Did you wake up to find your garage door frozen shut? Unfortunately, many Woodstock, GA, property owners don’t know how to deal with frozen garage doors, but there are a few steps you can take to unfreeze your garage door and move forward with your day.
Below, you’ll find easy ways to unfreeze your garage door, thanks to the team at Long View Lighting. You can get additional answers to your questions or more information on the company’s services by contacting the Long View Lighting experts at 770-790-3511.
4 Ways to Unfreeze Your Garage Door
You may feel thrown off your usual routine if your garage door is frozen shut. Not only is your garage door inoperable, but now you can’t leave your home, get your kids to school, or make it to work on time.
If you’ve found your garage door frozen shut and won’t open, the following tips can help melt the ice and unfreeze your doors.
1. Use Hot Water to Melt the Ice
Generally, garage doors freeze into place due to ice build-up along the bottom of the door. Melting the ice allows you to open your door and free your vehicle. To use this strategy, begin by boiling some water on your stove.
Once you have the water boiling, carry it outside your house and pour hot water along the bottom of your garage door. Wait a few moments and then attempt to raise the garage door again. If it opens, you’ve solved the problem.
However, experts recommend that you take a moment to clean up as much of the water as you can before you go. Leaving the water along the bottom of the door may cause it to refreeze. You can also leave your garage door slightly raised to prevent it from freezing again.
2. Use Salt to Free the Door
Many businesses in the Woodstock area sell special “ice melt” salt. Homeowners can use this product on walkways and driveways to keep ice from forming. You can also use salt if you have a garage door frozen shut.
Salt takes longer to melt ice than hot water. Apply the salt liberally and allow it to sit for at least 30 minutes to melt the ice completely. Keep in mind that salt corrodes metal, though, so salt exposure may damage your garage door. However, you don’t have to worry about the door refreezing if you use salt to melt the ice.
3. Apply Some Direct Force
In some cases, a small amount of force may break the ice enough to allow your garage door opener to raise the door. You can take action by gently kicking your foot along the bottom of the garage door. Try not to kick too hard, as you do not want to knock the garage door off the track or damage your door.
4. Get Your Hairdryer
Sometimes adding a little heat to the equation can free a frozen garage door. Do you have a hairdryer upstairs? Consider using it to blow hot air along the icy edge of the door. Depending on the amount of heat generated by the blow dryer, this method could take a while to work.
After melting the ice, ensure that you mop up any standing water to prevent your door from freezing again.
Things to Avoid With a Frozen Garage Door
If your garage door won’t open due to ice, taking the wrong actions can result in damage to your door – and an expensive repair bill.
- When faced with a frozen garage door, avoid:
- Using a torch to melt the ice
- Trying to pry the door open with a lever
- Knocking the door with your vehicle
Additionally, experts warn against trying to open your garage door repeatedly when it’s frozen shut. This action puts a lot of strain on the garage door motor, which may end up burning out. It may also strip the gears inside the lifting mechanism, leading to expensive repair costs.
Taking drastic steps to unfreeze your garage door may cause more trouble in the long run. If you can’t open your door on your own, contact garage door repair experts like the Long View Lighting team.
Ways to Prevent a Frozen Garage Door
Keeping your garage door from freezing shut allows you to avoid the hassle of melting the ice away. If you know there’s bad weather coming, consider leaving your garage door slightly open. This step keeps the door from touching melted snow or water and freezing into place.
Additionally, keeping water away from the bottom of the garage door prevents issues with freezing. If you notice that water tends to gather by your garage door, consider mopping it up on cold nights or checking for drainage issues.
Shovel away any snow before it has a chance to freeze into place as the temperatures drop overnight. Keeping the driveway around your garage door well-salted also helps prevent issues with freezing.
You may also consider cleaning your garage door seals. Broken seals absorb extra moisture, making them freeze faster than fully functioning seals. Garage door maintenance teams can assess the condition of your seals before winter and replace them if necessary.
Get Professional Help With a Frozen Garage Door
Is your garage door frozen shut? A Woodstock expert garage door repair team can quickly help you resolve this issue. If your garage door has frozen shut or sustained damage while trying to open, the crew at Long View Lighting can assess the problem and provide a quick solution.
The technicians will consider common causes of garage door damage and help you identify signs that garage door repair is required. For more information or to schedule a garage door service call with the Long View Lighting team, give them a call today at 770-790-3511.
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