How to Maintain a Wooden Garage Door

Garage door prices are not a joke and investment in these doors is costly which is why it’s important to keep them properly maintained so they not only look great and function perfectly, but last a longer time. This would not only provide convenience, but also saves money in the long run, since you won't have to replace the existing garage door prematurely. These doors are made of varying materials, including glass, aluminum, steel and wood. Wooden doors add curb appeal to the home due to their beauty. However, they require the most maintenance of all the door materials, since they are prone to cracking, rotting, and expanding. Find out what you can do to properly maintain your wooden door.

Maintaining Wooden Garage Doors

Treatment of wooden doors is recommended to prevent damaging the outside of the door when it expands. This ensures that the appearance of your door would not be affected by the changes. Another common problem with woods is they rot, so this could also possibly happen to your wooden door. A visual inspection on your door would tell if it has rotten parts. When a part starts to turn black, it means the area has wood rot. Applying treatment is also the solution for this issue. If you’re wondering why the wood rots when treatment was already applied, it could be that there’s not enough treatment applied, it was not applied correctly or the treatment has been removed. Sanding down the rotten part must be done before applying treatment so the black portion is eliminated. However, if the problem is severe, consider resorting to using a chisel to remove the rotten part and applying epoxy putty. If the rotten part is bigger, it may need to be completely removed then use a wood section as replacement.

Wooden doors may also crack and fade after some time. However, this can be prevented by applying sealer on the wood. Sanding may also be necessary for extreme cracking on woods before the application of sealer. This is also true with doors that were varnished or painted. Sand down the entire door to remove previous application of varnish and paint. This makes the color more vibrant and clean upon the application of new paint or varnish. Varnish and paints are type of finishes that are called film finishes. These finishes do not hold well when there’s movement, so cracking may be visible after some time. Reapplication may be needed when this happens. Penetrating finishes are another type and hold better than film finishes. Stains and oils are examples of these. The experts from garage door repair Midvale suggests that treatment and sealer must be applied regularly even before problems start to appear.

Proper cleaning of wooden doors is also important in its maintenance. This keeps the door looking great and prevents dirt from building up. Mixing a cup of mild detergent and 5 cups of warm water can be used in cleaning wooden doors. Make sure to allow the door to completely dry before applying any treatment. While these doors are primarily made of wood, they also have metal parts for their operations, including their tracks, rollers, and hinges. It’s important to keep these metal parts lubricated to prevent rusting and to keep them working smoothly. Failure to do so could cause difficulties in opening and closing the door. If you have glass windows, apply tape to prevent them from being stained or painted, which saves you time and energy than having to clean them afterwards. Wear gloves too to protect your hands while working.