A frozen garage door is not fun for anyone. You want to reach your destination on time because your garage door was frozen shut, and you couldn’t get your car out. Melting the ice around the door and opening it can take up a lot of time. However, a garage door in Vancouver often freezes during winter.
But there are many ways to prevent this:
Keep Water and Snow Away
Your garage door can freeze due to faulty drainage. If water or ice is accumulated around your door, then there is a high chance that your door will freeze as the temperatures drop. So, remove any water, snow, and ice accumulated around your garage door before the temperatures drop below freezing point. If not cleared, the water and ice can damage or deform your garage door sections and damage garage door hardware, opener, and seals. It can put an unnecessary strain, affect the door’s structure, and might cause the garage door to rust.
You can use a floor squeegee and push out stagnant water regularly to prevent pooling. Keep the garage door open when you sweep, scrape, or shovel anything from around it.
Maintain the Garage Door Regularly
You must maintain your garage door regularly to keep it in good working condition. Ensure your door is well-maintained all year round to prevent it from freezing during the winter months. Inspect the entire system, including the hinges, tracks, springs, and rollers, for any signs of damage or wear and tear. These could hinder the proper operation of the door during winter.
You can even call a professional to examine the door before the cold months arrive if anything looks out of place or damaged.
Ensure the bottom rubber creates a tight seal, not allowing water in.
Open and Close the Door Regularly
While you may be tempted to stay indoors as the temperature outside drops, you must open and close the garage door regularly to avoid any snow or ice buildup around the weather stripping. If your door is already stuck, you can disconnect it from the opener using the manual release cord. You can use a pry bar or metal shovel to break your door free if it is frozen to the ground.
Sprinkle Sand
Sprinkling and layering sand at your garage door’s base can help prevent it from freezing during winter. While salt could be helpful as well, it can cause severe corrosion if you have a steel door. Place the sand layer where the bottom edge of your garage door is touching the ground.
Also, layer the sand along crevices and cracks that may exist between the asphalt and concrete sections as well.
Warm Up Your Car Outside the Garage
While warming your car inside your garage is very tempting due to the cold weather outside, avoid doing so. Even when you open the door, the carbon monoxide levels in your car and garage can reach hazardous levels.
In addition, the heat from your car will thaw the ice and snow around your garage door and create a puddle of water. These puddles will quickly refreeze due to the cold temperatures if your garage is not heated or detached.
What to Do If Your Garage Door Freezes?
Sometimes, despite your best efforts, your garage door may freeze. Below are some ways in which you can melt the ice around your door and get it to open again:
Melt the Ice with Hot Water
Most of the time, garage doors freeze due to a buildup of ice along the base of the door. Once the ice melts, you can open and close the door easily. Boiling water can help melt the frozen ice and move the door. Pour boiling water at the base of your door and wait for a few moments. You can try to open the door once the ice melts. Ensure you clean up the melted ice as much as possible to prevent rusting or refreezing.
You can also raise your garage door slightly from the ground to prevent refreezing.
Apply Direct Force to Free the Door
Sometimes, a minor force can help break the frozen ice and free the door. You can gently kick the door near the bottom.
However, avoid kicking too hard to prevent denting or damaging the garage door sections.
Use A Hairdryer or Heat Gun to Melt the Ice
Small amounts of heat can help break the ice and release the door open sometimes. A hair dryer or heat gun can help you blow hot air near the frozen door edge and melt the ice.
However, this method can be time-consuming as the heat generated by the dryer or gun may take a long time to melt the ice.
Chip Away the Ice
Another way to open a frozen garage door is to chip away the ice along its base. You can use an ice scraper and start chipping the ice from the outside. Ensure you don’t hit the weatherstripping seal at the bottom of the door while chipping.
What Should You Not Do When Unfreezing Your Garage Door
There are certain things you must avoid when unfreezing your garage door to prevent further damage:
- Don’t melt the ice with a torch
- Don’t try to use the automatic garage door opener
- Don’t pull the door open using a lever
- Don’t ram the garage door with your car
In addition, many professional garage door technicians state that you should not try to open your garage door repeatedly when it is frozen. Repeatedly opening the door when it is frozen will put a strain on the door motor and burn it out. It will also strip the gears in the lifting mechanism and cause expensive repairs.
Trying desperately to unfreeze a frozen garage door can cause more damage. If you cannot pry it and open your garage door in a couple of attempts, you can contact a professional garage door repair company.
https://titangaragedoors.ca/ is a garage door company that offers residential and commercial garage door repair and installation services. Our services are available 24/7, and our technicians can help you fix any problem with your garage door.
Name, Address, and Phone
Titan Garage Doors,
Coquitlam BC V3B 0J3,
604-313-0108
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