Let’s face it. Colder weather is here. It’s October and those of us in Minnesota and Iowa are feeling the difference of the changing seasons. Sure it comes as no surprise, but it still takes some adjusting after we’re used to leaving our house without a jacket and not necessarily wearing socks for the last four months. It’s all relative, but still takes some time getting used to it!
The Door People at Overhead Door Company are here to tell you that insulation does matter now that cooler weather is here. What do we mean? There are a couple of key points we want to share with our readers.
When Choosing A New Garage Door For Your Home, Pay Attention To the R-Value.
The term “R-Value” may seem foreign to you, but it’s what garage door manufacturers and professionals refer to as the measure of resistance to heat flow through a given thickness of material. The higher the R-value, the greater the resistance. In other words, you want a high R-value when looking for a quality insulated door. Take note of the thickness of door you’re considering purchasing. In addition, take into consideration what you use your garage space for. Is your garage connected to your house? If you spend time in your garage working on projects, watching TV and if your garage is connected to your house, the level of insulation and thickness of your garage door is of great importance.
Make Sure Your Astragal And Weather Strip Are In Good Condition
The astragal is the rubber strip on the bottom of your garage door. Weather strip, vinyl or brush, is the material that goes around the perimeter of your garage door that helps minimize airflow. Astragal and vinyl weather strip can become stiff and brittle as it ages. Brush weather strip can bend and lose its ability to flex back to its original place, allowing cold air in and warm air which you’ve already paid for, escape outside. Astragal and weather strip are tools that work with your insulated garage door to enhance its overall performance. They work together.
Schedule A Service Call For Your Garage Door And Operator
We stress this often, but annual routine service allows a professional to put some much-needed tender loving care into your garage door and operator. If The Door People are at your home providing routine service, we lubricate working parts, make sure your garage door is in proper alignment, detect abnormal wear on components, adjust tension, and more. This is the time of year when we see other things in nature try to adapt to cooler temperatures. For example, a rodent in search of a warmer environment can chew through wires and leave exposed insulation which then becomes a fire hazard for the homeowner. Routine maintenance allows a professional to examine and determine if anything out of the ordinary is happening with your garage door and operator. It allows potential problems to be fixed before they become larger, more costly problems.
To schedule routine maintenance on your garage door with The Door People, call your nearest location listed below or complete the Service Request form on our website.
