Prepping for garage HVAC

[wrigh003]

Hi all-

Haven’t been through in a while, but finally am back on garage improvements. Life been lifing- teenagers keep you hopping. Anyway- recently got a couple circuits added for welder and bigger compressor, which is exciting and all, but as part of that I also got a circuit put in for a mini split hopefully not far down the line. Garage is a very-standard builder-grade garage… just full of tools and a project car and fam stuff and and and.

Question for today- this is the backside of my garage door. IF this door has any insulation inside it, it’s not much. I kinda suspect it doesn’t- this is a DR Horton house and while it’s been fine overall, I don’t think they spent one cent more than required (especially on insulation and electric) and so…

I live in AL and usually my main concern is keeping heat out, but we’re also been feeling the chill this week with temps in the single digits. Is 2” foam board still the best I can do here, just cut to fit and glue up on back of the panels? Anything special to do to help cover the parts that need to bend/ articulate, or am I overthinking and just adding the panels to the 90% of the door they’ll cover will do as much as will get done?

 

[slomaro3.4]

Interested in this as well, my door is I think the same design. I was told it's "insulated" but I think that means like a half inch of styrofoam or something. When I measured up to the ridges I think I can only fit 1.5" foam board in mine. Don't ask about the snow in the corner

 

[AC-WC]

It looks like you have the lightest insulation door around 6.3? Next options are 9, 12.9 and then 18.4. My small garage has the 6.3 if you're trying to heat you will need the foam insulation kit as 6.3 is really not much but way better than plain steel/no insulation. My large garage has the 9 and there is a big difference. The higher rated doors generally have steel liner on the inside to help protect the foam.
I've never used the insulation kits but there's not many options for store bought versions. They are generally much nicer than gluing 1.5" foam boards.
For your neck of the woods are you air conditioning the garage? Is the door south facing i.e. radiant sun heat?

 

[DaChev]

I used small foam blocks to keep an air gap between the door and the foam board. The air gap significantly increase the effective R-value. This is pretty important because adding additional weight can cause issues with the spring.

 

[ernieg]

I bought 2 inch foam panels, cut them to size, and used adhesive to stick them in the panel areas. I then used foam insulation spray to fill in any small gaps. Made a big difference. I also replaced my hinges with the 'green hinges' which push the door up against the seal when closed. That made a massive difference as well. Keeps the Kentucky cold out for the most part.