How many types of garage door seals are there?

Apart from keeping the cars inside them safe, garages play a lot of different roles nowadays. They offer storage for different items, or they can provide a place for you to spend your free time. This is why it is a must to keep your garage door clean.

One part of the garage doors that help you in this regard is the garage door seal. 

There are many types of garage door seals available in the market, which serve the same purpose, keeping the garage clean. But all of them work in different methods and have different traits. The vinyl garage door seals are installed at the sides of the doors, while the bottom seals are installed at, well the bottom. There is also the threshold seal, which is installed on the floor, instead of the door.

Let’s take a detailed look at various garage door seals. 

What different types of garage door seals are there?

As you can spend quite a lot of time in your garage, or you need your garage to store items as well as keep your cars, you need it to be in tip-top condition. But sometimes, despite your best efforts, your garage ends up being dirty as leaves, pests, dirt, and even water come into it. This is where garage door seals come into play. 

Garage door seals, which are also known as garage door weather stripping, are seals made mainly of rubber that seal the garage door. This way, no dirt, leaves, pests or water can come into the garage to make it dirty, and potentially damage your items. 

Now, the challenge for you is to know which garage door seal to choose according to your garage door. We have compiled a list of all the garage door gasket types to help you make up your mind. 

1. Vinyl garage door seals

These types of garage door weather stripping are installed on the slides of the garage doors, rather than the bottom, like many other seals later on the list.

This is because after being installed, garage doors can sometimes shift, which creates a gap at their sides. Pests and dirt enter the garage through this gap.

These seals ensure there is no gap along the sides for them to enter. 

2. J-type garage door seal

These are one of the most common types of garage door bottom seals.

They are attached to the bottom of the garage door by single-channel retainers. When the garage door is closed, they make a J-shape on either side of the garage door with the floor, keeping everything from water to leaves out.

They are very versatile, as you can also install them at the sides of a garage door. 

3. T-type garage door seal

A very popular, and probably the most common among different types of garage door bottom seals, T-type garage door seals are mainly made of rubber and vinyl.

When the door is closed, they make an inverted T-shape, which is extremely efficient in keeping out water and debris.

Like the J-type seals, they are also used with single-channel retainers. 

4. Bulb garage door seals

Yet another bottom garage door seal, the bulb garage door seals are mainly made of rubber.

When the door is closed, its shape resembles a bulb at the bottom, while the top look like a T. If your garage door floor is uneven and made of cement, then they are the perfect seal for it, as it can easily spread out on the floor. 

One of the very common overhead garage door bottom seal types in the USA, they are used with single-channel retainers like the aforementioned J and T-type garage door seals. 

5. Beaded garage door seals

Unlike the previous three types of garage door weather seals, beaded garage door seals are used with double-channel retainers.

As double-channel retainers are attached to the garage door in two different places, both sides of the seal bend upwards when the door is closed.

These garage door bottom seals are one of the most effective in sealing out water. 

6. Threshold garage door seals

These seals are also garage door bottom seals, but there is a twist to them. Unlike all the aforementioned seals, they are not attached to the garage door. Instead, these door seals are attached to the floor under the door.

They raise the entrance of the garage, so water can not enter through the door. These seals are made of extremely durable rubber and can withstand a lot of wear and tear.

They can even bear the weight of the cars with ease when they move in and out of the garage making them one of the best garage door seals.

7. Brush garage door seal

Like vinyl garage door seals, brush seals are also sometimes installed on the side of your garage door. But you can also see them installed on your garage door’s bottom. These seals are excellent in keeping debris and pests out of your garage.

But, due to their design, these garage door gasket types are not very effective in keeping water out. 

8. Spring metal garage door seals

This type of garage door seal is the only one of its kind that is not made of rubber or vinyl. Instead, the spring metal seal is a kind of metal strip.

This thin strip is attached to the garage door’s bottom, which seals out any water or debris. 

Final Words

All types of garage door seals have the main objective is to keeping your garage door clean. But the best garage door seals will be the one that suits your needs the most. If water getting into your garage isn’t that big of an issue, you can install side garage door seals, like the brush seal. This seal is also suitable for commercial garage doors. 

On the other hand, if you want to keep everything, including water out of your garage, then you should invest in garage door bottom seals, like the J or T-type seals. 

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