3 Tips to Protect Your Garage Door This Winter

As the winter months intensify, you must make sure to properly maintain and protect your garage door from the elements. A malfunctioning garage door can not only be inconvenient, but it can also pose a safety risk to you and your family.



By following these three simple steps, you can ensure that your garage door stays in good working condition and continues to provide reliable access to your home all winter long.

1. Assess the Integrity of the Door

Inspect the condition of any mechanical parts in your garage door. These parts significantly affect the door's operation as they enable it to open and close the door every time to activate it. This movement will degrade the structural integrity of the components.

Most mechanical parts use metallic materials. Metals are vulnerable to cold, as they contract when exposed to cold weather. The cold temperatures may make metallic components more brittle and likely to break.

Investigate the rollers on your garage door for cracks and chips. Check the door's balance and listen for strange noises. These two inspections can reveal deep issues with the door that you might not notice without key attention. Creaks, pops, and scrapes often highlight the need for maintenance and repair.

Also, do not forget the other sections of the garage. While non-mechanical parts do not face the stress of other mechanical components, they are still prone to wear and tear. Check paint conditions on the panel, water and warp damage on vulnerable materials like wood, and rust on steel garage doors.

Finally, check the weatherstripping on your garage door. Weatherstripping is weak against summer heat as it can crack or dry up, which will minimize the weatherstripping’s sealing capabilities.

2. Maintain and Repair Compromised Parts

Clean your door to remove all stuck debris and dirt lodged between components. This dirt can help moisture build-up during winter and freeze it, which can damage moving components like tracks and rollers.

Lubricate all the mechanical components. As explained before, cold weather can restrict the free movement of mechanical parts, which oil can alleviate and increase free movement capabilities. Ensure the lubricant you use is lithium-based as other types might pick up dirt and lead to the freezing problem.

If you found any loose components in your inspection, tighten and secure them. Brackets and bolts are especially vulnerable to loosening since they move around a lot when the door operates. If they cannot securely stay in place, the stripping might have become damaged or rust may have affected their tightness. Either way, this means you need to replace them.

3. Increase the Garage's Insulation and Heat Retention

A proactive method to safeguard your door is to provide it with adequate protection against the cold weather. If it is not already present or whole, apply weatherstripping around your garage to prevent snow and water entry through the bottom and cold air gusts in any gaps around your garage door.

You can increase your garage door's heat retention capabilities with additional insulation in the garage door walls. Opt for fiberglass batt insulation and have an expert install it for you to get the right thickness and fastening. Add a threshold seal under your garage door to improve its insulation capabilities.

Weatherstripping and insulation can restrict cold weather effects on your garage door, but they will not improve the temperature conditions inside. Add a gas or electric unit heater inside the garage to generate warm air inside. A mini-split heat pump can also be a viable option to increase your garage's temperature control options.

Contact us at Armor Overhead Door for garage door maintenance and repairs if you reside within Monmouth, Union, Morris, and Ocean Counties and parts of Middlesex County.