Playing in the rainBecause a garage door is built to open and close, we sometimes experience leaks from underneath.

Most people don’t worry about it, since garages and warehouses are usually filled with concrete flooring. And often, it’s not a concern for residential garage doors, since they have a sloping driveway leading up to the garage that prevents puddling. It’s more common for commercial garages warehouses to experience problematic leaks. Leaks that get in past your garage door can damage your goods and materials, contribute to moisture and mold growth, and be a bother to clean up.

You can make sure that anything in the garage or warehouse is elevated on shelves or pallets. You can keep a floor squeegee by the door, ready to sweep out water. However, this is just treating the symptom, not the underlying cause. Here are a few ways that you can prevent this problem from ruining your warehouse and your goods.

Secure the Rubber Gasket

First, get weather stripping at the base of your garage door. It’s called a rubber gasket. It should stretch the expanse of your garage door’s base, clear to either end. This won’t stop all water from coming in. However, it deflects some water and provides important insulation. If you have a gasket at the base of your garage door already, but it’s not performing well, it might be because it’s torn or cracked. We can install a new gasket, or replace an old one, in order to ensure that your garage door seals effectively.

Install a Threshold Seal

This goes on the ground and creates a slope both in and out, looking a bit like a tiny rubber speed bump. It also provides a rubbery surface for your garage’s gasket to form a better seal with. The small slope prevents water from flowing in. If the seal is too high and the garage door isn’t programmed for that height, a threshold seal can cause problems for your garage door’s long-term safety and maintenance. Continuously closing it only partially creates undue pressure on the gears and mechanisms that help it to lift and close. So, talk to us about your garage door if you decide to install a threshold seal.

These seals and precautions can be very effective, but they need to be replaced regularly, and could still have some water leaking in. The best way to prevent rainwater from leaking in under a garage door is to change the flow of water itself.

Create a Slope

As we mentioned, residences don’t deal with this problem as often because the garage is at the top of a sloping driveway. You can add a slope of your own by using soil or pouring concrete. Even a gravel driveway can channel water and keep it from flowing up to your garage door. Re-planing the driveway and entrance can prevent flooding.

Install a Trench Drain

Another way to solve the problem is by creating a trench drain. This works somewhat like a moat, channeling water away before it reaches the base of your garage door. You can install this near your garage door by digging a narrow (or wider, depending on how much rain you expect) trench into the soil, or breaking up the concrete in order to create room for a trench. Either pour new concrete into a trench shape, or install a halved pipe into the trench to make it stay and channel the water as efficiently as possible.

No Comment

You can post first response comment.

Leave A Comment

Please enter your name. Please enter an valid email address. Please enter a message.