Types of Garage Door Seals

Different types of garage door seals are used to keep grass, leaves, insects, rain and snow out of a garage. Weatherstripping also helps control the climate in the garage by reducing air flow and keeping heat in. Seals come in a wide variety of styles and are used for different overhead door applications. Here are some of the main types of seals you will use.

Vinyl Door Stop

Garage doors are sized to the exact dimensions of the opening.  However, imperfections during construction and shifting woodwork can create small gaps around the opening. Perimeter weather-stripping called vinyl door stop (VDS) is applied to wood jambs around the opening. It usually has a 2 inch base with a 1 inch flap to seal the edges of the garage door from the elements. Trim nails are nailed in every 18 inches to install the seal.  VDS is available to match the color of your garage door and comes in strips of 7ft through 20ft pieces. You can buy weatherstripping at any professional door dealer.

 

Bottom Seal

Since concrete floors and openings are rarely perfectly level, bottom seal can be used to seal gaps near the floor. All garage doors come with bottom seal installed. Most seals are prone to shrinking and warping due to moisture and temperature changes.  Sometimes called astragal or gasket, bottom seal comes in a variety of types that is determined by the channel they slide into. Here are the most common types of garage door bottom seal.

  • T-Type – Used on double channel retainers and forms the letter “T” on both sides.
  • J-Type – Used on single channel retainers and forms the letter “J” on both sides.
  • Bulb – Has a circular bottom shape with a single oversized T shape on top for single channels.
  • Beaded – Similar to “T” type seal, beaded seal is used on double channel retainers that have circular grooves.
  • Wood Door – Unlike other seals, wood seal screws directly into the bottom of wood doors.

Threshold Seal

Used best with new bottom seal, threshold seal adheres directly to the concrete floor underneath the garage door. A 3-4 inch hard rubber seal acts as a barrier to prevent rain water and other debris from entering the garage. The unique design of threshold seal allows water to slide away from the opening.

Brush Seal

Used mainly for commercial applications, brush seal is commonly found on sheet doors and rolling steel doors. It has thousands of hard bristles on the seal that prevents debris from entering the sides of the door. These bristles are strong enough to block out the elements, yet don’t cause friction that would interfere with door operation.

Reverse Angle Mount Seal

Since bracket mount track doesn’t fasten to steel jambs and commercial doors are often very heavy, reverse angle mount track must be used. Vinyl door seal won’t work either because trim nails can’t go through steel.  Specials seals have been developed to accommodate reverse angle mount track and steel jambs.

  • Top Seal – Mounts directly to the top of the garage door with self tapping screws.
  • Clip Seal – Clips directly onto the reverse angle mount track. Does not require nails or screws.

 

 

Garage Door Guide Cal
Hello, I’m Cal – owner of Garage Door Guide LLC    

I write tutorials about garage door repair, installation and maintenance. With over a decade of experience in the overhead door industry I’ve learned a lot and I’d like to share my knowledge with you.

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