Unfortunately, even when doing garage door maintenance, the bottom of the garage door is often something that is left out. Whether it is due to forgetfulness or because you’re not sure how to go about maintaining or replacing the seal at the bottom of your garage door, neglecting this part of the process is quite harmful to your door and the things in your garage.
To help you with getting your garage door maintenance back on track, we’ve put together this guide to garage door bottom seals, how to maintain them, and what products to use in specific situations. We’ll walk you through the steps and give you the benefits and uses of each product as we go along.
What is the Garage Door Bottom Seal and What Does it Do?
The garage door bottom seal, or weather seal as it is also called, is a long strip of rubber material attached to the bottom of the garage door. When closed, the strip compresses down to cover the gap between the bottom of the garage door and the floor or ground.
What this does is create an airtight seal between the garage door and the outside.This prevents air, moisture, dirt, debris and critters from entering your garage.
Garage bottom seal benefits:
- The first and most important benefit is that it acts as a barrier between whatever is in your garage and the outside elements, whether they be wind, rain, moisture, mold, or foreign animals and critters.
- Another benefit is that you can keep in your heat or a/c and won’t be letting it seep into the outdoors, wasting energy and making your home uncomfortable.
- A good seal also helps protect and prolong the life of your garage door by preventing components from being exposed to the elements.
What is a Garage Door Retainer?
The retainer on a garage door is the slot or the track that your seal slides into. Some fit a certain size and shape seal while others are universal. Knowing what type of retainer is built onto your garage door bottom seal will help you when you go to replace the seal.
Types of Garage Door Bottom Seals
A garage door bottom seal isn’t just a strip of rubber you attach to the bottom of your garage door. In fact, there are 4 types of bottom seal and each one has a different intended use.
- J – Type. Single channel retainer seal that fits under the door and forms a J shape on either side of the door when the door is closed.
- T – Type. Similar to the J – Type except in the form of an inverted T when the door is closed.
- Bulb or Tube Type. These types of seals are long flat tubes that press against the bottom of the door and the concrete and spread out over uneven spaces to provide a solid seal between the concrete and the door.
- Beaded Type. These are used specifically for double channel retainers and are made to fit snugly in-between the grooves by bending upwards a bit. They prevent moisture from entering into the space below the door.
Let’s go through the recommended bottom seals for every garage door scenario.
Best Overall: Magicseal Rubber Universal Weather Stripping Kit
This is our best overall pick for a garage bottom seal kit for many reasons. While there are many options out there we wanted to give readers something that covered a wide variety of needs. This particular product is made of high grade durable rubber, meaning it will last a long time without needing to be replaced again.
The kit comes in multiple lengths, all of which are easy to cut to size for whatever type of garage door you have, meaning you don’t have to worry about this kit not fitting your particular door. The T-Type ends are flexible enough to fit nearly any retainer type securely.
The rubber is completely waterproof providing an excellent moisture barrier for your garage door. It also includes a wide temperature range that lets it hold up even in extreme heat. This helps to improve the longevity of the seal compared to other products.
Lastly, the kit has some soundproofing qualities that help to reduce outside noise while in the garage with the door closed, making it an excellent choice for those that like to use their garage for projects without being interrupted.
Best for: Those that want a complete weather stripping system with additional qualities and temperature resistance.
Pros:
- Comes in a variety of sizes to fit most garage doors
- Easy to install
- Extremely flexible
- Waterproof and semi-soundproof
- Adjust to fit nearly any size or shape threshold
Keep in mind: The one drawback we found to this particular product is that it is not rated for extremely cold temperatures (no temperature below 40 degrees fahrenheit) meaning that colder climates may damage the seal.
Garage Bottom Seal For Insulation: Loobani Garage Door Bottom Weather Seal
For a strong and durable product that keeps out moisture and sounds incredibly well, then this one by Loobani is an excellent choice. The rubber material on this product is very high grade and heavy making it the right product if you’re looking to insulate your garage door from the outside world.
Installation is easy, requiring no screws or nails. The thickness of the rubber makes it durable and able to handle manipulation while being installed without worrying about breaking or cracking the rubber like on some seals. The T Type inserts are easy to use and the entire process is fairly stress free, aside from the increased weight of the heavier seal.
Besides the insulating properties, this seal is good in temperatures as low as -40 and 140 degrees giving it extreme temperature resistance. You likely won’t have to swap seals again for a long time
Best For: Those that want to keep the outside out, whether it’s noise or weather conditions.
Pros:
- Heavy grade rubber is excellent for insulation
- Waterproof and weatherproof
- Fits most garage doors up to 2”
- Flexible and durable
Keep in Mind: This seal fits tracks up to 2”, anything wider and you’ll need a different product. Also, the product is much heavier than standard seals so it may take a little extra muscle to install.
Garage Threshold Seal: Eapele 20ft Garage Door Threshold Seal Weatherproof
A garage door bottom seal is great, but to make a truly complete seal and protect your garage, it’s a good idea to add a threshold seal to your garage floor. A threshold seal is glued or bolted to the floor of your garage where the garage door meets the floor. Combined with a bottom seal, the two meet to form a protective barrier to keep weather, debris, dust, critters, and noise out of your garage.
Or pick for best threshold has several properties that help protect your garage from the outside world and form a complete protective barrier. This product is made to be used on any size garage door as it comes in rolls that are 20 feet long.
The rubber is incredibly durable, able to withstand temperatures ranging from -40 to 284 degrees fahrenheit, yet still able to be cut with a utility knife. The rubber is also completely weatherproof
Best for: Those that already have a bottom seal on their garage door and want to create a more complete floor to ceiling enclosure to keep out all manner of debris and other forces of nature.
Keep in mind: The threshold seal adheres to the floor via liquid nails adhesive, which is not included with the product and must be purchased separately.
Single Channel Retainer: Clopay Garage Door Rubber Bottom Weather Seal 18′
This is our pick for the best single channel retainer.
This is for those with garage doors with a smaller track to attach a bottom seal, which only attaches at one contact point. Single track garage doors are typically smaller so it’s important to get a bottom seal that fits properly.
The thicker-than-normal rubber is great for sealing up the garage door and keeping out dirt and debris. It comes in 18’ sections so that it fits up to a standard double garage. The t type clasp is relatively easy to use so that there’s not a lot of work with installation.
Best for: single track Clopay doors that want an easy to use tight seal.
Pros:
- Highly durable thick rubber
- Forms a tight seal
- Easy to install
Keep in mind: While this is an excellent product, it is designed specifically for single track Clopay model doors, which means you’ll need a different product or have to alter this one in some way to make it work.
Anti-Rodent Garage Door Seal: XCLUDER X2 RODENT PROOF GARAGE DOOR SEAL KIT – 8′
For those that have a particular problem with mice and other rodents, this product is designed to specifically solve that problem.
It combines the flexibility of a typical T-Type double retainer garage bottom door seal with an anti rodent insert, meaning they can’t squeeze or chew their way through it.
It also has an added brush filter which helps to eliminate gaps and also keeps out insects and even the smallest of annoying critters. The rubber is still high grade weatherproof rubber, just with an added rodent proof filler.
The kit comes in multiple sizes and is easy to cut to fit whatever size door you have, so that there’s no worries about installation. It includes everything you need to set it up and installation is fairly easy.
Best for: Keeping mice, rats, and insects from getting into your garage.
Pros:
- High grade rubber provides a durable seal
- Made to fit nearly any size garage door
- Brush filter provides added layer of protection
Keep in mind: This is a multi-piece seal system that mounts to your door. It may not be as tight as a threshold and bottom seal combination.
How To Replace Garage Bottom Seal Step-by-Step
Here we will explain with step-by-step instructions how to remove your old seal and put in a new one.
- Begin by raising your door up to a comfortable height where you can reach the bottom seal. Once you’re in position, you’ll want to look for a screw or other mechanism that’s actually holding the seal in place (sometimes it’s a single screw, sometimes more) . You’ll want to begin by removing that.
- Now to remove the actual old seal, you’re going to have to maneuver the door into a position where you can access the side of the rail that the seal sits in and pull the old seal out. This can be tricky depending on the type of door you have. You can always cut the seal and remove it in sections if that is easier for you.
- With the seal removed you should see all the screws that hold the track in place. Go along the track and tighten down all the screws so that you know the track for the new seal is held tightly in place. You also want to clean the track while doing this so it’s clean and ready to use.
- With your new seal in hand, place the seal in a mixture of water and dish soap. This will help lubricate the seal so that it glides easily into the track. Position the door so that you can easily access one end of the track and begin feeding the seal through. It helps if you have an extra set of hands to help feed the track through, but if not, just go slow and steady and ease the seal through the track until it reaches the other end.
- Once the seal is properly positioned (check to make sure the right side is facing outward, (it will usually have ridges) and tighten down the screws that hold it in place. Once that is done your seal is installed and you’re ready to go.
