Give Your Garage a Good Inspection! Here are 7 Maintenance Tips You Should Really Know

Save loads of money in the long run with our 7 expert tips on maintaining and inspecting your garage!

Alexander Design Group 

With the warm weather in full swing, now is the perfect time to give your garage a thorough clean-out and full inspection for the upcoming season. There are a few things you MUST watch out for which will save loads of headaches in the future. It’s not just about cleaning and organizing, learn from our expert tips on how to prevent any major problems and future mishaps:

Look Out For Termites and Carpenter Ants

If your garage has wooden walls, keep a close eye for ants. Both termites and carpenter ants can make huge problems for your garage. Termites eat the wood, while carpenter ants make tunnels in it, so if you see trails of sawdust you could have carpenter ants. Chewed wood is often the sign of termites. Don’t try to fix the problem yourself as it’s not an easy thing to do. Call pest control and have them do the dirty work.

Lubricate Hinges and Clean Parts

You might have an automatic door, or an older model on hinges and tracks, but most of them require maintenance. Some newer models come self-lubricated or with plastic parts that need no oil, but if that’s not the case, than you should pay attention. Clean the door parts of dead bugs, grime, dust and whatnot, before oiling. You can use a leaf blower to do it. Make sure you oil the parts at least once a year.

Check Your Door Seal

If your garage doors don’t seal the room shut, you have a problem. Check the rubber seal on the bottom, it’s a replaceable part and can chip away from regular use. Also make sure you’re not hitting the doors too hard as it can twist them.

Keep Your Floor Clean

This might be obvious, but people tend to forget the obvious things. Having a clean garage floor can help you identify potential problems with your car. Maybe you have an oil drip or a similar issue which can easily be noticed on a clean floor. Make sure to maintain and protect your garage floor and use a hose to clean slip hazards or pockmarks made by road salt.

Monitor Your Walls And Ceiling

I’ve had a huge problem a few years back with my garage. I wasn’t paying attention to the roof and the water found its way through the ceiling. Even when I saw it started dripping onto the car I didn’t think of it as anything dangerous. But tuff started to gather on my car’s roof and it took me a couple of hours of rubbing with lemon juice to get it off. If you see mold or moisture, call a licenced contractor.

Best Safety Features on Doors

If you have an automatic door, they usually have a safety feature which makes the door stop if there’s something in the way. Every now and then make sure to test these features to make sure they’re working. You don’t want your child or pet stuck under the automatic doors just because you were too lazy to invest a couple of minutes of your time.

Look For and Repair Floor Cracks

To make sure your garage lasts as long as possible, make sure you maintain and protect your garage. Don’t neglect any floor cracks. Just because they look ‘small’ doesn’t mean they can’t turn into a bigger mess. They are a slip hazard, as well as a potential hazard to your tires. You can try and fix it yourself, using a do-it-yourself patch with a $5 concrete mix from your local hardware store, but those are usually ineffective. Having a professional fix any cracks in the concrete floor is pretty expensive, but it’s a one-time thing and you can be sure it won’t happen again.