Water leaking into your garage can be frustrating at best and catastrophic at worst. What starts as a mild annoyance can lead to property damage and safety hazards.
With a little prevention or professional know-how, it’s easy to make your garage a dry space for whatever purpose you need. In this blog post, we’ll examine the causes of garage door leaks, how to fix those problems and related maintenance tips.
Potential Causes of Garage Door Leaks
Garage doors can leak for a number of reasons. Here are a few of the most common:
- Failing door seals: This is one of the most common causes of garage door leaks. Under the door, where the door comes into contact with the floor, is a flexible rubber seal. This gasket-like component is attached to the entire length of the door. These seals can become torn, cracked or worn over time.
- Gutter problems: If water falls directly off the roof of the garage, rather than draining away with a gutter, there’s a greater chance of water flowing into the garage.
- Driveway sloping downward: If the slope of your driveway angles toward your garage, any water on the driveway will naturally flow toward the garage.
- Soil sloping inward: If your driveway is lower than your lawn, rainwater runoff can flow onto the driveway and into the garage.
Correcting Leaky Garage Door Problems
Here are some steps you can take to correct a leaking garage door under. With the potential for water damage and health risks, it’s always best to consult a professional.
Door Seals
A new door seal will resolve garage leak problems in many cases:
- Measure the width of the garage door.
- Purchase a new seal to fit that width.
- Open the garage door high enough to make working on the seal convenient.
- Remove the existing seal. Usually, they’re attached with nails.
- Nail or screw the new seal onto the door. Space the fasteners evenly for a cleaner installation.
- Close the garage door and check your work.
- Adjust the seal if necessary.
Drains
When it comes to correcting leaks due to driveway or soil sloping, French drains or channel drains tend to be the most popular solutions. Drain installation can be expensive and time-consuming, especially for DIYers.
Consider hiring a professional to make sure design, planning, material selection and execution are performed as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Threshold Seals
Threshold seals are adhesive seals that attach to the floor directly under the garage door. This creates a ramp-like barrier that diverts water away from the garage before it can enter. Many hardware providers also offer threshold seal kits.
Other Garage Maintenance Tips
Direct repairs after leaking occurs do resolve the problem of leaky garages, but there are also steps you can take to prevent such problems in the first place.
These include:
- Regularly inspect your garage door for damage and even closing. This makes sure the whole garage door touches the floor, not just one corner.
- Test the garage door balance from time to time to make sure the closed garage door stays closed.
- If your garage door has a photocell sensor to stop the door from closing on obstructions, make sure it’s always clear.
Contact Mike’s Garage Door for Garage Door Repair in Indiana
The garage door experts at Mike’s Garage Door have comprehensive training and extensive experience handling garage door challenges of all kinds.
With 24-hour emergency service, superior work and excellent customer service, we’ll take care of all your garage door needs.
Call (574) 253-0279 to learn more about garage door services from Mike’s Garage Door in Michiana and the Lakes area.
