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Garage Door

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Caution – if there are cracks or uneven surfaces in the driveway floor, the dam cannot prevent water from seeping underneath the dam!

Supplies needed Garage Door

  • 3/4 plywood cut to size
  • Thin sheet of 2 x 4 foot, 1/8 plywood for rain guard
  • 2 x 4-inch board (mounting rain guard and bracing base)
  • L brackets (securing base)
  • Parting strip at least 1/2 wide
  • Wood screws
  • T nuts
  • Screws
  • Parting bead (if needed)
  • Silicone rubber cement
  • Ribbed rubber window seal
  • Garage rubber seal
  • Scissors
  • Drill, (drilling and screwing)
  • Anchor bolts 1 per 7 to 10 horizontal inches
    • 1 per 7 vertical inches
  • Latex paint
  • Brush/roller

 

Instructions for Mounting and Securing The Garage Door Dam

  1. Assembling the Glass Sliding Door Dam:
  • Width Under 7 Feet: Use a single sheet of plywood if feasible. For added support, sandwich additional boards and secure them together.
  • Width Over 7 Feet: Fig 1-3
    • Use the rule of thirds to avoid having joints in the center. For instance, if the width of the garage is 20.5 feet, add 3 inches per side for a total dam length of 21 feet.
    • Employ a tongue-and-groove assembly:
      1. Cut nine boards (width divided by 3).
      2. Position boards with an inner and outer layer, and a center tongue at 3.5 feet.
      3. Fasten using T-screws on both outer sides.
      4. Drill vertical holes approximately every 12 inches along the tongue and outer boards.
  1. Mounting to Siding:
  • When cutting for siding installation, add 3 inches to each side of the dam.
  • Screws should be placed where tongue and walls meet horizontally.
  • Vertical screws should be placed at 13 in distances vertically.
  1. Positioning and Drilling:
  • Align the dam in its intended location and drill mounting holes through the plywood into the frame or siding.
  1. Painting the Plywood:
  • Once all holes are drilled paint all of the boards including outer edges with latex paint to weatherproof the dam.
  1. Adding a Base (if necessary): Fig 5
  • The base consists of 2 x 4 inch wood measured to be wedged between the dam and the raised portion of the garage.  Position each base at the joints of the garage door to provide added support when under load.
  1. Sealing with Window Seal: fig 6

  • Apply window seal along the sections resting against the structure’s wall bringing it down to overlap the weather stripping securing the bottom portion of the dam that is resting on the driveway.

    Caution:  If there are cracks or radically uneven surfaces this configuration is not going to be effective and sand bags are a must.  For these surfaces, use 2 x 4s to act as a support that can be braced against the raised portion of the garage.

  1. Rain Guard
  • Attach a use a 2 x 4 inch board to the inner top of the dam to secure the rain guard Fig 7a
  • Cut rain guard to fit on top of the dam, measuring from the frame to the track groves Fig 7b
  • Because of the tracks the door, one door will be closer to the dam than the other. Cut out the areas to fit Fig 7c
  • Using garage door stripping, cut to fit the length of the rain guard for each side Fig 7d
  • Cut stripping to fit the width of the rain guard. To join them cut them at a 45 degree angle and overlap them to create a seal Fig 7e
  • Use the stripping to create a seal in the tracks by removing sections of the stripping at the point where the tracks are located Fig 7f
  1. Reinforcing with Sandbags:
  • Place sandbags at the dam’s base for extra stability, if needed.
  1. Leak Testing:
  • Spray along the dam’s outer edges with a high-pressure hose to test for leaks, avoiding direct splashes. Verify that no water seeps through the seals.
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