Door Insulation

Door insulation is one way to make sure your home is adequately insulated from the cold weather. One of the biggest culprits of air flow to the outside is an exterior door.

It's fairly easy (I've even done it). These are the things you'll need:

Tape measure
Scissors
Door sweep which is as wide or wider than the door
Drill
Wood Screws
Adhesive weather-stripping

Entry or Exterior Doors

First, measure the width of the door using the tape measure. Cut the door sweep to match the width of the door with the scissors. Slide the top of the door sweep on the bottom of the door.

Drill four evenly spaced holes on both sides of the bottom of the door through the door slide and screw the door slide to the door while the door is closed.

Open the door. Measure the top and sides of the door jamb. Cut three pieces of the adhesive weather-stripping (one for the top and one for each side) with the scissors.

Peel off the back of the adhesive stripping. Fasten the stripping to the top of the door jamb by placing one end in the corner closest to the door hinge and pressing it against the top of the jamb. Work your way to the other side, while pressing hard enough for it to stick.

Then do the same thing at the sides of the door. Make sure to start at the top corner and work your way to the bottom.

Garage Doors

A garage door insulation project can be easy, quick, it is not expensive, and it can save energy. Your garage can maintain a more even temperature year round and you can minimize the street noise.

The first step is to insulate the bottom of the door. Hardware and home-improvement stores sell rubber or vinyl strips for use on the bottom of a garage door. Some are specific to garage door manufacturers and some are generic.

Most of these will need to be cut to your door's measurement. Attachment depends on your door. Some slide into a track and some may need to be nailed to the door bottom using nails that are rust resistant.

Around the sides of the door is often a source of weather infiltration. If the space around the frame on an average single-car garage door is a mere 1/8 inch, that gap represents an opening about 50 inches square.

Applying weather stripping around that gap can make a significant difference in temperature, not to mention eliminating a significant amount of dust and pests.

Applying door insulation to the inside surface of the garage door is not very difficult either. Insulating kits are available at home-improvement centers and they can also be purchased through many garage-door manufacturers. As of 2010, kits range from under $100 to about $200 to cover a double door.

Installation requires only simple tools, such as a tape measure, a straight edge and cutting surface, work gloves for safety and a utility knife. Many kits come with step-by-step instructions and some include a downloadable video of the installation process.

Garage door insulation kits can be divided into four main categories.

Fiberglass Panels For a single garage door, these kits commonly have eight panels and a fastening system. Installation can usually be accomplished in under one hour. The exposed surface is smooth and strong vinyl that you can wipe clean. It is also durable, resistant to tears and dents.

Panel Foam kits are made up of expanded polystyrene faced with laminated plastic. You do not need glue, screws or tape. The foam panels rest inside the door-frame rail channels. One kit contains foam panels enough for one single-car garage door. If you have a double garage, buy two kits.

Insulating-foam garage door kits are well suited for metal doors. This type of panel has a plastic surface that is durable and long wearing. To get the panels to fit flush inside the garage door, you can cut them. Then you carefully inject the foam insulation material, leaving no air pockets and filling every space in the door.

Reflective foil insulation makes garage door insulation an option even if your garage door is solid, without sections. In this option, the entire garage door inside is covered with reflective foil insulation. The product can be adjusted, cut and trimmed to fit as necessary around any parts so the seal is tight.

If you want more information, or have a question about door insulation, contact me here.

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