6 replies to this topic

[verynice]

I was looking at Home Depot at some garage door seals that looks like they might work as good or better as the factory seals. Am I just wasting money trying this?

[Buckwheat]

On my '67 the P.O. used some kind of weatherstripping as the seal and it works great. It looks to be a door type seal a foam rubber with a silky covering on it.

[caseboy]

on my 64 10'nco,i used a seal from home depot that comes in a big roll. i think it's made for a garage door. it's about 3 inches wide and has a "t"lip on both sides. i cut off the lips and trimmed to size.it works great.it's been on for 2 years throughout all kinds of weather. it's still very flexible. we have big extremes here in the northwest.i think it cost me about 15 bucks for 20 ft or so.i'm going to use it again on the 74 10'co i'm working on now.

wes

[CaptDan]

I'm planning on using rubber roofing material. I have some in black I may cut it into 2 inch strips or get some in white from a commercial roofing company. I saw they had it in a roll and thought I could buy a strip the length of the roll and cut strips from that. Anybody know if anyone has tried this? I saw an Alaskan with a black seal and may see if I can find his number to see if he knows what it is.

Dan

[verynice]

Worked out well. I used the garage door harder black "T" type seal (garage bottom)for the lower and cabover portion and the softer type stuff " garage side and top" for the upper seals that attach from the inside and give the final interior seal. I'll update down the road for any problems. Cost was a total of $50

[Cpratt]

Resurrecting this thread. It's been several years... can anyone comment on how the garage door seals held up?

[PackRat]

I replaced the 41 year-old Pirelli seals on my Alaskan when I bought it. Totally frayed and not sealing at all. Reduced to fringe in most places and worn away in others and not sealing out air, bugs or the weather.

 

As to your options from Home Depot or a garage door company....

 

As well designed and shipshape as Mr. Hall could make them back in the day....ya hafta ask yourself one question. Why didn't he use those options as they are clearly CHEAPER alternatives? I'm sure he spent an amount of time considering all options and ended up with the Pirelli seals he used and which are used to this day If I understand how the Alaskans are currently in production. My guess is he found the Pirelli seal option to be the BEST, not the CHEAPEST. Take your cue from there....

 

In any event...the heat and the constant abraision caused by raising/lowering the upper half need a sturdy product that will not wear away, get hard and chip/flake off (well, mine did but only after 41 years!) and conform to the irregularities they slide up/down over.

 

"Any job worth doing, is worth doing RIGHT!"

 

It is just a one or two day task. Probably simpler and easier than the alternatives suggested and, if correctly done, you can probably look forward to good sealing in both the raised and lowered positions with regard to air leaks, dust intrusion when driving and critter defense to an extent.

 

It's your Alaskan, so it's up to you though...