When it’s time for spring cleaning, don’t forget about your garage door. It’s easy to create a spring-cleaning list for all the indoor cleaning necessities, but we shouldn’t pass up on the opportunity to clean the exterior of our homes or buildings either.
Keeping your garage door clean will add to your home or building’s curb appeal and will keep it in good condition as well. Before grabbing your cleaning supplies and getting to it, you should be sure you know how to clean a garage door properly.
Your Steel Garage Door
Steel garage doors don’t need as much gentle care as when cleaning a wooden garage door, but you still need to take care when doing so. Your steel door will be primed and painted. You have a few more cleaning options for steel doors than wooden ones, but here’s what you need to know.
1. Mild Detergent Solution
When cleaning your steel garage door, you can use mild dish detergent, or car wash detergent, to get the job done. To make your solution, create a mixture of 1 cup detergent and a few gallons of warm water together.
Be sure to use a gentle cleaning cloth or non-abrasive sponge to clean the door with the solution. This will protect your garage door from scratches. When done, be sure to rinse all of the detergent solutions off before drying with gentle cloths as well.
2. Diluted Bleach Solution
When there are tough or stubborn stains on your garage door, you can use a bleach solution to spot clean the area. You’ll want to mix your bleach with water to dilute it before using it to spot clean.
Once the stains are removed, you should then rinse your door off ensuring no bleach solution is left. Also, keep in mind that you won’t want to mix your bleach solution with your detergent solution.
Be sure to remove all detergent before spot cleaning with the bleach.
3. Garage Door Wax
After cleaning your steel door, be sure to wax it. Wax your door after cleaning it, and you’ll protect it from various weather elements. The layer of wax will also prevent dirt and grime from building up on your door as well.
Your Wooden Garage Door
If you have a wooden garage door, then you should be aware of the proper cleaning techniques. Wooden garage doors don’t require the same cleaning techniques as steel doors, so be sure to take the time to do it correctly. Here’s what you need to know.
1. Mild Detergent Solution
You can use the same mild detergent solution for a wooden garage door as you use on a steel one. You don’t, however, want to use the bleach solution. After scrubbing your wooden door clean gently, rinse the solution off and allow it to air dry.
2. Priming and Finish Coating
If there are problem areas on your wooden door where the finish is not in good shape, then you might need to have your wooden door primed and finished again. You can look at your door’s manual to determine the best way to do so or hire professionals to do the job for you.
Learn How to Clean a Garage Door Today
You need to know how to clean a garage door before diving into the process. Take into consideration the type of garage door you own before cleaning it.
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