Having a wooden garage door for your home is a great way to increase its curb appeal, thanks to the beautiful aesthetics. If you are thinking of getting a new garage door made of wood, you might be wondering how easy it is to maintain it as opposed to garages made from other materials. The truth is, wooden garage doors can be very durable if you give it regular, proper maintenance so you can enjoy it for a long time.

Regular Inspection & Repair

With metal garage doors, you usually have to worry about dents. Wood garage doors, however, do not dent. They crack and rot if they are not cared for. We would advise that every few months you make a close inspection of the garage door — front and back — to see if you can find any cracks, holes, gaps, chipped paint or stain, and general wear and tear.

Any of these can allow water to seep into the wood, which is what can cause the more serious problems that you wouldn’t be able to notice right away. If there are larger, more serious instances of damage you might want to contact professionals to repair it, but if there is just slight damage you can fix it yourself through…

Cleaning & Sanding

You can give your wooden garage door semi-regular cleaning to clear it of any built up debris and dust and dirt. We advise that you use a brush that has stiff bristles made from non-wire material. Less regularly, you can give it a fine sanding with the grain, not against it, to smooth out any bumps or creases caused by wear and tear.

What cleaning does is help prevent any of the build up from getting into cracks or holes in the wood, making them bigger and causing damage within the wood. How often you do it depends on where you live and how quickly any build up occurs, but in general it’s a good idea to give it a quick look every couple of months to see if it needs a cleaning. It doesn’t have to be the same as a thorough inspection mentioned above.

Reapplying Paint & Stain Finish

After you have inspected and cleaned your wooden garage door, you can reapply the finish to seal the wood and prevent any water and other debris from getting into the wood and damaging it, which can require more serious repairs. Finishes can be done with things like:

• Paint (oil or film)
• Stain
• Varnish

Varnish and film-based paint only really offer surface protection, and they are more likely to crack and flake due to the movement of the door opening and closing, so it will require more frequent touch ups. Stains and oil-based paints actually penetrate the wood itself to offer deeper layers of protection. Again, make sure you apply the finish to both the outside and inside surfaces. We would advise that you do a thorough cleaning and re-application of your finish at least once a year to get the most mileage out of your wooden garage door.