There are so many types of garage door seals. Weatherstripping can save you hours of cleaning your garage with a blower, only to have the leaves to come right back in.
Some types of garage door seals work best against water, while others tackle leaves. With the right type of garage door seal, you can keep bugs, grass, rain, and leaves out of your garage for good.
The Use of Garage Door Seals
Garage door seals are the pieces of rubber that are attached to the bottom and sides of your garage door.
There are many types of garage door seals, but they all serve the same purpose: to keep debris and rain from entering your garage.
Vinyl Door Stop
Vinyl door stops are side garage door seals.
Because garage doors can shift after installation, this piece of plastic runs along the sides of the garage door. The vinyl is usually nailed into the wood and provides a watertight seal from top to bottom.
Bottom Seal
Bottom seals are the most effective at keeping your garage clean. There are many types of garage door bottom seals. Some garage doors have single channel retainers, meaning the seal attaches at one point. A double channel retainer, on the other hand, allows the seal to attach at two points.
There are four main types of garage door bottom seals:
- J-Type: Also used in single channel retainers, the J-type creates two letter “J’s” on both sides when the door is closed.
- T-Type: Simple enough, the T-type seal is an inverted “T”. It is used with single channel retainers and is pretty similar to the J-type seal.
- Bulb: Bulb seals are long round tubes that are narrow at the top. They are used in single channel retainers. This allows the seal to push upwards and spread out over uneven cement floors.
- Beaded: Beaded seals are specifically used for double channel retainers. Both sides of the strip are bent upwards to fit inside the circular grooves. The beads help prevent water from running under the seal.
Threshold Seal
A threshold seal is perhaps the best in water protection. These seals attach to the concrete floor itself. The hard rubber works in conjunction with the bottom seal by elevating the entrance to the garage.
They come in various sizes and strengths and can easily withstand the weight of a car.
Brush Seal
You have probably seen a brush seal before. It is essentially a brush attached to the bottom of the door. These are usually used in high friction areas or doors that bend and flex.
Usually they are used on the sides of garage doors. Because of their extreme durability, they are often used in commercial buildings.
While extremely useful in keeping out hard debris, they are less effective in preventing water leaks as a bottom seal. When it comes to side seals, brush seals beat out most other types of garage door seals.
Reverse Angle Mount Seal
Reverse angle mount seal is an alternative to the brush seal and vinyl door stop for the sides of a garage door. This type of garage door seal is a hard rubber plastic that creates a track for the side of the garage door to run through. The seal fits snuggly around the door on both sides.
It is essentially a “U” with the garage door fitting inside. This type of garage door seal is usually used for heavy steel doors that screws cannot penetrate. They’re usually only found in commercial buildings.
At the end of the day, a properly installed and well maintained garage door seal will work wonders. Proper seals can also prevent the need for expensive garage door repairs.
Even though there are many types of garage door seals, they all serve similar purposes. Armed with this knowledge, you can now go to your local hardware store determine which type of garage door seal is best suited for your situation.
Be sure to check which type of channel retainer your garage door has before you leave!
If you have any questions about your garage door, don’t hesitate to call G&S Garage Doors for a free inspection!
