How To Weather Protect Your Garage The Easy Way

Eliminate unwanted air infiltration, weather protect, & keep pests out of your garage with this easy installation

This project is sponsored by ThermoTraks 

If you create a gym they will come…

I’m the “they” & I am really hoping it’s true 😅

Welcome to phase 1 of our detached garage turned into home gym renovation! 

When we first laid eyes on this detached garage, Adam had big big plans for a home gym.

I like the idea of having a home gym but I honestly think I will like renovating & designing it a whole lot more than actually using it…

But Adam will be happy & I’m sure Eli will be right in there with him, I will bring out the snacks 😉

This home gym renovation is going to have to happen in phases though because a lot of work needs to be done & things are expensive y’all! 

Phase 1 will include: cleaning it out, replacing the garage door tracks, painting the garage door, adding new lighting, painting the floor, & installing an automatic garage door opener

Let me gross you out with a before photo before we get started: 

I know, I know it’s bad but it’s about to get a whole lot better I promise! 

We have been using this garage to store all the random things we weren’t quite ready to move into the house yet.

The issue with this is the current garage door doesn’t close or seal properly so critters are also trying to occupy this space… not good. 

Luckily, ThermoTraks an industry leader in sealing garage and sectional doors from unwanted pests, is available to ensure our future gym remains the perfect place to sweat it out!

So the first thing that needed to happen was a major sell, donate, keep extravaganza (that word makes it sound fancy doesn’t it 😉)!

Still not great, but a major improvement & now we can be onto the next part of phase 1: weather protecting the garage! 

The garage needs to be weather protected because Phase 2 involves installing insulation, adding laminate floors to half of the gym, & putting up drywall.

Also because finding dozens of acorns, families of spiders, & other questionable things inside your boxes isn’t really ideal…

We probably should have corrected the garage seal sooner but it never crossed my mind😅

Weather protecting the garage with ThermoTraks will keep the temperature more consistent, eliminate unwanted air infiltration, & my favorite part, keep the pests out! 

This sounds complicated but ThermoTraks has a step by step guide and easy to use tutorials, any handy DIYer can easily accomplish this!

Supplies: 

• ThermoTraks
• Ratchet Set
• Staple Gun
• Screwdriver 
• Measuring Tape

Weather Protection Installation

How To Weather Protect Your Garage The Easy Way

First, you will need to measure the existing tracks on your garage door.

You can find a guide for doing that here.

ThermoTraks kit includes two new tracks, new brackets, fasteners & ThermoTraks Seals in it.

The kit arrived super quick so we were ready to get started ASAP!

1. Setting Up For Track Removal 

To begin installing ThermoTraks, place your garage in the open position & add clamps above the vertical tracks on both sides. 

This will prevent the door from closing unexpectedly during installation. 

We don’t have the automatic garage door opener installed yet so we are ready to go! 

If you do have one, unplug it & disengage it using the break. 

2. Remove Door Jambs

Next, we removed the existing door jamb with a hammer.

Ours were already cracked & broken in certain places so prying them away from the wall was easy (little victories y’all 😅).

If yours are in good shape, set them aside because they will be reinstalled later. 

3. Measure For Future Track Offset

Now it’s time to get some measurements.

Using the lower track bracket, measure the distance from the garage jamb to the existing vertical track.

I also measured from the existing bracket to the edge of the door just for reference. 

We need these measurements so that we can add a ⅜” offset to accommodate the design of the new tracks.

Don’t worry I will walk you through it in step 6.

4. Remove Old Track

Remove the existing fasteners from the existing tracks.

For some reason I thought removing the existing track was going to be hard but everything loosened & came right out! 

5. Attach New ThermoTrak

What makes ThermoTraks unique is the design of the product which creates the positive seal (aka no gaps).

Next, attach the new ThermoTraks track & brackets.

Replace the fasteners but keep them loose for adjustment. 

6. Align Track Using Offset

Once everything is attached, set the vertical track section by adding 3/8” offset to the distance you recorded from the bottom bracket earlier.

Now that the track is in its new position, tighten down all the fasteners. 

7. Align Existing Overhead Track & New Track

Also be sure to align the upper track section with the newly installed vertical track & tighten those fasteners. 

8. Close Door/Inspect Gap

Once everything is aligned, close the door manually & make sure nothing is rubbing.

If it is, add an additional 1/8″ offset to the bottom track/bracket measurement from earlier. 

Inspect the gap distance between the front of the door panel and the garage frame.

Loosen the angle bracket, track fasteners (say that 5 times fast 😅) but don’t remove them! 

Adjust the track to have about a 1/8” gap between the front of the door panels and the garage frame. 

Tighten the fasteners on the track support brackets. 

An approximate 1/8” gap should now exist between the garage frame and the outside of the door. 

This is basically a gap the size of a quarter around the entire perimeter. .

9. Installing ThermoTraks Seal

We are almost done & I can already tell this is a much better fit than the old tracks were. 

Measure the length of all 3 sides of the garage door opening.

Then, cut 3 pieces of ThermoTraks seal to those lengths.

You can use scissors or really fancy gardening shears like me 😉

Close the garage door, remove the adhesive tape, & compress the top ThermoTraks seal first, pressing it firmly into place. 

Follow up with the two side seals. 

The seaIs feel secure, but I also went around the seal & placed a few staples.

10. Install Jamb Stops

Last step y’all! 

Reinstall your old jamb stops using nails or screws.

Ours were super old so we just replaced them with brand new ones

Be sure to start with the top & follow up with the two sides. 

Manually move the garage door up & down making sure the door can move freely & does not bind up anywhere. 

Once our new ThermoTraks were installed, we moved onto painting the garage door.

Next, we painted the garage floor with the same kit we used in our workshop makeover! 

We wanted to wait until after the Thermotraks were installed because they seal out dust, dirt, & critters which are big concerns when painting a floor. 

We also installed Adam’s favorite garage lights & mounted everything for a future automatic garage door opener! 

Now that our garage is weather-protected & can heat/cool more consistently we will move on to adding vinyl flooring, insulating the walls, & adding drywall!

So that wraps up phase 1 of our home gym makeover & I am pretty darn pleased with how easy weatherproofing & pest proofing the garage was! 

It’s definitely a job I thought would need a contractor but it turns out it’s super DIY friendly! 

If you have a significant amount of light infiltration around your doors, that’s a sign your current tracks are allowing energy to escape & critters to come in.

Installing ThermoTraks will solve both those problems thanks to their unique, easy to install tack design.

Here’s hoping the rest of this makeover goes just as smooth! If you have any questions about installing ThermoTraks you can visit their website or watch their tutorial video.