In unevenly welded garage doors, the gaps between the leaves and the frame can vary greatly, so it is impossible to close them with a sealing rubber band. In this case, you can seal the gaps with polyurethane foam. The method works with cracks of any size, even the width of a palm. Although the foam is destroyed under ultraviolet light, it takes years, so it can be safely used.
What you will need:
- glove;
- grease or oil;
- polyurethane foam;
- knife;
- rags.
Gate sealing process
When foaming gaps, it is necessary that the foam sticks only to the doors, but not to the frame, otherwise the gate will not open. To do this, you need to lubricate the box with grease, lithol or oil. This is convenient to do with a gloved hand. The lubricant is applied widely with a margin so that when the foam expands it does not reach the clean metal. If you also need to seal the gap between the sashes, then you need to lubricate the side of one of them.
Next, you need to close the gate, shake the foam according to the instructions and blow out the cracks from inside the garage.
It is optimal to use professional foam, as it is denser and has a minimal expansion coefficient. Foam in containers with a tube is more difficult to apply, it spreads out a lot, and it will last less.
It is advisable to foam a small area and wait 10-20 minutes to understand how much foam it will produce. Based on the results, it will be possible to understand whether it is worth blowing more if the cracks do not close completely, or, conversely, reducing the consumption if the foam protrudes beyond the surfaces lubricated with grease. This is much easier than cutting a lot later or foaming a second time.
After a couple of hours, but better on the second day, you need to cut off the foam protruding beyond the gate and open the doors.
The first time you need to make an effort, in the future everything will open easily. If there are gaps left, they can be blown out with the gate open and the doors closed again for several hours.
After sealing the cracks, you need to wipe the grease on the box with a rag so that dust does not stick to the top. The proposed method will solve the problem for 5 years for sure. Over time, the foam will turn yellow and crumble, so the procedure will need to be repeated. Foamed shutters will not only stop letting air and noise in from the street, but will also close very quietly, which is also a positive aspect of such sealing.
