Garage Do's, what I did for mine Options

[76-914]

With record breaking temps moving in this weekend I decided to insulate my garage door. It is westward facing and gets hot as Hell in the PM when the sun hits it. I used some 1" Styrofoam board. By 1:30 the garage door panel outside temp was 137 and the inside temp was 82. I showed my wife 15 mins later but the inside temp was now reading 100F. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/WTF.gif) So I measured the outside temp again and it was now at 157F. Looks like I realized appx 50F drop. I may add another 1" later on. Once the radiant heat was reduced at the panels I could feel the small exposed area of our roof radiating heat so I installed some radiant barrier material on the inside of the roof. Now I can work in the garage with a bit more comfort.
What have you done for your garage lately?

[rick 918-S]

6" walls packed with insulation, vapor barrier and drywall. Insulated door, 8" in the ceiling and it's still not enough in the winter. Summer, it stays 65 when it's 90 outside.

[whitetwinturbo]

I am sooooooooooooooooooo going to do that! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/piratenanner.gif) Where did get the insulation? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/huh.gif)

[TargaToy]

I have toyed for years with gluing RMAX panels inside my un-insulated doors...but they face the south and in the winter, the radiant heat from them actually helps my heater not run so much.

Very glad to know it would actually work though!

[somd914]

6" walls packed with insulation, vapor barrier and drywall. Insulated door, 8" in the ceiling and it's still not enough in the winter. Summer, it stays 65 when it's 90 outside.

Similar, 6" also with R-19 but did 7/16" OSB instead of drywall. Though drywall looks better, I prefer the durability of OSB; walls and ceiling are painted white for light reflection. Garage doors are insulated, 11.5 ft ceiling with R-30 above it. Also run a dehumidifier in the summer. With a fan running it is comfortable working in the summer.

[pdlightning]

6" walls packed with insulation, vapor barrier and drywall. Insulated door, 8" in the ceiling and it's still not enough in the winter. Summer, it stays 65 when it's 90 outside.

Similar, 6" also with R-19 but did 7/16" OSB instead of drywall. Though drywall looks better, I prefer the durability of OSB; walls and ceiling are painted white for light reflection. Garage doors are insulated, 11.5 ft ceiling with R-30 above it. Also run a dehumidifier in the summer. With a fan running it is comfortable working in the summer.

Home Depot on line has garage door insulation panels with a plastic liner. They are made in the correct dimensions and require little if any cutting. I have used them on two and three car garages and they are easy to install, quiet the doors down and greatly reduce transmitted heat .

Repaint sun facing metal garage doors a light color too! It has been Africa hot in So. Cal!

[Elliot Cannon]

I have been trying to strip the paint off my garage floor so I can re-finish it. This is turning out to be such a PITA, I'm glad I only have 300 square feet to do. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

[nine11speedster]

Do you just glue it on? Any special kind of glue?

[matthepcat]

I need to do this. My garage is an oven. No insulation on the roof or door.

I googled this article about door insulation. According to this article you need to create an air gap for the radiant shield to be effective.

http://m.instructables.com/id/3-Steps-Most...arage/?ALLSTEPS

[warpig]

I need to do this. My garage is an oven. No insulation on the roof or door.

I googled this article about door insulation. According to this article you need to create an air gap for the radiant shield to be effective.

http://m.instructables.com/id/3-Steps-Most...arage/?ALLSTEPS

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif) I grew up partly in the AZ desert and there is an old trick for keeping your adobe shack cool in the summer. Just hang a sunscreen from the eves of your roof in front of the wall that faces the sun and keep a foot or two of space between the sunscreen and the wall. Kind of like if you set a piece of steel in the sun compared a piece in the shade and see the difference in temps after 15 mins. Now pretend that piece of steel is your garage door. Bamboo rollup shades work great and don't cost much at all. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/poke.gif)

[dcecc1968]

I too insulated my garage door with an insulating roll of material (metal foil over bubble wrap) from Lowes, it helped the temperatures alot in my garage and I used metal foil duct tape along the edges to install it.

One word of CAUTION, the added weight of the insulation to your garage door could cause your garage door springs to break.... or at the very least require a spring adjustment... don't ask how I know.

[MSHax]

76-914, I've been to temecula, you definitely need this! I used to own in Anaheim, that made me realize that the SF Bay Area is the place to be. I would like to insulate my garage but it would take weeks of clean up just so I can touch a wall (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[JmuRiz]

Smart move, I made sure to buy an insulated door when I built my garage. That and the insulated walls/ceiling help a lot.

...I also have a mini-split heat-pump in there too. With the insulation I just run the unit's dehumidifier setting and don't need to run the AC (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[thieuster]

I need to do this. My garage is an oven. No insulation on the roof or door.

I googled this article about door insulation. According to this article you need to create an air gap for the radiant shield to be effective.

http://m.instructables.com/id/3-Steps-Most...arage/?ALLSTEPS

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif) I grew up partly in the AZ desert and there is an old trick for keeping your adobe shack cool in the summer. Just hang a sunscreen from the eves of your roof in front of the wall that faces the sun and keep a foot or two of space between the sunscreen and the wall. Kind of like if you set a piece of steel in the sun compared a piece in the shade and see the difference in temps after 15 mins. Now pretend that piece of steel is your garage door. Bamboo rollup shades work great and don't cost much at all. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/poke.gif)

I noticed the same trick in Italy, Tuscany when I was on holiday last month! Historical buildings (and there are lots of them there...) don't always have an airco system. And this is an century old trick to keep the heat out, apparantly.

Menno

[76-914]

I am sooooooooooooooooooo going to do that! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/piratenanner.gif) Where did get the insulation? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/huh.gif)

Lowe's. It comes in 4x8 sheets. 4 sheets required for mine. Cuts well with an electric carving knife. It is foil backed and plastic covered for vapor control. $50 to do the door.

6" walls packed with insulation, vapor barrier and drywall. Insulated door, 8" in the ceiling and it's still not enough in the winter. Summer, it stays 65 when it's 90 outside.

Similar, 6" also with R-19 but did 7/16" OSB instead of drywall. Though drywall looks better, I prefer the durability of OSB; walls and ceiling are painted white for light reflection. Garage doors are insulated, 11.5 ft ceiling with R-30 above it. Also run a dehumidifier in the summer. With a fan running it is comfortable working in the summer.

Home Depot on line has garage door insulation panels with a plastic liner. They are made in the correct dimensions and require little if any cutting. I have used them on two and three car garages and they are easy to install, quiet the doors down and greatly reduce transmitted heat .

Repaint sun facing metal garage doors a light color too! It has been Africa hot in So. Cal!

Be sure to check each panel's dimension. Look closely at mine. The top and bottom panels are 21" tall while the panels in rows 2,3 and 4 are 18" tall. L-R dimensions vary slightly as well. FWIW, the kits are online only. That's why I bought sheets and cut it myself. Couldn't wait.

Do you just glue it on? Any special kind of glue?

No glue. If you cut them about 1/8" too large (left to right) and they will squeeze in place. The garage door panels have lips that will hold them in place on the tops and bottoms of each piece.

I need to do this. My garage is an oven. No insulation on the roof or door.

I googled this article about door insulation. According to this article you need to create an air gap for the radiant shield to be effective.

http://m.instructables.com/id/3-Steps-Most...arage/?ALLSTEPS

True. The radiant barrier I used on the ceiling stands 3.5" away. More important if you are using insulation in conjunction with the foam board.

I too insulated my garage door with an insulating roll of material (metal foil over bubble wrap) from Lowes, it helped the temperatures alot in my garage and I used metal foil duct tape along the edges to install it.

One word of CAUTION, the added weight of the insulation to your garage door could cause your garage door springs to break.... or at the very least require a spring adjustment... don't ask how I know.

These 4 styrofoam panels combined are slightly heavier than a Popcorn Fart. Shouldn't be a problem. Mine raises w/o problem??

[rhodyguy]

To me R-38 or the equivalent of is about perfect

[Mike Bellis]

I have been trying to strip the paint off my garage floor so I can re-finish it. This is turning out to be such a PITA, I'm glad I only have 300 square feet to do. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

You could call a flooring company that does commercial vinyl flooring. Most of them have sand blasters designed for prepping floors for epoxy vapor sealers.