Beyond providing security and curb appeal, garage doors play a significant role in regulating your home’s indoor temperature and reducing energy consumption. Here’s a look at the importance of energy-efficient garage doors for Canadian homes.

How Your Garage Door Affects the Energy Efficiency of Your Home

Garage doors serve as a barrier between the indoors and outdoors, directly affecting the thermal performance of your home. In Canadian climates, where temperature extremes are common, an inefficient garage door can result in significant heat loss during the winter and heat gain during the summer. This inefficiency can force your heating and cooling systems to work harder than they need to, resulting in increased energy consumption and higher utility bills.

What Determines a Garage Door’s Energy Efficiency?

Several factors influence the energy efficiency of your garage door, including:

• Insulation. Insulated garage doors help minimize heat transfer through the door, maintaining more stable indoor temperatures year-round. Many of the garage doors in the Creative Door Services^TM lineup have foamed-in-place polyurethane insulation. This type of insulation is applied directly to the inside of the door and expands to fill all the nooks and crannies, creating a tight seal.

• R-value. R-value is another critical factor that determines a garage door’s insulation value. It measures the door’s thermal resistance, so a higher R-value indicates better energy efficiency. If you have an insulated or heated garage, we recommend looking for a garage door with an R-value of 11. If you don’t have an insulated garage, a garage door with an R-value between 14 and 16 is ideal. This will help slow down heat loss.

• U-value. You don’t often hear about U-value, but it's actually a more accurate way to gauge how well a garage door keeps heat in or out. While R-value looks at heat loss, U-value focuses on how fast heat moves through the door. R-value only looks at the insulation's effectiveness. On the other hand, U-value looks at the whole door, including frames, panels, hardware, and seals. It considers how quickly heat travels through the primary materials like insulating foam and metal hardware. Plus, it factors in heat loss from air sneaking around the edges of the door.
  
  U-value ratings range between zero and one. And unlike R-value, lower numbers mean better insulation, so 0.05 is better than 0.10. This can be confusing, as it’s counterintuitive to think smaller numbers are better. However, U-value is an essential consideration when choosing an insulated garage door, and is quickly becoming the new standard rating system for insulated garage doors.
  
  Learn more about The Difference Between R-value and U-Value.

• Design and sealing. Your garage door’s panel joints prevent air leakage and improve energy efficiency. At Creative Door Services^TM, many garage doors we carry come with interlocking slats or tongue-and-groove section joints to keep drafts and extreme weather at bay.
  
• Material and construction. Steel is generally considered one of the most durable and insulating garage door materials. At Creative Door Services^TM, we carry various sturdy garage doors made from steel that won’t easily dent or deteriorate even in extreme weather. For example, the Classic Steel Garage Doors Models 8300 and 8500 from Wayne Dalton are made with two layers of steel and polyurethane foam insulation, providing maximum thermal efficiency.
  

Moreover, we carry a variety of access control systems, like keypads, gate intercoms, and car remotes with Wi-Fi connectivity. With these advanced access control features, you open the door only when necessary and close it remotely, helping you save money on your energy bills and reduce your carbon footprint.

How To Enhance the Energy Efficiency of Your Garage Door

Regular maintenance is the best way to keep your garage door in top condition. Here are a few tips to ensure your garage door is as energy-efficient as possible:

• Inspect the door panels for signs of physical damage and replace or repair them if necessary
• Repair or replace damaged weatherstrip and bottom seals to keep drafts out
• Lubricate the door’s hinges, rollers, and tracks to ensure smooth operation
• Inspect the garage door cables for any signs of fraying or damage
• Keep the tracks clean and free of debris to prevent the door from getting stuck or falling off the track
• Tighten loose hardware, such as bolts or screws, to avoid potential safety hazards
• Test the garage door’s safety features, such as the auto-reverse mechanism
• Test the door’s balance by disconnecting the opener and manually lifting the door

Furthermore, you should schedule a professional inspection at least once a year. At Creative Door Services^TM, we offer a planned maintenance program. Once you sign up for the program, one of our expert technicians will regularly visit your home to inspect your garage door and ensure it’s in good working order. They’ll detect minor problems before they become major ones, saving you from prematurely investing in a new system.

Garage Doors for Canadian Homeowners

At Creative Door Services^TM, our garage doors are designed to provide maximum protection from the elements, including wind, rain, and snow. We carry various models specifically designed for Canadian homeowners to ensure your garage door will withstand harsh weather conditions year after year. We’re committed to providing our customers the best possible service and products. If we carry it, you can rest assured it’s designed to stand up to the test of time.

We also have a variety of garage door openers to fit every need and budget. From basic models to advanced smart openers that connect to your smartphone, we have the right opener for you. You can find us in Kelowna, British Columbia; Vancouver, British Columbia; Calgary, Alberta; Edmonton, Alberta; Fort McMurray, Alberta; Regina, Saskatchewan; Saskatoon, Saskatchewan; and Winnipeg, Manitoba.