Insulate Your Garage Door for This Winter

Winter Vehicle Maintenance

Just because it will be cold outside this winter does not mean that you will have to stop doing all of those car maintenance tasks you did not get to this past summer. In fact, the winter holiday season is a good time to excuse yourself from the rest of the house and take refuge in your garage when cabin fever begins to take its toll on home life.

However, this does mean that you will have to endure finger numbing Siberian conditions in a self-imposed Soviet gulag style garage. By strategically placing one or two space heaters in your garage and having insulation where heat loss is the greatest, you can turn your garage into a comfort zone both physically and mentally with little effort and just marginal cost.

DIY Dave Good Garage Advice

That was the between-the-lines message to a recent DIY with Dave You Tube channel video---that periodically offers some great Harbor Freight related news and advice---where the host shows you exactly how to save money and install your own garage door insulation that will not only help keep you warm in the winter but will also keep you cooler next summer.

Related article: The Harbor Freight Gift Every Car Owner Needs

Follow along with the host as he does a quick “show and tell” of the materials you should choose, the minimal tools you will need to do the job (a kitchen electric meat carving knife), and why resorting to a commercial garage door insulation kit is not recommended.

Additional DIY Tips for Keeping You and Your Garage Warm

Insulating your garage door is a good starting point, however, there are additional steps you can take that will help keep you and your garage warm such as:

• Replacing old garage door weatherstripping with new high quality weatherstripping designed to remain pliable at any temperature.
• Ensuring all garage door panel hinges are secure and not so loose that they can allow air to flow through.
• Checking your garage windows for leaks and replace any old weather striping and/or caulking to ensure a good leak-free window.
• Applying insulation to the attic floor of your garage’s overhead ceiling. Just laying down any insulation between the joists will make a big difference and does not require any special tools or techniques.
• Avoiding any portable heaters that operate with propane, kerosene, or other gases as they pose a fire hazard in a garage and in an enclosed space poses the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. Electrical space heaters are safer, but should never be left unattended while you are outside of the garage.
• Taking a walk around the block and having a cup of hot coffee ready to greet you when you return are sensible ways to warm up before entering a cold garage.

For additional garage-related articles, here are a few for your consideration:

• The Harbor Freight Low-Cost Welder Your Home DIY Garage Needs
• Best Gloves for Automotive Work Reveals How Harbor Freight Gloves Compare
• Best Floor Jack Comparison Tests Reveal Which Harbor Freight Jack to Buy and Which to Probably Avoid

Timothy Boyer is an automotive reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on  “Zen and the Art of DIY Car Repair” website, the Zen Mechanic blog and on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites  and Facebook for daily news and topics related to new and used cars and trucks.

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