How to Insulate a Wooden Garage Door

Insulating a wooden garage door keeps cold out and heat in during the winter and heat out and cold in during the summer. If the sun beats down on the garage it can get very hot, and resemble a sauna more than a garage. Insulating a wooden garage door will prevent extreme temperature changes from influencing the space inside the garage. If the garage is attached to the home, then you'll also see a decrease in the heating and cooling costs of the home. The information below will tell you how to insulate your wooden garage door.

Step 1 – Measurements

To properly insulate a wooden garage door you need to have accurate measurements. A wooden garage door is made up of several sections which are connected by hinges. This allows the garage door to bend as it rolls upward toward the roof of the garage. This also makes insulating a wooden garage door tedious. Use the tape measure and measure each garage door section using the hardware as a guide as the insulation will not cover the hinges or any hardware. The spacing is typically an inch or two around the perimeter of each section.

Step 2 - Cut the Polymer Insulation

You want to create a gap in each section where the air will be caught. Use the measurements from Step 1 to cut strips from the polymer insulation. Each strip should be 1 1/2-inch wide and each section of the wooden garage door will have 4 pieces of polymer insulation affixed to it.

Step 3 – Installation

When using the commercial adhesive keep in mind that it is very strong and will set quickly. This means that you have to work fast but you also need to work in sections. Choose one section to work on first and assemble the 4 parts of the polymer insulation you cut for the section. Choose a long section and apply a bead of adhesive to it and affix it to the wooden garage door using the hardware as a guide. Adjust the piece quickly in case it is not straight before the adhesive sets. Repeat with a side piece and butt it against the end of a long piece. Continue until the perimeter of the wooden garage section has a piece of polymer insulation around it and continue until each section of the garage door is framed with the insulation.

Step 4 – Reflective Insulation

This insulation will reflect heat and cold while the gap collects wind and the polymer insulation prevents it from entering the garage. Measure the length and width of each wooden garage door section using the polymer insulation as the guide this time. Cut the reflective insulation to these measurements. You will have one piece for each section of the wooden garage door. Apply a bead of adhesive to the top of the polymer insulation around the perimeter and affix the reflective insulation on top covering the section. Repeat until each door section is covered with reflective insulation.