Gaps At Bottom of Garage Door, Causes and When Serious

Gaps at the bottom of the two corners of the garage door is often overlooked. Seldom do we step back and look at this area, but if we did, we may notice that there is a gap. The size of the gap varies from home to home. It often ranges from a half-inch to an inch or two.

When the home was first built, the gap was not there, but over time it appears.

Occurs most often in areas that have expansive soils

Homes in geographic areas with expansive soils are where this occurs the most.

The local building department can tell you if you’re in an area with expansive soils.

Just what happens?

As soils expand they tend to push upward. With garage doors there is normally a header over the garage door and the header distributes the weight above the door to the two sides. This weight then pushes down on the concrete at the two sides, but there is no weight pushing down in the center. Therefore, the center area of the concrete slab pushes upwards leaving a gap at the two sides. When this occurs, it rather common to see that the garage floor is cracked as well, especially at the center areas or at the two corner areas by the garage door. Often, if the floor cracks at the garage door corners, the cracks will be at a 45°  +/-  angle.

Keep the corner areas sealed

If the corner areas are not kept sealed, then rodents may enter in these areas. A good rubber door bottom stop or gasket will often do the trick. It will also help keep the rain from blowing in through the gaps.

When the bottom rubber seal needs repairing or changed, home owners will often do it themselves. Handymen and garage door installation companies likewise do this type of work.