O/T Anyone insulate their garage door themselves?

It's getting nasty up here, need to shut the garage up tight for the winter and flip on the heater. My garage walls and ceiling are drywalled and insulated, but my 16X7 garage door is not. Bare steel, 4 section roll-up door with 16 individual recesses on the backside. Heating bills last year were astronomical for such a small space. I was considering a couple options, using foam sheets stuffed in the panels, or using that thin reflective foil/bubblewrap stuff glued to the surface (both available at Home Depot. Anyone use either of these with any luck? I was worried about flying sparks with the bare foam. Maybe go foam inside the panels and the reflective foil over top of it?

 

I bought the rigid styro foam insulation from Lowes in 4 x 8 foot sheet.

I Cut it slightly over size and slipped the pieces into the panels of the garage door sections.

The little lip of the panel holds them in place.

 

I did mine with the foil backed foam insulation. I did it in two layers, offsetting the seams, then used duct tape at the seams. It was a hassle pulling off the various reinforcements and misc. bolts to get them in place, but it helped a lot.

Sparks have peppered the foil some, but not enough to worry about. I may be wrong, but I didn't think it was flammable.

Steve

 

I've used the foam with fair results. I finally built a wall that covered the outside of the door since I figured I'd be inside for most of the winter. Made it so you could take it down in about 2 minutes and put it back up in about 5.

 

I've been considering the same exact thing.
The styrofoam sheets (4x8 sheets) are supposed to be fire retardant. I've held a match to them, and that claim is pretty accurate.
What I've thought about doing is cutting the foam and putting it in, and then to make it look good, go to a roundy-round race car supply house and get a couple of their 4x10 sheets of aluminum, with the white finish on one side, and have a sheetmetal shop sheer it into the proper length segments (some race shops that sell the aluminum have a sheer). Then use self-tapping screws to secure the new aluminum covers to the back side of the door--all the panels have a flange on them so it'd work.

regardless of what you do, here is one thing you need to consider--you'll be adding more weight to the door. Your garage door spring will need to be adjusted to compensate for that additional weight. DON'T ADJUST IT YOURSELF! Call out a garage door installer and see if he'll do it for a few bucks. I had new garage doors installed on my shop, and discussed this whole thing with him, and he said it sounded like a good plan, and recommended the spring adjustment.
-Brad

 

I was thinking of the temporary wall idea as well. Have you got any pictures? How is it constructed/put up/taken down?

 

You also have the choice of the spray on insulation foam they use on metal buildings. I can't tell you the Flamability rating on them but I'm sure its gotta be high to meet codes. I realize the insulated doors are expensive but you might just consider replacing it . You wouldn't believe how good they are anymore and with the expense and work of trying to insulate the old ones. It may not be that much different pricewise.

 

No digital camera yet. I framed it up just like a regular wall. overlapped the siding over the edges and attached the door with hook and eye with an adjustment on the hook. My doors are only 10 by 7 and one man can handle them easily. Might take two on a larger door.

 

I cut some foam strips but had to glue them in to make them stay. I did it 10 years ago and they're still in good shape and I do a lot of grinding, welding and painting in there. I just try not to spray or grind directly towards the door. I used double thickness where I could but in some places I could only use single thickness so the panels would hinge. The doors were already insulated a little but this helped a lot. Here's a couple of pics.

 

that looks like a yellow Rambler in the photo

 

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that looks like a yellow Rambler in the photo



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Just giving an orphan a good home

 

I went to the local styrofoam plant and picked up broken pieces that were bigger than the panels on my doors. I had a lot of waste but the price was right. Before I did this, in the winter you couldn't get close to the door without freezin yer butt off. Now it is just cozy and the fuel bill is consierably lower,

 

Dunno if you've already got this, but I found that carpet on the floor on a garage helps HEAPS!! No good when you're trying to back out though....

 

I had been rubbing my bare ass against the garage door, hoping that some of the hair would come off my ass and coat the garage door, hence aiding in the thermal transfer.

It didn't work. It just looked like a took an S.O.S. pad to the freshly painted garage doors...

Dammit. That doesn't really help does it?

 

the ridgid foam glued or screwed to the door is the best way to go. if you use fiber glass batting and some kind of panel to hold it in do not compress it too much the air gap is what givers insulation its R value

just remember any money spent on your shop is worth 10 times spent on the car in the long run.

 

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I cut some foam strips but had to glue them in to make them stay

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Been thinking of doing that to the two 9' roll up doors in my garage/shop. Gets pretty cold here, granted, not like the colder climes, but the wind chill factor can get things pretty damn cold.
Looks like the foam insulation is 1/2" thick, izzat about right?

What kind of glue did you use?

One of my problems in Sunny California was the east facing garage door picked up a lot of heat on summer mornings and early afternoons.
I replaced the steel swing-up door with a roll up insulated door. Made a big difference.
Was better in the winters as well, didn't run the garage heater much at all.

 

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What kind of glue did you use?


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I used a latex based glue made for closed cell foam, Jay. You don't want to use solvent based glue....it will eat it up...kind like putting lacquer thinner in a styrofoam cup

I've got three 9 foot doors in my shop and insulating them made a big difference in both the winter for heating and the summer for keeping the shop cool. The shop is 30 X 40 and I stuck an old beat up window air conditioner in it for those hot, humid summer days. The insulation was money and effort well spent. The walls and attic are well insulated too. It's pretty easy to keep it 60-70 degrees all year round....not bad for Michigan.

*edit* Jay, I missed your question about the thickness of the foam in the pic. It's 1".

 

<font color="green">Good question.

I just bought 1 inch thick sheets of styrofoam from Lowe's and am planning on doing it this weekend.

You can buy liquid nails in a tube that is made for foam.

I will caulk around the edges of the panels with the liquid nails and then stuff the strips I cut into place, this should form a pretty good air gap.

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sounds like you guys have the insulation pretty well scoped out. now what do you propose to do with the seal around the door edges? seems like that it's nearly impossible to keep out the draft around the edge.

i've got the standard rubber strip that the door installer put in, but is there something better?

 

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<font color="green">
You can buy liquid nails in a tube that is made for foam.

I will caulk around the edges of the panels with the liquid nails and then stuff the strips I cut into place, this should form a pretty good air gap.

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Liquid nails is what most of the builders use to attach foam sheets to block walls prior to drywall being installed. Just do like Zorro with a couple of big sweeping Z's and it should stick, but check the working temperature on the tube.

 

I'm also interested in ideas to seal the door against the door jam. One end of my shop faces the prevailing wind and the velocity gets to sustained 40MPH sometimes in the winter. The wind just forces the door away from the seal. I could put something semi-permanent up if I knew what would work. I've seen the middle of the door flex almost 3" in a gust. I've even considered making a removable panel for the door to install from the outside. The problem is what if I need to get the door open in case of an emergency? Living out in the country with nothing to slow the wind down is a bitch and there is nothing for about 3/4 of a mile in that direction. When I first moved here I thought a wind barrier would be a good idea. After planting fast growing windbreak trees along that side two years in a row and having them killed with the weed control spray that the farmers use in spring, I gave up.

Frank

 

I planted trees too, and they died/are dying. I'm going to plant a stockade fence on that side of the shop now. It's mainly to hide my cars and trailer from the neighbors. They don't mind seeing them, but I want to be a good neighbor anyway.
A 6-foot tall fence would make a great wind break. Even if it was several yards away from the wall, it'd still buffer the wind and get it up and over the shop, just like an air dam.

For a temporary fix at the garage door in the winter in NW Ohio, I hung heavy duty plastic visqueen behind the garage door. Hung it from the ceiling, and put a 2x4 on the bottom to hold it to the floor. Not pretty, but it created an air gap between the shop and the garage door.

-Brad

 

Fab32 - Home improvement centers sell garage door jamb trim pieces that come with a weather strip built into it, sold down here to guard against blowing rain. If your door flex's 3" and it is a panel door you can install stiffner beams to the back side to add some rigidity, another idea would be to put a plate in the floor and one at the ceiling trusses to attach in a stiffner bar (this is done down here to bring existing garage doors up to wind code). PM me and I can give you particulars

 

I was going to try this for the top and sides:

http://www.lowes.com/lkn?action=productDetail&amp;productId=
61601-81-87700

My door doesn't sit flush to the top and sides without "persuasion"; the last few years, I simply clamped vice-grips between the rollers and the track to force the garage door tight against the opening. But I need those vice-grips now, so I'm thinking of using a flat bar/lag screw arrangement at several points around the door to make it sit tight agaist the opening for the winter. This, combined with new weatherstripping on the outside (there isn't any now) should make for a leak free seal... Don't know about 40 MPH gusts though. The house pretty much blocks that.

I don't plan on opening the garage door for the entire duration of the winter, BTW...

 

Back to the insulation, I added the cheap foam from HD to mine a few years ago and it helped quite a bit.
Thinking of picking up some thin galvanized sheets to add this winter then I'll be able to stick stuff to the inside of the door with fridge magnets. I've had pics of cars I like stuck up their with push pins and taped up for a while but some of them are falling off now. My test with a small piece of metal and the magnets look like it should work much better and look better too I hope.
MONGO

 

i used the same material as that pink stuff. Im sure it gets a lot colder were you are then in TExas. But it really made a diffrence on the North wind blowing up against the door.

 

Alright guys...HEres my suggestion as I am A Garage Door Whore ..Its what I do For a living...The easiest way to do this is to go to a carpet store and get that underlayment foam pad..then use LIQID NAILS or spray ad hesive to cover the inside of the panels,HELL you can even cut that stuff real close to the hinges.
As far as the outside seal goes.the existing stuff that the installer put on is in good shape its still useable
Along the VERTICAl track,there should be a 1/4 bolt holding the track to the maounting bracket.Loosen all of those just enough to slide the track back toward the wall, moving the door closer to the wall.This will PUSH the door tighter against the seal.just dont get it so tight that the automatic opener wont be able to close the door ..Try that and Im sure it will help! I forgot to say to get the Foam REMNANTS!I think I should quit my job and be the Official HAMB shop/garage door repair man!

 

i just insulated my garage door tonight using 3/4 inch styrofoam beadboard...made a HUGE difference already...
the 4x8 sheets of the stuff were only $4 ...i did my garage door using 3 sheets (ok, 3 1/2..i broke a couple panels and had to cut new ones.good thing i bought 4!!!)
just cut them oversized a little and slid them into the recess where the braces and hinges are.
cost me $12 and about 30 minutes.

this post got me motivated, now i just need to do my garage ceiling.

 

I also used the high density foam board cut and snapped into each section. It can be sub-zero and the door is warm to the touch inside. Cheap too.

 

Forgot to mention that even though mine is sheetrocked and insulated all to hell, you get a hell of a draft around switches, mop boards etc. Pull them off and insulate the hell out of them. Really makes a diff.