You likely have a list of spring cleaning chores or other seasonal maintenance tasks to do around the house, like deep cleaning in certain areas of the home. One often overlooked area in these cleaning routines is the garage door.
The weather in Florida, over the seasons, can have a significant impact on your home’s exterior appearance — especially the garage door. Keeping your garage door well-maintained and properly cleaned will ensure it’s in good working order, all while improving your curb appeal. Discover our garage door cleaning tips and advice below for a clean and well-maintained garage door.
Why Wash Your Garage Door?
Severe weather conditions and regular use and wear mean your door requires proper care and maintenance. For this reason, we recommend washing your garage door at least twice a year and more often if you experience harsh weather conditions. Some of the benefits of washing your garage door regularly include:
- Protects the finish of your garage door: When dirt and grime sit on the surface of your garage door too long, they can wear away the protective finish of the door, making it look dull. Regular washing can prolong the life of your garage door finish.
- Improves your curb appeal: A clean garage door simply looks better and will boost your home’s overall curb appeal. If you’re looking to sell your home, improved curb appeal is particularly useful.
- Maintains the terms of your warranty: Many homeowners don’t realize that regular cleanings are often required to maintain a garage door’s warranty. Neglecting this simple task can void your warranty in some cases.
- Keeps rust at bay: Dust and dirt stuck to your garage door can eventually rust the metal parts. Regular cleaning can prevent rust from forming and protect your door.
- Makes maintenance easier: A clean garage door is easier to inspect, and the act of cleaning can remind you to do a regular maintenance check. It’s easier to notice damage or anything that needs attention when the whole door is clean.
Do’s and Don’ts of Cleaning Your Garage Door
For best results, use warm water and a gentle dish soal to clean the garage door.
If you want to know how to clean exterior garage doors, there are a few do’s and don’ts you should follow:
- Do use the right cleaning supplies: For best results, use warm water and a gentle dish soap to clean the garage door. A soft cleaning tool like a rag or sponge is best. Make sure your rag or sponge is clean so you’re not rubbing more dirt onto the surface of the garage door.
- Do clean all parts of the garage door: Cleaning the outside of the garage door enhances curb appeal, but remember the inside of the door, the tracks and other components. Maintaining those areas will help your garage door opener run properly.
- Do work carefully: Your garage door has many delicate parts, such as the sensors, which need to be in perfect alignment for the garage door to work properly. If you aren’t careful while cleaning, you could misalign these components and need professional help to fix them.
- Don’t use a power washer: It can be tempting to try, but a power washer is likely too harsh for your garage door. Use the spray from your garden hose to rinse instead.
- Don’t oil your garage door parts: Using oil on the mechanisms of your garage door won’t do much to help and could even create stickier surfaces for dirt and debris to cling to.
How to Clean Most Garage Door Types
For almost all types of garage doors, including fiberglass, you can follow these simple steps for cleaning:
- Lightly spray the door with water: Start by getting the door wet, but don’t use too much water pressure.
- Get your soap mixture ready: In a large bucket, combine about 5 gallons of warm water with a cup of dish soap or another gentle cleanser.
- Choose a gentle cleaning tool: Use a soft cloth or sponge to spread your soap solution over the door.
- Work from top to bottom: Use a step ladder if necessary to reach the top parts of the door and work your way downward. Rinse your cloth when it becomes dirty and get more cleaning solution.
- Spray with a hose to rinse: After all surfaces have been cleaned, use your hose to gently spray all over and rinse off. You can let the door air dry or use a new dry cloth to dry it off.
How to Clean Metal Garage Doors
If you have a metal garage door, you can follow the steps above for general cleaning. It’s important to use cleansers that do not have more than 0.5% phosphate to avoid damaging the metal finish. You can use a water and bleach solution to spot-clean stains on metal doors, but don’t mix the bleach with your soap solution — rinse well in between these steps.
How to Clean Wooden Garage Doors
For wooden garage doors, the general cleaning steps listed above will work, as well. After you wash the door, you’ll want to inspect the finish to see if there are any spots where it is wearing thin. If you can see the wooden substrate start to show through, you should prime the trouble spots and apply a new coat of finish.
How to Wash Garage Door Windows
Not all garage doors have windows, but if yours does, you’ll want to take a few extra steps to properly clean and care for your garage door windows. The process is not much different from the rest of the garage door. Here’s how to clean garage door windows:
- Rinse windows with warm water.
- Use the same soap solution to clean off any dirt and grime.
- Rinse away any remaining soap residue.
- Dry the windows with a microfiber towel to avoid leaving streaks or lint behind.
- Replace inserts in the correct places in the garage door.
Contact The Doorman for Professional Garage Door Installation, Replacement and Repairs
Even with the best way to clean your garage door in mind, there’s more you can do to maintain this feature. At The Doorman of Southeast Florida, we understand the importance of keeping your garage doors clean and well-maintained. If your garage door issue goes beyond just a little dirt and grime, we can help. We provide professional garage door services from residential garage installations to garage door maintenance. Contact us today for a free quote for your garage door needs.
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