Along with the changes in temperature that the winter time brings come a few new concerns as a homeowner, especially if you live in an area where temperatures dip below freezing often and snow and ice are common occurrences. Your garage door may be insulated, and your garage may even be heated along with the rest of the house. But, it is highly likely that the winter weather will have your garage door frozen closed at one point or another. There is a simple ABC rule set that you should follow if you wake up to a garage door that is frozen shut in the middle of winter.

Always Disable the Automatic Garage Door Opener - If you discover that your garage door is frozen in the morning, you may be tempted to just continually try to open the door with the electronic opener until it starts to move. However, what you will likely end up with is a burned out garage door opener motor instead of a door that opens. In fact, it is actually best if you just turn off the garage door opener altogether if you discover that it is frozen and instead just operate the door manually for the time being. The more times the door tries to open, the more taxing it will be on the unit, and the bigger of a chance it will be that a frozen door will leave you with needing a replacement.

Brush Away Excess Ice and Snow First - Before you grab warm water, a heater, or otherwise, you should clear the area around the base of your garage door. Use a shovel to scoop away snow and chisel away built-up ice that may be holding the door in place. In many cases, just removing the excess debris will free up enough space to circulate a little warmth through open crevices so the door will actually thaw and open.

Carefully Thaw the Frozen Base of the Door - Using warm water, douse the bottom of the garage door where the rubber seal meets the floor from the outside of your house. Have someone else push upwards on the door as you pour, especially if the temperatures are cold enough to refreeze the moisture when it hits the ground. Otherwise, you could just end up making the issue worse by adding more ice to an already frozen area.

Even though a frozen garage door can be a big hassle, it is possible to carefully raise the door with a little effort and patience most of the time. If you are having an excessively difficult time with your garage door freezing often, talk to a garage door repair specialist, like Doors Unlimited, for help.

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