I did this to my garage yesterday with 1” board. My wife asked me what I was doing. I told her and a day later ur video popped up on my UA-cam feed. When I was done I opened the door and could hear the opener struggling. I saw ur video a day later and made me look up the specs on the 1” board. To my surprise they are 5 lbs per board. I used just under four boards. That’s just under 20 lbs added to the door. I took the door off the opener and sure enough it was harder to open by hand. I added three 1/4 turns to my spring and that seems to make up for the extra added weight. The opener sounds back to normal. I put a new spring a few years ago and up sized it from original. Thanks for the tips 👍🏽
You should have enough tension in the springs so that if you do the manual release so the door is disconnected from the door opener, the door shouldn't close by itself, and should require virtually no effort to lift it.
I see garage door installers weigh the garage door with a scale.set in the middle with the door disconneccted from the opener. You are looking for less than 10 lbs.
I LOVE that you posed a question and answered it in plain English within 45 seconds of the start of this video. You didn’t waste our time. Thank you. Because of your straightforwardness, it made me want to watch the whole video!
i did this 2 years ago with same board. but i added a sheet of bubble insulation first, then the board and then another sheet of bubble insulation. and finally i added foil tape to hold the bubble insulation and board inplace. came out really well. way less hot in the summer and less cold in winter. one thing to remember is a well insulated garage door by itself is only part of the solution. u have to make sure the space above and around the garage is well insulated or u wont get the desired temp. u want.
@@christophermackin147a roll of bubble insulation you can get from lowes. just an added barrier. I also learned that you can install a temperature controled ceiling fan vent in the attic ( not the bathroom kind) or on the side of the garage wall. both options will pull hot air from the garage along with small inlet vents in the garage door to let outside air circulate through the garage. that will help keep the garage cool. next on my to do list.
I put 1½" ngx in my garage last week after watching your original video. My panels were 2 different sizes as well, but I measured each one first to be sure. Thanks for pointing me to ngx, really easy to work with but a bit heavy for my old spring
That’s awesome! Next week’s video is the entire walk through of upgrading your springs. It’s cheaper than you might expect and can very much be done safely.
I filled the whole panel space by cutting the 40 mm thick polystyrene sheets to the correct size but in two halves. The top and bottom halves could then be angled in at the top and bottom and pushed in together in the middle creating a very tight fit. I cut two of the rows approximately 20% and 80% of the panel size as the door's reinforcing rails would then cover the joins. The sheets have been in place for 5 years now and none have popped out. I also glued wall wrap (foil) behind the foam. I also corrected my mistake of not ordering the west facing door in white by painting it white to reflect the afternoon summer sun.
You can buy a foam insulation kit from some local Garage door companies. They will be cut to the right height 21" for the top and bottom and 16" for intermediate sections. They will be 8'ft. long so you cut them about in half depending on the width between the vertical styles where the hinge's mount. they often have a thin white PVC pebble tec finish backing skin so the whole door is white inside. This is easy to clean when you get dusty spiderwebs on the back of the door. They are not cheap because the Garage door company wants to make a healthy profit as it is a specialty item. They are installed the same way the insulation was installed in this video. They are a snug fit and it is a bit of a wrestling match to get the panels in place. I could insulate a whole door in about 2 hours but I have a lot of experience. If I were to do this I would compare the price of the kit versus the cost of enough sheets of Owens -Corning insulation to complete the job at your local Home Depot. If you Garage gets Western sun in the afternoon this will keep the garage much cooler. However, if you pull your car into an insulated Garage after your commute home it will also keep the heat from your hot engine in the garage. The insulation will add weight to your garage doors spring(s). They may need to be adjusted to get the door to open smoothly. Call a pro to adjust the spring. It will be much cheaper than a trip to the Emergerncy Room if you try to do it with out the proper tools and knowledge and some thing slips. If you try and get hurt you will still have to call a pro to get it done. Trust me. Springs can kill. Let a pro take the risk.
You’re doing it wrong then you want the reflective kind with the reflective part facing outwards. The panels are literally under $100 to do a 2 car garage and you don’t need to adjust the springs
Definitely need to seal around the edges of the door. My garage door is 16’ x 7’, and it really flexes inward in a strong wind, which lets rain and snow to get inside past the seals. Some things that have helped with that problem are: brush seals for outside surrounding the door, the ‘Green Hinge System’, a double-bulb rubber bottom seal, and a threshold seal. These four things have made a significant impact in reducing water and snow intrusion. Thanks for the video.
Be careful doing this, make sure you leave a little gap and to not seal the door air tight or you might start getting mold if you don't already have temp control.
Great points. I noticed while I was shooting some thumbnail pics that just standing next to the door I felt a breeze and, after feeling around, it was coming from the gap at the top of door. I haven't yet installed the seals (I thing I'm going to seal the living daylights out of this thing) so that makes sense but it's crazy how well that cold (or hot) air finds a way in. I recently finished installing rock wool through the garage and will be installing a mini split soon so it should be very comfy in there by the time I'm done.
@@smody121 I agree,but there’s still some air intrusion even with those things installed. For my needs, they have really helped to reduce the wind driven rain and snow from blowing into the garage. My cement slab can form some serious condensation under the right conditions, which is why I installed a cheap, small ceiling fan. And my garage walls aren’t insulated yet. Maybe some day.
@@127001er Good to hear you haven't had any problems yet. Getting air controlled garage is the holy grail. To be able to work on my car in the comfort and cleanliness of my garage... what a dream
I can vouch for the green hinge system! Those hinges along with an extra bit of weatherstripping on the outside of my garage door has completely eliminated any drafts around the door. I'm in Chicago so that is very important when I'm trying to heat the garage and it's 0 degrees out in January.
Thanks for this video. I bought six 4 x 8 sheets and did both the double and single garage doors, with hurricane braces, in about 4 hours. One of the easier home DIY projects I've done. I have yet to seal them in place with spray foam but the individual boards are staying put, no problem.
I did my garage roof with the 2" pink board and tried many ways to cut it, and then I tried my Oscillating tool with a half moon bit and scored it fast deep and straight and just snapped the rest.
My garage door just died. It was 24 years old and had many added braces to repair fatigued metal and such. But it finally gave up the ghost, jumped the track, and almost fell on the car. it was time. Guess what? You can buy new doors that are heavily insulated with R10 or even higher. Metal on both sides, insulation in the middle. And it wasn't that much of a percentage more money than the cheaper non-insulated one. 15% to 20% more or so. More? Yes. But not double the cost or anything. Now it is well insulated, and also far stronger and rigid. Now, it's very much like an insulated steel front door. Big improvement. So, if you are at the point of getting a new door anyway, look at higher end double-wall insulated ones.
XPS, including the new NGX, polystyrene foam board is highly combustible and must be covered with a protective or thermal barrier to separate it from a interior living space by code in most areas. Since a garage door is exterior and not to a adjoining living area, it would probably pass code. However, not mentioning that it’s highly combustible to your viewers is a concern. Someone adding a XPS to their garage door that may do work such as welding or grinding, will find out just how combustible it is.
A super important consideration! Especially because a common objective with DIY garage insulation is to use that space as a living space or or as a workshop.
@@MoneyManHolmes Vacuum insulated panels and aerogel can be non-flammable and have very high insulation per inch, but are relatively expensive compared to other insulation. Some foams can include flame-retardant chemicals so they can't sustain a flame and won't spread fire, though they will still be damaged by heat and may give off nasty fumes while hot. Cement foam might also be able to qualify in some formulations, though it's not as common as other options and might be too brittle for something like a garage door.
Sorry if this is a duplicate comment. Installation of this material as suggested is unsafe. Per the manufacturer, "Owens Corning Foamular products are combustible and must be covered by a 15-minute thermal barrier such as 1/2" drywall. We do not recommend using Foamular to insulate a garage door. There are better choices such as the Owens Corning Garage Door Insulation Kit. Thank you for your inquiry!"
By the way, I like your content overall and am not trying to pick this apart. I am an infrequent commenter. To clarify my comment, this is a fire hazard.
@joshuabourdon8110 Agreed on the flammability problem. Putting a coat or two of white paint over the foam will markedly reduce its flammability (and make it look nicer, too!)
@vitalsteve1 actually... yes! If you do any welding/ferrous grinding/or anything with a torch there might be issue. Personally I made inner panels from a plastic wall covering sheet material thats really thin from Lowe's, want to say tufted makes it and it's hdpe (milk jug plastic) but I may be remembering wrong. It's WAY cheaper and lighter than FRP... I'd build my whole shop out of frp if it wasn't so pricey. It's genuinely indestructible. Literally one of the best products ever developed by Uncle Sam 😆 it's genuinely urine proof, and it's mostly seen in public bathrooms.
Nice. This would be a worthwhile upgrade for my simple garage door even without the full seals. My primary trouble is extreme heat radiating through the door on summer afternoons and this would work nicely to lessen the heat buildup in my garage.
Watching you put the wrong size panels on the top and bottom was driving me crazy. Glad to see you went and fixed it. Best way is to probably make a grid ahead of time and measure each panels, just in case the top, bottom, or sides are different.
Thanks for making this video. I’ve been wondering what to do on my garage door and you saved me the research time. I like that you put the printed side inside. Looks 1800SUPERPRO
The last insulation install on our garage door made the door very heavy. The spring needed adjustment. Just went with a lighter insulation. The heavy foam insulation caused the garage door to not stay open.
@ 7:36 - automatic "like & sub" for THAT alone. Bruv...one of THE honest & transparent DIYers I've watched. TOTALLY keepin it real!!! Thanx for your info & honesty. 😇💙🙏🏾
Ok that works and looks good but you made way more work then you needed to do. Once you score the foam board just break it, done, doesn't matter what the cut looks like, you'll have the nice clean score line and the rest of the cut didn't matter, it's in the door you can't see it Also you should have cut them at the 17-1/4" you needed. Then you put one edge in and give it a little bend and pop the other edge in. It'll fit tight, no spray foam needed and the lip on the garage door panel holds the foam in.
In live in Florida and it's required to have hurricane bars horizontally across the door. Mine has 5 huge bars which I would need to remove in order to install foam panels.
Please be aware that rigid foam insulation is highly, highly flammable, and by code is not allowed to be exposed on interior finishes. And garages tend to be a location with open flame and where most house fires start. Better a proper three-layer insulated garage door with metal panels on both inside and outside faces to meet requirements in many jurisdictions and safe practice.
@@jacojaco8436 I'm unaware of any retrofit solutions because of the challenge fitting insulation and protection, combined with the added weight. As Nils illustrates, the insulation alone is challenging, but non-flammable protection adds weight. I've seen people try this with fiberglass batt (non flammable and light weight) but it's loose, can get caught in the hardware, tough to hold in place, and has too much air leakage and lower R than rigid to be an effective insulator, even with foil facing. Most manufactures I know use options from the factory, for example, a 1000 uninsulated, 2000 insulated interior-protected with polystyrene (barely non-flammable I suppose), and 3000 insulated interior-protected with steel.
Per Owens Corning on Home Depot’s website for this material, “Foamular is combustible and requires a protective barrier or thermal barrier as specified in your Local Buidling Code.”
Like yourself, my garage door panels are not all equal in size so I can appreciate the "oops" moment. I'm getting ready to insulate my two double garage doors, but plan to use Johns Manville polycyanurate 1" insulation. First of all it's rated R-6, and secondly it is foil backed, which I will place against the inside surface of the doors to reflect the suns heat. I need all the help I can get in Arizona.
Great video - thanks!! I just ordered that rubber bottom garage door seal! Built our house 10 years ago and notice you can see a little light under the door and a little water / snow can get in. I just inspected to seal that's on there now and oh my God it's horrible! So excited to get this new seal tomorrow! I'm going to look at those panels also. Thanks again!!!
These videos help garage door repair companies out in the long run. A lot o cracked top panels and stripped gears from people doing this and not changing to the proper springs for the new weight of the door.
With garage door, you are trying to reduce radiant heat gain/loss. Foil backed polyethylene foam (bubble wrap) radiant barrier is the better choice and be sure to leave an air gap between the door and the barrier.
Temps are cooling down in Florida so I'm looking at radiant barrier and garage door insulation projects. I'm going to do the combo of radiant barrier against the face of the door then the 1 1/2" NGX with foam edges. The attic is going to be fun. Not as nimble as I used to be.
There are versions of the foam board that have relief cuts in them so you can bend them a little to fit them in the "C" part on the sides, bottom and top of the door.
I used a gun for canned foam to fill all those C cavities and make sure all parts were as insulated as possible. Because those cavities have holes, you can spray foam into the cavity after the install instead of pulling anything off. ALSO, I have windows across my top row. I cut 1” board to go around those. Worked out really well. Wish I could post pics here to share.
I have windows as well. I was just thinking as I was watching this how I'd work around them. Would like to see your pictures if you can find a way to send them to me or post them.
@@diggndeeper I have four windows as well. I'm just going to make a template with a cutout for the window and I think I can just place the foam cutout over the window. We'll see how it goes.
Pro-tip from an avid DIY’er that’s also in his 60’s. In order to do it thoroughly right?, you have to take the screws out of the hinges allowing you to get a bigger piece nestled or nested into place taking up the entire panel void-space. No need for messy spray-foam crap.
So you're saying you can cut to 17.25" and they would fit perfectly? I would think there would be more waste? But to get a perfect fit WITHOUT the foam spray then it would be worth it.
@@JJP1960 it’s arduous to take out the hinge screws in order to do each panel - But I’ve done my own garage door & I did my daughters last year in the middle of July. Slow & steady, measure twice cut once & man-handle each foam panel into place. It’s not fun, But it’s nice, neat & not so messy without having to use a $20 can of spray foam.
I help a friend do his door. After work on totally redoing a house he had a roll of the reflective insulating stuff left. We cut sheets of that and put it in each panel first. Then he had 1.5" foam board left, the type with the foil on one side. We filled the panels with that foil facing in. So there is foil on the outer side of the foam and the inner. We used expanding foam to be sure all the recesses were filled. We also used foil tape to cover the gaps. Most stuff he had left over from doing the house, except enough foam, one more foam board, and he had a roll and a half of the foil tape left from redoing the HVAC and I got some of the tape from my bro who has done HVAC for 40+ years...needed a bit more to finish it. The door no longer gets hot and it faces south and in the winter you put your hand on the outside of the door and it is cold, there is no heat escaping. The foil board inside cleans easily and it reflects light, we noticed that right away. He had a broken door spring already and he replaced it with a heavy duty one.
Great video. I had no idea how much heat went through my garage door until I got a thermal camera for Christmas. Now I am wondering what to do about the windows I have in my door.
Hard to say exactly what to do not seeing the door, but to still pass light you put a insulated panel on with the window area cut out and put a sheet of Lexan in that hole. The air gap would give some insulation value.
Great video. Is this pointless if my garage has two vented screens on one wall? Garage door is NOT vented, completely sealed, but one of the walls in the garage is vented to bring in some air for safety reasons?
I am new to the insulation stuff...Seeing your video feels like I should be able to handle this project quite easily. Thank you for explaining in so much detail and also sharing testing out which one is better than the other. Really appreciate this level of details. I have a question...If I were to add multiple layers of insulation, Let's say 2 layers of double reflective insulation, will it be better than 1 layer of double reflective insulation ?? Maybe not?
Double the amount of foam. Cut the foam lengthwise to cover the C Channel, trim the height to clear the garage door brackets. You will essentially be covering 70% of the door with R 13 which is way way better.
Had you cut the height of the panels from the inside of the top and bottom C-channels, and then cut all the panels in half length-wise, you could have avoided the spray foam altogether by first inserting the bottom half of the panel and then inserting the top half of the panel.
The actual material name of that foam board is XPS, Extruded Poly-Styrene. I use it for a lot of projects and my favorite way to make long, straight cuts is with a table saw.
People are eating you alive in the comments 🤪. Great project. I like the suggestion of someone here of cutting the panels in half before installing. And good job on 1) admitting you didn’t do it quite right, 2) fixing it, and 3) alerting us the same could happen to us. Thanks.
For the comments... I'm used to it. Being on UA-cam means you put content out there and everyone tells you why you're wrong. In many cases the points are totally valid and I learn something that I simply wasn't able to find during my research. I also get plenty of kind and supportive comments which I appreciate. It's all part of the job. Thanks for watching and for your kind words, my friend!
Hi Nils, I would like to know how many cans of spray foam you went through. I am trying to prepare to replicate what you have done. I have a 16x7 door like yours. Thanks for all your videos, they are helping me be better.
I'm also curious about how he'll do the springs, I've been a door tech for a long time and I know that depending on how much weight he just added on, a simple adjustment won't work properly. There's also the tool issue, unless my guy purchased torsion spring winding bars it can be dangerous to add tension. I've tried a lot of improvised tools when I needed it and some work but I've also been hurt by the ones that didn't.
I've already done the spring replacement. I bought winding bars and went through the entire process of weighing the door (with insulation) and getting the properly rated new springs for the new door weight, then VERY carefully removing the old and putting in the new. It was a pretty reasonable experience but half the video (that is coming out) is about safety. I know it can be a dangerous process.
A couple questions: 1. I'm measuring 2" from deepest point to the lip, so should I go with 2" foam or should I get thinner boards to make room for spray foam? 2. Do you recommend 1" spray foam for the edges? BTW: I checked out Home Depot today and almost all the foam boards (not just the ones from NGX) were crushed in various places. They only had two NGX boards and both had damage, so I'm hoping I can get four good ones.
I used the foamular ngx to insulate my garage door after watching your video approx 2 months ago. I then used Big Gap filler around the edges as noted. Today I am noticing in the upper and lower corners of each panel it looks like the board is having a chemical reaction of some sort and is breaking down. Look almost like someone took a lighter to it. burnt styrofoam look. Any ideas?
I used single side reflective, on thr interior side it is white. However during install i stuck it to the support struts, creating an air pocket between the insualtion and the garage door.. I notice when you did the test st the start, you sruck the reflective insulation directly to the garage door. All the DIYers ive followed have shown its far more effective creatinf an air pocket in the door, bexause obviously air doesnt transmit temperature as well - similar to the way a dry suit works much better for divers.
In case this helps anyone, the big box stores near me don't carry the same things: Lowes: $46.48 - FOAMULAR F-150 | 1.5" Thick | R-7.5 Home Depot: $21.58 - FOAMULAR F-150 | 1" Thick | R-5 $43.00 - FOAMULAR F-150 | 2" Thick | R-10
This may be fine for temperate climates, but not in Arizona when the sun shines on your door. The amount of radiant heat transferred by all that exposed metal not covered by the foam board (the joints and sides) is still enormous. It's just one giant heat sync. I'm wondering if there's some type of coating that can be applied to the entire inside surface.
there's a pretty snug fit there with the foam and insulation. is there any concern with binding of the garage door panels as it raises/lowers with inherent expansion/contraction as the temp fluctuates?
Late to the party obviously, Im curious if it would be worthwhile to get brushes or something that sit between the garage panels, in order to seal the door better when its closed.
I have sold garge doors for 25 + years. Your garage doors springs are calibrated to the factory weight of the doors. The spings are the doors counter balnce system that lifts the weight of the door making it light and easu to open. When you add weight to a garage door, you are throwing the counterbalance of your door off. After adding weight, the springs need to be recalibrated. This is done with a special scale that a garage door service company would have. In other words, you can't just add insulation to a garage door that wasn't designed for it. It will eventually take your open out.
I have similar, I was wondering if you could do each section in halves along the long dimension, and push each half in to the groove at the top and the bottom so the foam goes in to where you put the spray foam, they should jam in against each other, or a thin strip of something could be put in from top to bottom to hold them in.
@LRN2DIY - My main requirement is to insulate garage for cold weather and use it as my Gym .I am in NW Portland Oregon where temperatures avg 40 in peak winters . So far I tried doing only reflective material to insulate the garage but it did not make any difference I would say at all.. how do I solve this problem to keep cold outside of the garage is it even possible?
There is one issue with this project - weight. If your springs are old or not big enough the extra weight (even though it's not a lot) could shorten their life. I learned from experiencing it. but after the technician replaced them with heaver springs all is well and the insulation does its job.
This isn’t an issue unless you have springs that need to be replaced anyways, brother. This foam is no where near the weight which would cause an issue. Again, if this is a concern, your springs need to be replaced with or without the foam. F = -kx
so i too want to cool down my garage went to a local auction company and picked up 20 panles of 2 in foam board for $125 then started researching on how to glue or tape them in. saw you video at number one and i watched it, then watched the previous one. so then i checked the temps in my garage and my door was about 105* and walls were about 110. then i checked my roof and it was 135*. i saw you house has a room above it so you dont have to worry about heat from the top. would using 2" foam for the roof be a good idea also?
Does it really make that much difference to do the foam to fill in small gaps? In my case I was interested in reducing radiant heat from the metal panels in the afternoon summer sun. It did help a lot. However there is always air and not much insulation going on around the door edges where there is typically a thin vinyl weather flap. Heat and cold will always be leaking around there.
When I purchased my garage doors I got them already insulated. Would it be worth the time and expense of changing out the insulation. Mine also leak lots of air at the joints between the panels.
Hello. Did you also have to make adjustments in spring tension on your garage door since there is an addition to the weight of the garage door lift and retract?
Just stumbled on your channel. I love watching videos on energy efficiency. This is a great idea and surprised more people don't do this. I personally, don't know anyone that has done this, ever.
That's because you need to have your garage springs adjusted for the new weight afterward. And most installers will then tell you to replace your springs. This causes spring failure.
I would love to see another video dealing with the sealing and noise of the door I've been researching some products but don't know if it's worth pulling the trigger on them ThermoTraks sealing system ThermoTraks bottom seal retainer and seal Green Hinge spring loaded energy sealing hinge set Dura-Lift / ThermoTraks nylon rollers Quiet / silent roller sleeves
I did this to my garage yesterday with 1” board. My wife asked me what I was doing. I told her and a day later ur video popped up on my UA-cam feed. When I was done I opened the door and could hear the opener struggling. I saw ur video a day later and made me look up the specs on the 1” board. To my surprise they are 5 lbs per board. I used just under four boards. That’s just under 20 lbs added to the door. I took the door off the opener and sure enough it was harder to open by hand. I added three 1/4 turns to my spring and that seems to make up for the extra added weight. The opener sounds back to normal. I put a new spring a few years ago and up sized it from original. Thanks for the tips 👍🏽
You should have enough tension in the springs so that if you do the manual release so the door is disconnected from the door opener, the door shouldn't close by itself, and should require virtually no effort to lift it.
I see garage door installers weigh the garage door with a scale.set in the middle with the door disconneccted from the opener. You are looking for less than 10 lbs.
I LOVE that you posed a question and answered it in plain English within 45 seconds of the start of this video. You didn’t waste our time. Thank you. Because of your straightforwardness, it made me want to watch the whole video!
I love the confession. Teaching people how to work through mistakes is a huge part of stuff like this
I measured once, cut twice, and it's still too short!
i did this 2 years ago with same board. but i added a sheet of bubble insulation first, then the board and then another sheet of bubble insulation. and finally i added foil tape to hold the bubble insulation and board inplace. came out really well. way less hot in the summer and less cold in winter. one thing to remember is a well insulated garage door by itself is only part of the solution. u have to make sure the space above and around the garage is well insulated or u wont get the desired temp. u want.
Bubble sheet radiant barrier or ?
@@christophermackin147a roll of bubble insulation you can get from lowes. just an added barrier. I also learned that you can install a temperature controled ceiling fan vent in the attic ( not the bathroom kind) or on the side of the garage wall. both options will pull hot air from the garage along with small inlet vents in the garage door to let outside air circulate through the garage. that will help keep the garage cool. next on my to do list.
How many foam sheets did you use for your project
@@Wankidy three 4'×8' 1inch thick foam boards.
I put 1½" ngx in my garage last week after watching your original video. My panels were 2 different sizes as well, but I measured each one first to be sure. Thanks for pointing me to ngx, really easy to work with but a bit heavy for my old spring
That’s awesome! Next week’s video is the entire walk through of upgrading your springs. It’s cheaper than you might expect and can very much be done safely.
Can you tell us abut the difference it makes, please. Maybe improvements, tricks as well.
Where did you buy it 1 1/2 inch? i only see 1 and 2 inch available at home depot…
@@gamelandmexicoI found some at White Cap.
I filled the whole panel space by cutting the 40 mm thick polystyrene sheets to the correct size but in two halves. The top and bottom halves could then be angled in at the top and bottom and pushed in together in the middle creating a very tight fit. I cut two of the rows approximately 20% and 80% of the panel size as the door's reinforcing rails would then cover the joins. The sheets have been in place for 5 years now and none have popped out. I also glued wall wrap (foil) behind the foam. I also corrected my mistake of not ordering the west facing door in white by painting it white to reflect the afternoon summer sun.
Thanks for sharing your results with us! Can you do a video on how to weather seal the perimeter of the garage door and the frame?
You can buy a foam insulation kit from some local Garage door companies. They will be cut to the right height 21" for the top and bottom and 16" for intermediate sections. They will be 8'ft. long so you cut them about in half depending on the width between the vertical styles where the hinge's mount. they often have a thin white PVC pebble tec finish backing skin so the whole door is white inside. This is easy to clean when you get dusty spiderwebs on the back of the door. They are not cheap because the Garage door company wants to make a healthy profit as it is a specialty item. They are installed the same way the insulation was installed in this video. They are a snug fit and it is a bit of a wrestling match to get the panels in place. I could insulate a whole door in about 2 hours but I have a lot of experience. If I were to do this I would compare the price of the kit versus the cost of enough sheets of Owens -Corning insulation to complete the job at your local Home Depot. If you Garage gets Western sun in the afternoon this will keep the garage much cooler. However, if you pull your car into an insulated Garage after your commute home it will also keep the heat from your hot engine in the garage. The insulation will add weight to your garage doors spring(s). They may need to be adjusted to get the door to open smoothly. Call a pro to adjust the spring. It will be much cheaper than a trip to the Emergerncy Room if you try to do it with out the proper tools and knowledge and some thing slips. If you try and get hurt you will still have to call a pro to get it done. Trust me. Springs can kill. Let a pro take the risk.
You’re doing it wrong then you want the reflective kind with the reflective part facing outwards. The panels are literally under $100 to do a 2 car garage and you don’t need to adjust the springs
@@Just_A_Name14so both the youtuber and this commenter are doing it wrong?
Definitely need to seal around the edges of the door. My garage door is 16’ x 7’, and it really flexes inward in a strong wind, which lets rain and snow to get inside past the seals. Some things that have helped with that problem are: brush seals for outside surrounding the door, the ‘Green Hinge System’, a double-bulb rubber bottom seal, and a threshold seal. These four things have made a significant impact in reducing water and snow intrusion. Thanks for the video.
Be careful doing this, make sure you leave a little gap and to not seal the door air tight or you might start getting mold if you don't already have temp control.
Great points. I noticed while I was shooting some thumbnail pics that just standing next to the door I felt a breeze and, after feeling around, it was coming from the gap at the top of door. I haven't yet installed the seals (I thing I'm going to seal the living daylights out of this thing) so that makes sense but it's crazy how well that cold (or hot) air finds a way in. I recently finished installing rock wool through the garage and will be installing a mini split soon so it should be very comfy in there by the time I'm done.
@@smody121 I agree,but there’s still some air intrusion even with those things installed. For my needs, they have really helped to reduce the wind driven rain and snow from blowing into the garage. My cement slab can form some serious condensation under the right conditions, which is why I installed a cheap, small ceiling fan. And my garage walls aren’t insulated yet. Maybe some day.
@@127001er Good to hear you haven't had any problems yet. Getting air controlled garage is the holy grail. To be able to work on my car in the comfort and cleanliness of my garage... what a dream
I can vouch for the green hinge system! Those hinges along with an extra bit of weatherstripping on the outside of my garage door has completely eliminated any drafts around the door. I'm in Chicago so that is very important when I'm trying to heat the garage and it's 0 degrees out in January.
Do you have a measure of how the ambient temperature in the garage has changed? I'm interested in how much of a difference this made. Thank you.
Thanks for this video. I bought six 4 x 8 sheets and did both the double and single garage doors, with hurricane braces, in about 4 hours. One of the easier home DIY projects I've done. I have yet to seal them in place with spray foam but the individual boards are staying put, no problem.
I appreciate you letting us see your mistake and how you fixed it. Thanks!
I did my garage roof with the 2" pink board and tried many ways to cut it, and then I tried my Oscillating tool with a half moon bit and scored it fast deep and straight and just snapped the rest.
My garage door just died. It was 24 years old and had many added braces to repair fatigued metal and such. But it finally gave up the ghost, jumped the track, and almost fell on the car. it was time. Guess what? You can buy new doors that are heavily insulated with R10 or even higher. Metal on both sides, insulation in the middle. And it wasn't that much of a percentage more money than the cheaper non-insulated one. 15% to 20% more or so. More? Yes. But not double the cost or anything. Now it is well insulated, and also far stronger and rigid. Now, it's very much like an insulated steel front door. Big improvement. So, if you are at the point of getting a new door anyway, look at higher end double-wall insulated ones.
Thanks for the info. I'm on year six of "probably should replace this."
And to really complete the process, consider the spring loaded, self sealing door hinges. They make a HUGE difference.
XPS, including the new NGX, polystyrene foam board is highly combustible and must be covered with a protective or thermal barrier to separate it from a interior living space by code in most areas. Since a garage door is exterior and not to a adjoining living area, it would probably pass code. However, not mentioning that it’s highly combustible to your viewers is a concern. Someone adding a XPS to their garage door that may do work such as welding or grinding, will find out just how combustible it is.
Is there anything that would perform similarly and not be a potential fire hazard?
Id watch a video of someone testing the flammability of different foam boards, and painted with fire retardant paint.
A super important consideration! Especially because a common objective with DIY garage insulation is to use that space as a living space or or as a workshop.
This sounds important and should be pinned
@@MoneyManHolmes Vacuum insulated panels and aerogel can be non-flammable and have very high insulation per inch, but are relatively expensive compared to other insulation. Some foams can include flame-retardant chemicals so they can't sustain a flame and won't spread fire, though they will still be damaged by heat and may give off nasty fumes while hot. Cement foam might also be able to qualify in some formulations, though it's not as common as other options and might be too brittle for something like a garage door.
Sorry if this is a duplicate comment. Installation of this material as suggested is unsafe. Per the manufacturer, "Owens Corning Foamular products are combustible and must be covered by a 15-minute thermal barrier such as 1/2" drywall. We do not recommend using Foamular to insulate a garage door. There are better choices such as the Owens Corning Garage Door Insulation Kit. Thank you for your inquiry!"
By the way, I like your content overall and am not trying to pick this apart. I am an infrequent commenter. To clarify my comment, this is a fire hazard.
@joshuabourdon8110 Agreed on the flammability problem. Putting a coat or two of white paint over the foam will markedly reduce its flammability (and make it look nicer, too!)
everyone commenting this... are yall using fire right next to your garage door?
@@joshuabourdon8110 My whole house is flammable so I am not too concerned about it. But then again, I'm not really a "read the label" type of person.
@vitalsteve1 actually... yes! If you do any welding/ferrous grinding/or anything with a torch there might be issue. Personally I made inner panels from a plastic wall covering sheet material thats really thin from Lowe's, want to say tufted makes it and it's hdpe (milk jug plastic) but I may be remembering wrong. It's WAY cheaper and lighter than FRP... I'd build my whole shop out of frp if it wasn't so pricey. It's genuinely indestructible. Literally one of the best products ever developed by Uncle Sam 😆 it's genuinely urine proof, and it's mostly seen in public bathrooms.
Nice. This would be a worthwhile upgrade for my simple garage door even without the full seals. My primary trouble is extreme heat radiating through the door on summer afternoons and this would work nicely to lessen the heat buildup in my garage.
I did this a few months back just based on my own knowledge. I prob could have checked the internet for best methods. Pretty happy about my choices. 😎
Watching you put the wrong size panels on the top and bottom was driving me crazy. Glad to see you went and fixed it.
Best way is to probably make a grid ahead of time and measure each panels, just in case the top, bottom, or sides are different.
Good job, definitely will reduce heat transfer..depending on where you live, your code might require you to cover the panel (fire hazard).
Thanks for making this video. I’ve been wondering what to do on my garage door and you saved me the research time. I like that you put the printed side inside. Looks 1800SUPERPRO
The last insulation install on our garage door made the door very heavy. The spring needed adjustment. Just went with a lighter insulation. The heavy foam insulation caused the garage door to not stay open.
Thanks, I'm going to check if 1.5" fits my garage door. been meaning to do this forever
@ 7:36 - automatic "like & sub" for THAT alone. Bruv...one of THE honest & transparent DIYers I've watched. TOTALLY keepin it real!!! Thanx for your info & honesty. 😇💙🙏🏾
Ok that works and looks good but you made way more work then you needed to do. Once you score the foam board just break it, done, doesn't matter what the cut looks like, you'll have the nice clean score line and the rest of the cut didn't matter, it's in the door you can't see it Also you should have cut them at the 17-1/4" you needed. Then you put one edge in and give it a little bend and pop the other edge in. It'll fit tight, no spray foam needed and the lip on the garage door panel holds the foam in.
All this explaining...you could gave made your own video.😁
@@derfskittlers6125or you could had said nothing. 🤡
Good points but don’t forget there are lips on three sides, not just two. That definitely complicates things.
@@derfskittlers6125lol all that explaining? Score it, break it, snap it in.
Additional info is great thank you
Looks great, you may want to spray foam in the C channel to provide more R value, since the metal C channel will help bring the cold in.
In live in Florida and it's required to have hurricane bars horizontally across the door. Mine has 5 huge bars which I would need to remove in order to install foam panels.
Please be aware that rigid foam insulation is highly, highly flammable, and by code is not allowed to be exposed on interior finishes. And garages tend to be a location with open flame and where most house fires start. Better a proper three-layer insulated garage door with metal panels on both inside and outside faces to meet requirements in many jurisdictions and safe practice.
Hi. Do you have the name of the panels you’re talking about??? And what R value do they have?? Thanks.
@@jacojaco8436 I'm unaware of any retrofit solutions because of the challenge fitting insulation and protection, combined with the added weight. As Nils illustrates, the insulation alone is challenging, but non-flammable protection adds weight. I've seen people try this with fiberglass batt (non flammable and light weight) but it's loose, can get caught in the hardware, tough to hold in place, and has too much air leakage and lower R than rigid to be an effective insulator, even with foil facing.
Most manufactures I know use options from the factory, for example, a 1000 uninsulated, 2000 insulated interior-protected with polystyrene (barely non-flammable I suppose), and 3000 insulated interior-protected with steel.
Any alternate suggestions on insulation besides purchasing a new door?
Per Owens Corning on Home Depot’s website for this material, “Foamular is combustible and requires a protective barrier or thermal barrier as specified in your Local Buidling Code.”
Like yourself, my garage door panels are not all equal in size so I can appreciate the "oops" moment. I'm getting ready to insulate my two double garage doors, but plan to use Johns Manville polycyanurate 1" insulation. First of all it's rated R-6, and secondly it is foil backed, which I will place against the inside surface of the doors to reflect the suns heat. I need all the help I can get in Arizona.
Great video - thanks!! I just ordered that rubber bottom garage door seal! Built our house 10 years ago and notice you can see a little light under the door and a little water / snow can get in. I just inspected to seal that's on there now and oh my God it's horrible! So excited to get this new seal tomorrow! I'm going to look at those panels also. Thanks again!!!
These videos help garage door repair companies out in the long run. A lot o cracked top panels and stripped gears from people doing this and not changing to the proper springs for the new weight of the door.
I did the same and worked great. A knife with a longer blade works better though
I helped a friend do his. We used a long bladed razor knife. It makes it way easier.
With garage door, you are trying to reduce radiant heat gain/loss. Foil backed polyethylene foam (bubble wrap) radiant barrier is the better choice and be sure to leave an air gap between the door and the barrier.
I might try that in my garden shed!
Temps are cooling down in Florida so I'm looking at radiant barrier and garage door insulation projects. I'm going to do the combo of radiant barrier against the face of the door then the 1 1/2" NGX with foam edges. The attic is going to be fun. Not as nimble as I used to be.
There are versions of the foam board that have relief cuts in them so you can bend them a little to fit them in the "C" part on the sides, bottom and top of the door.
I used a gun for canned foam to fill all those C cavities and make sure all parts were as insulated as possible. Because those cavities have holes, you can spray foam into the cavity after the install instead of pulling anything off. ALSO, I have windows across my top row. I cut 1” board to go around those. Worked out really well. Wish I could post pics here to share.
I have windows as well. I was just thinking as I was watching this how I'd work around them. Would like to see your pictures if you can find a way to send them to me or post them.
@@diggndeeper I have four windows as well. I'm just going to make a template with a cutout for the window and I think I can just place the foam cutout over the window. We'll see how it goes.
Nice video - would have liked to see the seal install.
Pro-tip from an avid DIY’er that’s also in his 60’s.
In order to do it thoroughly right?, you have to take the screws out of the hinges allowing you to get a bigger piece nestled or nested into place taking up the entire panel void-space.
No need for messy spray-foam crap.
So you're saying you can cut to 17.25" and they would fit perfectly? I would think there would be more waste? But to get a perfect fit WITHOUT the foam spray then it would be worth it.
@@JJP1960 it’s arduous to take out the hinge screws in order to do each panel - But I’ve done my own garage door & I did my daughters last year in the middle of July.
Slow & steady, measure twice cut once & man-handle each foam panel into place.
It’s not fun, But it’s nice, neat & not so messy without having to use a $20 can of spray foam.
I have been looking for several months for the 1.5“ NGX. It doesn’t seem to be available anywhere. Only 1“ or 2“ are available.
At 38 dollars a sheet for NBX that is not very economical so i did Mr Fred DIY a little more time consuming but works great
Great job, and thanks for the information on the weight of the doors changing
Curious if laying a radiant barrier on top of the foam would further help with retaining heat in the garage.
I help a friend do his door. After work on totally redoing a house he had a roll of the reflective insulating stuff left. We cut sheets of that and put it in each panel first. Then he had 1.5" foam board left, the type with the foil on one side. We filled the panels with that foil facing in. So there is foil on the outer side of the foam and the inner. We used expanding foam to be sure all the recesses were filled. We also used foil tape to cover the gaps. Most stuff he had left over from doing the house, except enough foam, one more foam board, and he had a roll and a half of the foil tape left from redoing the HVAC and I got some of the tape from my bro who has done HVAC for 40+ years...needed a bit more to finish it. The door no longer gets hot and it faces south and in the winter you put your hand on the outside of the door and it is cold, there is no heat escaping. The foil board inside cleans easily and it reflects light, we noticed that right away. He had a broken door spring already and he replaced it with a heavy duty one.
I love these types of experiments!
Looks amazing! I’ve been wanting to do this for years. The spray foam is a good idea, thanks
Great video. I had no idea how much heat went through my garage door until I got a thermal camera for Christmas. Now I am wondering what to do about the windows I have in my door.
You could tint the windows with the reflective tint.
Hard to say exactly what to do not seeing the door, but to still pass light you put a insulated panel on with the window area cut out and put a sheet of Lexan in that hole. The air gap would give some insulation value.
Would you not have to cover the foam for fire rating?
LOL you answered the one question that was on my mind right at the end ! The added weight to the garage door ! Thanks ! Great video!
Great video. Is this pointless if my garage has two vented screens on one wall? Garage door is NOT vented, completely sealed, but one of the walls in the garage is vented to bring in some air for safety reasons?
I am new to the insulation stuff...Seeing your video feels like I should be able to handle this project quite easily. Thank you for explaining in so much detail and also sharing testing out which one is better than the other. Really appreciate this level of details.
I have a question...If I were to add multiple layers of insulation, Let's say 2 layers of double reflective insulation, will it be better than 1 layer of double reflective insulation ?? Maybe not?
Double the amount of foam. Cut the foam lengthwise to cover the C Channel, trim the height to clear the garage door brackets. You will essentially be covering 70% of the door with R 13 which is way way better.
Had you cut the height of the panels from the inside of the top and bottom C-channels, and then cut all the panels in half length-wise, you could have avoided the spray foam altogether by first inserting the bottom half of the panel and then inserting the top half of the panel.
The actual material name of that foam board is XPS, Extruded Poly-Styrene. I use it for a lot of projects and my favorite way to make long, straight cuts is with a table saw.
Yes, or a track saw. Excellent way to cut this material.
Any kind of saw just makes a huge mess. Knife/razor is the way to go.
any special blade to do this?
@@ScottsGarage17 I just use whatever wood blade happens to be in my saw at the time. I believe any wood cutting blade will do.
Yep after using a table saw I can't stand scoring it now.
Thumbs up just for the foam removal, ILMAO!
What do you recommend for a garage door that doesn't have those tracks/channels?
People are eating you alive in the comments 🤪. Great project. I like the suggestion of someone here of cutting the panels in half before installing.
And good job on 1) admitting you didn’t do it quite right, 2) fixing it, and 3) alerting us the same could happen to us. Thanks.
For the comments... I'm used to it. Being on UA-cam means you put content out there and everyone tells you why you're wrong. In many cases the points are totally valid and I learn something that I simply wasn't able to find during my research. I also get plenty of kind and supportive comments which I appreciate. It's all part of the job. Thanks for watching and for your kind words, my friend!
Nice job. Looks good.
Hi Nils, I would like to know how many cans of spray foam you went through. I am trying to prepare to replicate what you have done. I have a 16x7 door like yours. Thanks for all your videos, they are helping me be better.
Light bulb for me on the added weight. Thank you!
Nice video. I'd just like to mention that only the heat transfers in or out. Cold doesn't.
Thanks for sharing. Now would this be great for a garage with no venting as well??
Ready for the next video about the spring I want to do this but scared to adjust spring
I'm also curious about how he'll do the springs, I've been a door tech for a long time and I know that depending on how much weight he just added on, a simple adjustment won't work properly. There's also the tool issue, unless my guy purchased torsion spring winding bars it can be dangerous to add tension. I've tried a lot of improvised tools when I needed it and some work but I've also been hurt by the ones that didn't.
I've already done the spring replacement. I bought winding bars and went through the entire process of weighing the door (with insulation) and getting the properly rated new springs for the new door weight, then VERY carefully removing the old and putting in the new. It was a pretty reasonable experience but half the video (that is coming out) is about safety. I know it can be a dangerous process.
New video is out! ua-cam.com/video/xOXO01rdZ5c/v-deo.html
How many boards did you use there not including the mistake?
You earned a like for the spray foam removal. I honestly would have left it as good enough instead of digging it out.
A couple questions:
1. I'm measuring 2" from deepest point to the lip, so should I go with 2" foam or should I get thinner boards to make room for spray foam?
2. Do you recommend 1" spray foam for the edges?
BTW: I checked out Home Depot today and almost all the foam boards (not just the ones from NGX) were crushed in various places. They only had two NGX boards and both had damage, so I'm hoping I can get four good ones.
I used the foamular ngx to insulate my garage door after watching your video approx 2 months ago. I then used Big Gap filler around the edges as noted. Today I am noticing in the upper and lower corners of each panel it looks like the board is having a chemical reaction of some sort and is breaking down. Look almost like someone took a lighter to it. burnt styrofoam look. Any ideas?
I used single side reflective, on thr interior side it is white.
However during install i stuck it to the support struts, creating an air pocket between the insualtion and the garage door..
I notice when you did the test st the start, you sruck the reflective insulation directly to the garage door.
All the DIYers ive followed have shown its far more effective creatinf an air pocket in the door, bexause obviously air doesnt transmit temperature as well - similar to the way a dry suit works much better for divers.
Did you stack 1” and 1/2” sheets? Can’t find 1.5” thickness anywhere. Great video!!
I LIKE THE BEGINNING.
In case this helps anyone, the big box stores near me don't carry the same things:
Lowes:
$46.48 - FOAMULAR F-150 | 1.5" Thick | R-7.5
Home Depot:
$21.58 - FOAMULAR F-150 | 1" Thick | R-5
$43.00 - FOAMULAR F-150 | 2" Thick | R-10
Not sure if you check comments on old videos, but I’m curious how it holds up to static electricity and shop dust (like sawdust)
Really surprised that this insulation did better than the ones with a radiant barrier. Wondering how I can add that as well.
Explain how this is going to stop the thermal bridging between the panel?
Good job addressing the springs, and knowing that it is easy to do yourself!
This may be fine for temperate climates, but not in Arizona when the sun shines on your door. The amount of radiant heat transferred by all that exposed metal not covered by the foam board (the joints and sides) is still enormous. It's just one giant heat sync. I'm wondering if there's some type of coating that can be applied to the entire inside surface.
Paint the outside of your doors with the most reflective (mirror type) paint available plus that will really piss your neighbors off.
there's a pretty snug fit there with the foam and insulation. is there any concern with binding of the garage door panels as it raises/lowers with inherent expansion/contraction as the temp fluctuates?
Thanks for posting. I am about to do this and your video will save me time and headaches - Cheers 🍺
Late to the party obviously, Im curious if it would be worthwhile to get brushes or something that sit between the garage panels, in order to seal the door better when its closed.
I have sold garge doors for 25 + years. Your garage doors springs are calibrated to the factory weight of the doors. The spings are the doors counter balnce system that lifts the weight of the door making it light and easu to open. When you add weight to a garage door, you are throwing the counterbalance of your door off. After adding weight, the springs need to be recalibrated. This is done with a special scale that a garage door service company would have. In other words, you can't just add insulation to a garage door that wasn't designed for it. It will eventually take your open out.
How much weight did he add? 11lbs? Lol
Once they Wear out replace the springs ???? 😂
Not with the same size springs ?????. LOL@@_unkown404rror_9
Did you finish the video? 10:04
I wonder if you could use some thick rope to fill in the gaps instead of the foam and if it would be effective insulation too?
I have similar, I was wondering if you could do each section in halves along the long dimension, and push each half in to the groove at the top and the bottom so the foam goes in to where you put the spray foam, they should jam in against each other, or a thin strip of something could be put in from top to bottom to hold them in.
Instead of using foam what about neatly applying some tape?
@LRN2DIY - My main requirement is to insulate garage for cold weather and use it as my Gym .I am in NW Portland Oregon where temperatures avg 40 in peak winters . So far I tried doing only reflective material to insulate the garage but it did not make any difference I would say at all.. how do I solve this problem to keep cold outside of the garage is it even possible?
Good Stuff LRN2DIY !!! Nicely done! You make it look easy, I always wanted to do this project.
Thank you for this. What about roll up garage doors?
There is one issue with this project - weight. If your springs are old or not big enough the extra weight (even though it's not a lot) could shorten their life. I learned from experiencing it. but after the technician replaced them with heaver springs all is well and the insulation does its job.
This isn’t an issue unless you have springs that need to be replaced anyways, brother. This foam is no where near the weight which would cause an issue. Again, if this is a concern, your springs need to be replaced with or without the foam.
F = -kx
so i too want to cool down my garage went to a local auction company and picked up 20 panles of 2 in foam board for $125 then started researching on how to glue or tape them in. saw you video at number one and i watched it, then watched the previous one. so then i checked the temps in my garage and my door was about 105* and walls were about 110. then i checked my roof and it was 135*. i saw you house has a room above it so you dont have to worry about heat from the top. would using 2" foam for the roof be a good idea also?
What type of healing do you use to keep the place wormer.
Several models of the Milwaukee fastback do you suggest. Many shown on HD web. Thanks
Rivet a thin metal sheet over it or use intumescent paint.
Nice job . But after looking at the product specifications , it looks like it’s not fire rated .
What can you do for the sides? From the inside.
Measure once, cut twice. That’s my motto! 😅
Does it really make that much difference to do the foam to fill in small gaps? In my case I was interested in reducing radiant heat from the metal panels in the afternoon summer sun. It did help a lot. However there is always air and not much insulation going on around the door edges where there is typically a thin vinyl weather flap. Heat and cold will always be leaking around there.
How much heat radiates through the internally exposed sheet metal?
I would think the reflective under the foam would give the best results.
Does the extra weight from these panels affect the garage door opening power? Thanks.
Oops, he just answered my question at the end. Thanks!!
When I purchased my garage doors I got them already insulated. Would it be worth the time and expense of changing out the insulation. Mine also leak lots of air at the joints between the panels.
Hello. Did you also have to make adjustments in spring tension on your garage door since there is an addition to the weight of the garage door lift and retract?
Put some green hinges on that door to really up the efficiency
Just stumbled on your channel. I love watching videos on energy efficiency. This is a great idea and surprised more people don't do this. I personally, don't know anyone that has done this, ever.
That's because you need to have your garage springs adjusted for the new weight afterward. And most installers will then tell you to replace your springs. This causes spring failure.
I would love to see another video dealing with the sealing and noise of the door I've been researching some products but don't know if it's worth pulling the trigger on them
ThermoTraks sealing system
ThermoTraks bottom seal retainer and seal
Green Hinge spring loaded energy sealing hinge set
Dura-Lift / ThermoTraks nylon rollers
Quiet / silent roller sleeves
A tube of lithium grease on the big top spring helped my noise
White lithium. Put the whole tube on with gloves 🧤
I did this a few years ago. The added weight broke the assist spring and put huge load on the opener.