Protecting Your Garage Floor From Snow and Ice

Blue Sky Builders, Inc. has been building garages in the Chicagoland area since 1979, so we are very familiar with the typical snow and iced-filled winters we are used to experiencing.

Snow and ice can create a host of problems for your garage. Garages can become a cleaning nemesis in the winter. Ice and snow are tracked in on the garage floor, and people step in this dirty, slushy water and track it into the house. Besides being a cleaning frustration, incoming ice and snow can also cause higher heating bills. Check out the following 5 tips for protecting your garage floors from the ice and snow in the winter from eHow:

Things You’ll Need: electric heather, garage floor mats, garage door sealant kit, insulation, staple gun, electronic stud finder, nails, hammer.

1. Connect a portable electric heater in the garage on cold days and turn it on and off periodically throughout the day. This will keep the garage floor from getting colder and freezing. This will keep cold air from the garage from filtering into the house causing you to have to raise the thermostat.

2. Place mats on the garage floor. Purchase large rubber mats that protect and warm the garage floor. These mats will protect the floor from snow, oil leaks, and spills and will make the garage floor look better.

3. Install a rubber or vinyl garage door weather strip on the bottom of your garage door. You can find weather stripping kits at the local hardware store. Measure the length of your garage door so you purchase a kit that fits your door. Nail the strip to the bottom edge of the overhead garage door. Follow the weather stripping package instructions when installing. The kit includes all the hardware you need. This will keep snow from seeping into the garage.

4. Adhere gasket material sealant between the garage door sections. Purchase this type of garage door sealant at any home improvement store. Cut the sealant to the size of your garage door section, peel the adhering tape off the sealant and press into the door section. Follow the package directions for further installation instructions.

5. Cut insulation to the size of the garage walls. Insert the insulation and staple it to the wall studs about every 12-inches. Cover the insulated areas with gypsum board. Locate the studs under the gypsum board with an electronic stud finder and nail the board to the studs.