Winterizing your home is a necessity in climates with freezing temperatures. Before the cold weather hits, you’ll want to ensure everything is insulated, your heating system is ready to go, and you have the necessary supplies for power outages and storms.
Garage door winter preparation is an often-overlooked part of home winterization. However, without the right prep, you could experience a stuck door, broken or damaged components, and heat loss. This guide covers how to winterize your garage door, why it’s essential and when to call a professional to help.
Why Winter Preparation Matters in Freezing Climates
Many states in the U.S. are no strangers to freezing winter months. These harsh conditions cause garage door materials to contract, damaging them over time.
Winterizing your garage door can help you avoid:
- Energy loss: Your garage door covers a significant entry point. If its weather stripping and insulation are cracked or damaged, heat loss can drastically increase your heating bills.
- Compromised safety and security: If water freezes around your door, the ice can freeze it shut or block it from closing correctly. A jammed garage door is more than inconvenient — it leaves your property and valuables open to passersby.
- Mechanical failure: The cold will make metal components contract slightly, making them brittle and more prone to snapping.
5 Steps for Garage Door Winter Preparation
If you’re familiar with garage door components, you can probably handle most of the prep for the colder months on your own. You can also call a professional for a seasonal tuneup. Either way, you’ll generally want to follow these steps to winterize your garage door.
1. Inspect and Replace Weather Seals
The rubber seal at the bottom of your door and the vinyl weather stripping on the sides are the first line of defense against drafts, snow and ice. To check if your weather seals are still good, you can do the following tests:
- Look for light leaks: At dusk, shine a flashlight around the bottom, side and top of your door to see if there are gaps in your seals. Any light getting through means the seals are compromised.
- Feel the rubber: Press and flex the rubber. It needs replacing if it resists bending, crumbles, has visual cracks or feels brittle.
- Do a dollar bill test: Insert a flattened dollar bill under your bottom weather stripping while the door is open, then close it. If you can easily remove the dollar, this indicates air leaks.
If you find your weather seals compromised, contact your local garage door company to have them replaced before winter sets in.
2. Lubricate All Moving Parts
Lubricating the moving parts of your garage door is essential to prevent metal components from grinding against each other, wearing down and freezing in cold temperatures. Parts to lubricate include the hinges, rollers and springs.
3. Clear and Clean the Door’s Path
Obstructions in your door’s path or on the tracks will cause it to open and close erratically. Keeping the path clear is a regular job over the year, as every season brings debris and dirt. Steps to take before and during winter include:
- Wiping photo sensors: At the base of the tracks, you’ll find photo‑eye safety sensors that can get iced over, dirty or misaligned, causing issues with operation. You can gently wipe them with a damp microfiber cloth so the opener can confirm the path is clear.
- Clearing tracks: For smooth operation, be sure to clear any leaves, grime or ice buildup on the tracks themselves.
- Removing snow and ice buildup: Snow and ice can build up outside your garage door, damaging the concrete and weather sealing it touches. Remove this buildup regularly to prevent damage and door malfunctions.
4. Test the Safety Systems
There are three main safety features that you should test regularly — especially before and during winter, as ice can disrupt them. If any of these tests fail, it’s best to call a professional to handle it. Safety features to check include:
- Mechanical reversal: When your door hits a solid object, it should stop and reverse. You can place a wooden board in its path to test this function.
- Photo-eye reversal: Sensors project beams that trigger the door to stop or reverse when something crosses them. To test this reversal, close the door and break the beam with a broomstick. If the door continues closing, call for service.
- Emergency release: In case of a power issue, you need to be able to open the door manually. Power down the opener, pull the emergency release cord, lift the door manually a few feet and check if it stays in place. You can pull the cord toward the opener to reengage it.
5. Consider Garage Door Insulation
Your garage door needs to be insulated if you have an attached garage or use it as a workspace. Many garage doors come with layers of built-in insulation. However, you can add more with DIY insulation kits, such as foam boards and vinyl-faced insulation panels, using the following process:
- Clean the inside of the door for proper adhesion.
- Measure and cut insulation panels to fit each door section. It shouldn’t be a forced fit.
- Wedge the panels into place. You can use retainer clips or double-sided tape to adhere them to the frame.
- Add any necessary foam or adhesive disks to fill gaps further and secure the panels.
Note that this extra insulation adds weight, which may require a spring adjustment to compensate. It’s important to call a professional for any work on springs besides light lubrication, as they can be hazardous.
When to Call a Professional for Winter Maintenance
Some tasks are dangerous to do without a professional. Garage door springs are under high tension and can snap or unwind suddenly, causing injury. Opener systems also call for skilled personnel since they contain complex electronics.
If you notice any of the following symptoms while inspecting your door, contact your local garage door company to help:
- Loud or grinding noises: Lubrication should solve minor squeaks. However, hearing loud grinding, popping or banging sounds when you operate the door indicates something more serious that needs an expert’s diagnosis.
- Broken parts: If you see frayed cables, cracked rollers or a broken spring while inspecting your door, it’s best to call a professional to replace them.
- An unbalanced door: Test your garage door’s balance by manually lifting it. If it falls, flies up or hangs unevenly, you probably need a spring adjustment, which should only be done by a trained technician.
Get Ready for Winter With AAA Garage Door
A well-maintained, properly winterized garage door will keep your home secure and energy-efficient in the coldest months. AAA Garage Door can help. We are a family company that’s been installing, repairing and maintaining garage doors in Nebraska and parts of Iowa since 1994. Contact us if you have any questions or want to schedule a winter tuneup.
