Is Your Garage Door Ready For Winter?

How many times a day do you imagine that you use your garage door? Even though it’s a vital entry point to your home, you probably haven’t given much thought to how cold weather can affect the garage door’s and hardware’s function. Realistically, your garage door sustains an enormous amount of wear and tear because of its frequent daily use and its exposure to the elements. There are not many things as frustrating as the inconvenience of not getting in or out of the garage when you are on your way somewhere, but if you do need to call for help, make sure you hire a professional garage door repair company!

So how does winter affect your garage door?

Many different problems can pop up in the winter for your garage door. As you may remember from high school science classes on thermal properties’ principles, matter shrinks in cold temperatures. This property causes materials to become more brittle and prone to breakage, including your garage door springs, cables, and screws. When this happens, it can change how they function and impact the overall quality and durability. Therefore, tracks are more likely to warp, cables are more likely to snap, and torsion springs more likely to break in cold weather. With either of these problems, you will need to call a professional garage door repair company to fix it.

As with any home maintenance, if all of your garage door components are in good functioning order when the cold weather hits, you’ll see fewer issues. If you haven’t winterized your door, you might find yourself in a tricky situation with your garage door unable to open or close during a blizzard. There’s not much worse than having your door stuck open when it’s cold out!

Garage doors also serve as the primary protection for your home to block the cold air from entering your living space. Damaged garage door components can be more than just inconvenient. Cold air is more likely to get into the house, increasing energy costs and leaving your home drafty, chilled, and just generally unpleasant.
Additionally, an unprotected garage door is a prime entryway for insects and other unwanted pests. By winterizing your garage door now, you can reduce energy costs, protect your garage door, and stay more comfortable this winter.

Preventing damage to your garage door.

Colder temperatures can cause additional wear and tear on your garage door. Still, there are plenty of ways that you can protect your doors from damage. Many of these strategies are useful for the whole year-round. Nevertheless, seasonal change can provide an excellent reminder to you if you haven’t done it lately. This simple maintenance seems one of those tasks that tend to be easily postponed and procrastinated put off. However, you don’t want to wait to call a garage door repair professional to fix your door when the snow is falling, the wind is blowing, you have somewhere to be, and a broken garage door is holding your vehicle hostage.

As long as it’s warm enough to work outside safely, it’s never too late to take care of your garage door.

Inspect the door and tracks:

Start by running your door up and down multiple times while watching from the outside.
Be aware of any sounds that it might make out of the ordinary.
Watch how it moves and note any places where the door movement seems rough or gets caught

Watching for any unusual activity or listening for peculiar sounds is crucial as it’s the first clue when something is not working correctly. Further investigation is necessary if you hear or see anything out of the ordinary. If you’ve discovered any problems or are concerned about an older door’s lifespan, consult a professional door repair service. They can advise you on how to maintain and repair your door.

Lubricate the door's moving parts:

This one is simple and will keep moving parts gliding smoothly. Apply a spray lubricant to any garage door’s moving parts, including its springs, bearings, and hinges. Never use any grease — it’s very thick and will only make the tracks sticky and collect dust and hair, causing more troubles.

Make sure the door seals correctly:

The best way to detect your garage door’s seal problems is to observe your door after dark with the lights on inside. If you stand outside in the driveway and look at the closed door, you should not see the light from inside. If you can see the light from any cracks, you likely have an issue with a seal around the door. If light can get out, so can your heated air, allowing cold air to get into your house. If you can see the light, you should consider replacing the seal.

The seal around the door can also get dirty, preventing it from effectively sealing. We recommend cleaning the seal around your garage door to save you problems arising later. Use all-purpose household cleaner and warm water, wipe down the seal, and weather stripping to keep it clean and tidy. This practice will eliminate a myriad of problems as the temperature drops. Of course, you’ll want to do this task on a nice day when the weather is above freezing, and the forecast is for it to stay that way until the seal has dried completely.

Weatherstripping helps keep cold air out of your garage, not to mention dirt, debris, and insects. Over time, stripping can get brittle and cracked, leaving your garage vulnerable. Professionals would strongly recommend replacing it as soon as it no longer creates a perfect seal around your garage door. Before winter arrives and frosty winds start to blow, inspect your weather stripping for tears, breaks, and gaps.

Organize your garage:

After a busy summer, you’ve probably got items like snow shovels, salt, de-icer, and even snowblowers tucked behind garden tools, sports equipment, and summer toys. While you’re in the garage inspecting your door and performing the simple maintenance tasks, check the location of winter tools and necessities. Tidy up and move all of your winter accessories out of the shadows and make them easily accessible for the season. This habit is especially important if you live someplace where snow piles up. You don’t want to be digging around in the dark during a surprise early morning snowstorm for a snow shovel when you’re late to take the kids to school. As you go along, take care to store your things in a neat and organized fashion (you’ll thank yourself when spring arrives).

Making these few simple steps a habit each year as you get ready for winter to alleviate potential issues and make your winter goes as smoothly as possible. If you’re not fighting with your garage door, you have more time to spend with your family and friends!