Replacing Garage Doors in Richmond's Damp, Low-Lying Climate

Richmond is built on flat delta land close to the water. The high water table keeps ground and concrete damp through the wet season, and the damp air rusts tracks, hinges and springs faster than in drier parts of the region. It gets somewhat less rain than the North Shore but more wind off the Strait of Georgia.

On an older door, that shows up as rusted track, stiff hinges, a door that binds and a bottom seal that has given up. A patch here and there buys time. When the rust has spread through the hardware and the panels are tired too, a full replacement is often the cleaner fix. The damp months are when these problems surface, so that is when most Richmond owners start asking about a new door.

Because Richmond lots are flat, water has nowhere to go and tends to pool at the garage door when the seal is worn. In Steveston, East Richmond and the older parts of Seafair and Broadmoor, we often see bottom sections stained or swollen from years of standing water.

Every new install includes a new bottom seal, and we set the door square so it meets the slab evenly along its width. If the concrete has settled unevenly, a thicker seal can close the gap. New steel tracks and hinges start rust-free, which matters in this climate. Keeping the seal in good shape afterwards is the best way to protect the new door.

Many of the 1960s to 1980s ranchers and two-storey homes on Richmond's wide lots have been replaced by large new houses with double and triple garages. Those homes tend to have heavier insulated doors, and opener failures on large double doors are a regular Richmond call. When we quote a new door, we check whether your opener can lift it and say plainly if it should be replaced at the same time.

Townhouse complexes are common across Richmond, from Hamilton to Thompson, and many stratas control door style and opener changes. Get approval first and send us the approved style. City Centre around Brighouse is mostly condo towers with commercial parkade gates, which we don't install.

We also cover nearby Delta, Vancouver, Burnaby and New Westminster.