Insulation of garage doors and their timely repair is an urgent need, since cold air passes through the structure into the room, and condensation begins to appear due to temperature changes. This adversely affects the technical condition of the car and the microclimate of the room itself. Most of the work can be done with your own hands, if you have a basic set of tools in stock and minimal building skills.
Why you need to insulate your garage door
The comfortable temperature inside the garage allows you to use it at any time of the year. If initially the garage doors were not insulated, then they become a source of significant heat loss. It is through them that heat freely penetrates into the garage in summer, and heat goes outside in winter. Therefore, if the garage is used as a car repair shop or as a place to store things, insulation will provide a milder temperature regime and save you from the penetration of condensate. In such a garage, the car body is not threatened with corrosion, the electrical wiring is rotting, and the walls of the structure are protected from fungus and mold.
The insulation of the built-in garage is especially important, because it is usually connected to the general house heating system. Accordingly, in the event of heat loss, heating costs will increase.
Important! Before warming, you should take care of the organization of the ventilation system! It should be both supply and exhaust. If the supply hole was in the sash, then it is impossible to block it with a heater.
What types of structures can be insulated
- Sectional doors are usually already filled with foamed polyurethane, which acts as a heater. But if desired, you can also paste over the inside of the sections with foam.
- Swing gates, especially those made of steel, which has a high thermal conductivity, must and can be insulated with any suitable material.
- As a rule, prefabricated lift-and-turn structures are already equipped with thermal insulation. But if the gate mechanism is homemade, then it will be quite simple to insulate them.
- But the design features of roller shutters, both home-made and automatic, make their insulation impossible.
The choice of material for work in the garage
When choosing a heater, it is necessary to take into account some nuances. For example, mineral wool and other porous materials are not recommended as insulating material, as they form a dew point (the temperature to which the air must be cooled so that the vapor contained in it begins to condense into dew). Moisture accumulates in the pores, due to which the thermal conductivity increases, and this negates the effect of warming. In addition, glass wool in work is quite hazardous to health, residual acidity is inherent in slag wool, so basalt wool will be the most digestible option, but subject to the use of a vapor barrier film.
Styrofoam remains the most preferred material for insulating garage doors. This is a type of synthetic materials with a foam structure, based on a polymer. Styrofoam is classified according to the type of polymer.
- Polystyrene foam consists of gas-filled white sintered balls. This is an inexpensive heater with good characteristics. Extruded polystyrene foam is suitable for insulating the gate, as it is characterized by increased strength, resistance to ignition and negligible moisture absorption.
- Polyvinyl chloride foam is also often used for thermal insulation. Panels can be not only rigid, but also elastic.
- Urea-formaldehyde foam after drying slightly increases in volume, so it is good for them to fill the cavities between the panels. It is also suitable for insulation.
- Polyurethane foam comes in two types. The first, elastic, is foam rubber, and the hard one is the well-known polyurethane foam. Rigid is more suitable for door insulation, as it has excellent thermal insulation properties and excellent adhesion to any type of surface. The material is applied by spraying, which requires special equipment.
Thus, if resistance to increased load is not needed, then foam is the best choice. In all other cases - expanded polystyrene or polyurethane foam. It is not desirable to save on insulation, so that the efficiency is not minimal. The thickness of the layer largely depends on climatic conditions. If the temperature in winter does not fall below minus 25 degrees, then the thickness of the insulation should be:
Additional consumables and tools
Prior to installation, it is necessary to measure the gate itself and determine the amount of additional materials. In particular, this is a crate, on which the insulation and facing material will then be attached.
Also for work you will need such a set of household tools:
- Screwdriver or screwdrivers.
- Drill and drill for wood and metal.
- Jigsaw or hacksaw.
- Rigid metal brush for removing rust.
- Sandpaper.
- Screws and self-tapping screws.
- Anticorrosive primer and antiseptic.
- Solvent.
- Mounting foam.
Preparatory work
Before starting work on the insulation of iron gates, they should be carefully prepared. If the canvas is covered with rust, old paint or dirt, then all this must be cleaned with a metal brush or a drill attachment. After that, the surface is degreased and a suitable anti-corrosion primer is applied on it in two layers.
The next step will be waterproofing the surface of the valves. This step can be skipped only if the gates are insulated with extruded polystyrene foam. If a simple foam is used, then this operation is required. As insulation, you can use:
- Izolon.
- Membrane with vapor barrier function.
- Bituminous mastic.
Step-by-step production of the crate
- For any type of thermal insulation, you will need a crate, because not only a heater is attached to it, but also a facing material. The crate can be made of wooden bars with a section of 4 by 4 or 5 by 5 cm, which are fixed on the bearing part around the entire perimeter and across the door leaf area. The bars must be made of dry wood, and it is advisable to treat them with any antiseptic composition before installation to prevent decay. Please note that they must dry well.
- On the power structures (steel pipe and corner), the crate is fixed with screws. To do this, through holes of the desired diameter are marked and drilled in the right places in increments of 20–25 cm. If it is necessary that the screw head be recessed inward, then small recesses can be drilled. In the bars, holes are made in advance so that the screw does not split them.
- If there is nothing to attach the bars to in the center of the canvas, then they can be combined with each other using corners. The vent is bypassed around the perimeter, as are the locks.
- Sometimes, along with the gate, the walls of the garage are also lined. The crate for the walls is made in the same way as for the gate - from wooden bars, on which you can then attach a lining or other suitable sheathing. The bars are attached to the wall with dowels.
Options for carrying out and order of work
Foam insulation
- After measuring the required amount of material, it must be cut in such a way that there are a minimum of joints. It is necessary to cut with a margin so that the foam is combined very tightly. It is most convenient to cut with a construction knife along the ruler.
- The foam parts are glued with mounting foam supplied from a gun. It is preferred because its volumetric expansion is small. For better adhesion, the foam is applied to the edges and crosswise in the center, after which the sheet is pressed with bars or a rule. For some time, the position can be corrected.
- After installation of the entire insulation, the cavities and joints are also filled with foam, and the excess is cut off with a construction knife after hardening. The gate is now ready for cladding.
Heat savings with polyurethane foam
This type of insulation requires professional equipment and special knowledge. Polyurethane foam is sprayed in several layers using a special installation. In this case, the crate is also needed, since the gate lining is then fixed to it. This method has many advantages - excellent adhesion, excellent vapor barrier, long service life and very good thermal insulation properties. Before applying the coating, lock structures, bolts, hinges must be covered with a film and pasted over with masking tape. All work is carried out in a respirator, glasses and protective clothing. After the insulation dries, the excess is cut off with a knife.
How to use basalt wool
If the choice fell on mineral wool, then it should be the products of well-known manufacturers. Before laying this insulation, waterproofing is required. The next step is to cut the cotton into pieces so that they fit snugly inside the crate. A vapor barrier film is stretched on top of the insulation and fixed with a stapler. Now the gate can be revetted.
Lining from the inside after insulation
In order for the gate to look aesthetically pleasing after insulation, and the thermal insulation retains its properties for as long as possible, they must be lined. Finishing material can be:
- Lining from a suitable material.
- Fiberboard or MDF.
- Decking.
- 10 mm OSB or OSB boards resistant to high humidity. The standard size of such plates is 1250 by 2500 mm, so two are required for a standard gate.
The cladding is mounted on screws using washers.
Additional tricks for proper thermal insulation
Heat leaves the garage not only through the door leaf, but also through the gaps between the leaves. To avoid this, special round rubber seals with a diameter of 20 mm are used. They are fastened with self-tapping screws using a steel perforated strip.
The gaps under the gate can also let in heat. They are usually sealed with brush profiles. They are mounted quite simply - they are screwed with self-tapping screws in increments of 20 cm to the bottom of the wings.
Also, to save heat, a garage curtain is used, which is hung at the entrance. The best option is a water-repellent tarp, although PVC fabric can also be used. They hang the curtain on a cable or on a cornice pipe, for which special rings are inserted into the material.
Video about the process of working with insulation
Options for repair and adjustment of faulty structures
There are quite a few factors that cause deformation of metal structures such as garage doors. This is a natural deformation from the vagaries of the weather, and metal fatigue, and the drawdown of the opening, and the usual shrinkage of the loops. To correct the geometry of the opening, there are some ways that are available to any garage owner, provided that they have a tool and an assistant.
As you can see, it is quite possible to insulate the gate with your own hands, and there are no particular difficulties in this work. When you face a similar task, you can solve it quickly using simple methods and tools.
