your door’s operation, so it’s always shut when you’re out on your regular day-to-day tasks. Not only does this do good things for weatherproofing, but for security, too, as we cover in our garage door installation blog on the topic.
Better Insulation: Always a Good Investment
We’ve actually written an entire blog on the benefits of an insulated garage door—from increased soundproofing to better energy efficiency. When it comes to weatherproofing, though, it’s also quite handy, providing a buffer between extreme outdoor temperatures and more moderate, semi-indoor ones. If you have items that are extremely vulnerable to the cold or heat, such as classic cars or keepsakes, that you store in your garage, insulation in the door is an awesome investment.
Keep Your Door Going Strong With Door Power
Our garage door repair and installation technicians can help keep this valuable piece of household equipment working at its best for years into your family’s future. Reach our Norwood office today at 952-467-3199.