How to insulate garage doors
Some car owners have their designated places - garages. This is the best option not only for storing the vehicle, but also for placing all the tools, parts and accessories. To make this room warm in the cold season, it is worth thinking about its warming. If there are no special problems with the walls and the roof in this case, then you will have to tinker with the gate. In this article we will look at how to insulate garage doors with our own hands, and give recommendations on the main sources of heat loss.
Why do you need it
Many wonder why it is so necessary to take care of the insulation of the garage door from the inside. The answer is quite simple: if the inside is constantly cold, it will negatively affect the interior of the building, the car and some elements, such as engine oil. As a result, this will lead to the formation of mold on the walls of the garage and an unpleasant smell of damp, which sooner or later will be transferred to the vehicle. Unprotected metal components will begin to corrode, and the locking mechanism will often fail.
In addition, do not forget that in a cold room you will not be able to spend a lot of time, which means that in the winter you will have no time for repairs. Constant dampness in the autumn-winter period will not benefit the car owner, but only harm his health. To solve this problem, it is enough to carry out warming of all surfaces, but it is worth starting with the gate.
Thoughtful insulation will reduce the cost of car care, as well as not to harm their health.
Some nuances
No matter how strange it may sound, but to carry out high-quality insulation of the garage, in particular, the gate, each owner will have to remember the basics of chemistry and physics. What is meant? Constant fluctuations in day and night temperatures lead to condensation inside the garage, especially at the gate. That he will constantly negatively affect everything that is here, from the trim and ending with the car itself.
If we carry out all the steps for warming surfaces and garage doors, then even in the coldest time of the year the air temperature inside the room should not fall below +5? ะก. Therefore, before you begin to plan the insulation, you should take note of many nuances. The basis of the insulation is properly selected material, which will be attached to the garage door.
In just one winter in an unheated room, corrosion will form on the metal elements, which will quickly ruin the structure. In addition, it is worth considering that the wiring will also deteriorate due to this phenomenon, and this, in turn, can lead to a fire.
Choose insulation material
Virtually the entire process of insulation will depend precisely on whether the material for insulation has been chosen correctly. When choosing it is important to consider its properties and quality. Among the entire range of insulation, and it is quite large, choose three most popular options:
- mineral wool;
- extruded polystyrene foam;
- polyurethane foam.
Each of them has a lot of advantages, but you need to pay attention to the minuses. For example, polystyrene is not fire resistant enough, but at the same time it has high moisture resistance and low thermal conductivity. Mineral wool, on the contrary, has a high level of refractoriness, but minimal moisture resistance.
Polyurethane foam is the latest technology for insulating garage rooms from the inside. This coating is quite effective and fully cope with the task. The advantages include:
- seamless installation;
- low insulation weight;
- low thermal conductivity;
- high fire resistance;
- resistance to temperature extremes, biological and chemical aggressors;
- durability;
- strength;
- the ability to use any finish on the sprayed surface.
When insulating garage doors, it is necessary to proceed from the fact that the surface of the door must be heated very quickly, it is good to pass heat inside and slowly release it outside. Also, do not forget to preliminarily measure the area that will be insulated in order to purchase the necessary amount of material and other necessary elements (fasteners or glue).
When choosing insulation, pay attention not only to the thermal conductivity, but also to the presence of thermal inertia.
Main ways
The technology of the insulation will depend entirely on the selected material. The principle of insulation is the same for all insulation materials. All processes are fairly simple, so they can be easily performed independently without the involvement of professionals, and, therefore, save your money.
Insulation work can be carried out in several versions:
- frame and alignments;
- for one alignment;
- multi target.
Before you begin, carefully inspect the sections and the frame of the garage door. In the presence of rust or other damage, they must be repaired. For elimination of cracks it is enough to use assembly foam. This will prevent the loss of large amounts of heat, as well as the formation of drafts. In addition, it is through the cracks in the room usually gets snow in a blizzard.
The next step is the installation of special polymer inserts on the floor. With their help, you can prevent moisture from melting snow and rain. For greater reliability, garage sections should be coated with a primer, and the top should be painted using paint with anti-corrosion properties. Before proceeding with the installation or installation of a heat insulator, you must wait until the paint has completely dried.
It is recommended to apply paint on both sides in order to achieve greater efficiency.
If the choice fell on the insulation of the foam, then it can be laid both on the metal surface itself, and between the crate. For the first option, you need a special glue, and for the second - a special frame. You can make a crate of rails, lumber or metal profile, and sheathe the gate with plastic panels or wooden clapboard.
It is possible to carry out the process of insulating only one leaf (for these purposes it is also recommended to use foam plates). It is worth considering that if you want to repeat the process for the second cross-sections, you should use the same material of the same thickness with identical characteristics. In the process of fixing the foam, it is important to adhere to one rule: between the heat insulator and the gate should not remain even the smallest air gap. Otherwise, condensate will accumulate here, which will have a negative effect on the metal and conducted insulation.
It is necessary to select the material and the method of its fixation on the garage door, based on the design of the target.
The order of work
To carry out the insulation of the gate, you must follow a certain sequence:
- Inspection of surfaces for defects.
- Elimination of rust and crevices by stripping and putty.
- Padding.
- Coloring.
- Preparation of wood for crates: cutting, treatment with antiseptics, installation (vertical).
- Laying the insulator between the slats. If necessary, the foam plate should be cut into the necessary pieces, which can be easily fixed. For reliability use glue. Please note that there are no gaps. If there are any, use a mounting foam or sealant.
- After the installation of the foam is completed, you can proceed to the casing trim. A variety of methods and methods are suitable for this, but the simplest and most accessible is the use of boards or wall paneling.
- At the last stage, the covering is opened with varnish or stain. The metal plate is painted.
Pay attention during the insulation gaps, especially in the junction of the two terminal.
How to insulate swing gates
If your garage is in the garage cooperative, then for its arrangement it is enough to restrict the weatherization of the gate. So, you significantly reduce heat loss. This means that this event should be held. The only question is which material for insulation is best suited. But this has already been mentioned in this article.
In order to prevent corrosion of the gate due to condensate accumulation between the metal and the insulation layer, waterproofing of metal swing gates should be carried out. In this role can act self-adhesive izolon. It can be used as additional / main thermal insulation. In this case, it all depends on its thickness.
If izolon has insufficient thickness, then it should be glued sheets of polystyrene foam, for example. This is done using tile adhesive / foam. Here as you wish.
How to glue the foam in more detail has already been described in the article.
It is worth noting that extruded polystyrene is strong enough, so after its installation you can not do the exterior trim of the gate. It is enough just to glue the seams with aluminum foil. But when using foamed polystyrene, having a low density without finishing the door trim is indispensable. For these purposes, you can use wooden paneling / siding / OSB.
The instructions in this article will help you insulate the garage door quickly and efficiently. If you already have experience in this business, write comments to the article.
Video
On how to properly insulate the garage without help, you can learn from the video:
A photo
The photo shows the options for insulation of garage doors:
