Insulating steel doors

[bobj49f2]

I have searched and found many posts about insulating non-insulated overhead steel garage doors. None of the examples were what I wanted. I am going to use my pole building for my business and I want to be able to keep them looking nice. I will need to wipe them door every so often. I found a few kits I liked, one made by Matador and the other Cellofoam. Both have a styrofoam sheet with a plastic face for easy cleaning. Also, when installed they are close to looking like premade insulated doors, the look I prefer.

First, I have two doors, one 10x10, the other 10x14. To buy enough of their kits to do both doors would be close to $500, is using the Cellofoam kit which is the lowest price of the two. Also, their basic kit is for doors with doors with panel heights of 20", my doors have 24" panels. Matador makes a kit for this sized door but are even more cost. Cellofoam? I have no idea, I called them twice, leaving a message and never getting a call back. The second time I talked to a live person who said she'd have someone who knew more than her call me back, never did so I am giving up on them.

Here's what I came up with. To experiment I bought one 4x8 sheet of 1" styrofoam from Menards for $6 and a 4x8 sheet of 1/8" washable plastic for $20. I cut pieces of styrofoam to fit four openings. I cut three pieces to make installing the styrofoam into the channels of the door. I then cut the plastic a little smaller than the styrofoam and slipped it into the opening. I think the result looks pretty good. Now that I like the results I'll buy enough materials to finish both doors.

Sorry about the quality of the pictures, for some reason they turned out crappy.

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[S Vier]

I did what you are doing but I used extruded polystyrene instead of the expanded. It’s just what I had laying around. I then bought a roll of foil faced bubble wrap or “radiant barrier” and cut them to size. I slid them in over the foam after I sprayed the backs with adhesive. It might be close to the look you want. It definitely works. My garage is toasty.


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[In The Doghouse]

That looks nice. Bet it will make a big difference in climate control.

 

[SuperCat]

Clean professional result - looks like it came from the factory that way. Thanks for posting your solution, I don't have roll up doors yet, but they are definitely in the near future. I particularly like the 1/8" plastic panel idea, that is going to be easy to clean and long lasting.

 

[Jrad235]

You may find that you need to have the door re-sprung after you are done, depending on the current springs and if you have an operator on those doors or not. Depends on how much weight you are adding. Just a heads up.

 

[CombatNinja]

Looks good

Why did you piece the insulation and not just make it a single piece per panel?

 

[PassnThru]

Looks good

Why did you piece the insulation and not just make it a single piece per panel?

If you cut it into two pieces (preferably at an angle) then you can fit it into the space where you have an overhang on each side easier and get full coverage. You aren't trying to bend all four edges to get it in the space. Much easier.
Tape the seam.

 

[bobj49f2]

I didn't tape the joints, I have the pieces very snug.

Tonight when I tried to open the door all the way it wouldn't stay up and I only had the four spaced filled. From what I read on the posts I found I was aware I might have to install new springs. I was amazed just filling those four openings made such a difference. It onky going get heavier but,thats the price to pay to keep warm.

 

[dmdc411]

You can also use 2 inch roofing nails stuck into the sides of the panels using existing holes, to keep them from moving up inside the door panel. I did the same thing, 14 years ago, and just replaced those same 20 year old garage doors with 1 1/2" insulated steel doors. So far, with the heat on, they're awesome! At 10 degrees oat, can't feel the cold wicking through them! Well worth the money to upgrade!

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[bobj49f2]

It's been a while since I first started this post. First, we had a deep freeze and I couldn't work out in the shop because it wasn't heated. Then when it got warmer we worked on insulating the shop. We insulated and covered the walls and ceiling and and installed a ceiling mounted tube heater. Now it's time to start on the door again.

I've changed directions slightly in the way I'm going to insulate the doors. A person I know who works for a company that makes industrial refrigeration units told me he insulated his shop with cast off insulation panels he got for free from the company. He told me he has a lot and I could have whatever I needed for my shop. I went over to his house and what he has is insulated panels, just slightly less than 2" thick, sandwiched between two sheets of thin fiberglass. He has stacks of this stuff with sizes from 18"x8' and 3'x5'. I took a couple of pieces home to experiment with and so far this is exactly what I needed. The panels are almost the exact thickness as the depth of my doors. I had to trim a couple of runs down the center to allow for the two raised areas in the door panels and removed some insulation material on the outer edges to allow me to attach them to the door framework. The best part is the fiberglass outer panels clean off and are smooth and shiny.

This is my first test piece. I had to dado out two grooves to allow for the raised rid of the door.

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This is my first full panel. I stuffed some insulation in the the metal rails before installing the panel to fill the entire area.

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Only 35 panels to go!!

 

[Hot Rod Grampa]

You should weigh a sample section so you are aware of how much it weighs. Like a 2' x 4' section. Then factor how much weight you will add to the door. If about 10 lbs, you may get away with tweaking the torsion springs. If much more consider upgrading to heavier ones calculated for the new weight of the door. Also check that the fiberglass isn't absorbing water. The doors will get condensation and the normal means of drainage is now blocked.

 

[bobj49f2]

I’m sure I’ll have to upgrade the springs. No matter what kind of insulation I use it going to add a considerable amount of weight. I can’t get away without having something in the doors.

 

[bobj49f2]

When back and got a truckload this morning.

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