Home Depot Drain Covers | Are They Really the Best Option?

The drain cover in your garage is starting to look a little worn down. Guess you should stop by Home Depot and pick up a new one, right? I mean it’s only about 10 bucks, so why not? Well, you might be surprised how many problems a cheap Home Depot drain cover can cause.

Finding the right drain cover replacement is more important than you might realize. This cover acts as a gateway for any water or other fluids that gather on your garage floor. Garage floors are designed to guide these fluids towards the drain, so they leave the surface as soon as possible. But if you have a low-quality drain, they have nowhere to go.

A drain cover from Home Depot is nearly guaranteed to cause drainage problems, and in turn, a litany of costly issues for your flooring and the rest of your garage. Learn more about why you should keep Home Depot away from your drain below.

Heavy rain, hot summers, and freezing winters are the standard for Ohio. In other words, Ohio weather is going to give your garage flooring and drain covers a beatdown. That means you need the right materials to last through Ohio’s harsh seasons, and Home Depot drain covers simply aren’t up to the task.

The garage drain covers you will find at Home Depot consist of cast iron. Cast iron may sound like a strong choice, but unless you’re planning on cooking steaks on your garage floor, it should probably stay in the kitchen.

These drain covers will start to rust quickly under the pressures of Ohio weather. Issues like corrosion, chipping, expansion, and discoloration can also damage the surrounding floor. This means you will not only have to keep replacing the cover, but you will have to spend even more repairing your floor.

At first, rust doesn’t feel like it needs your immediate attention. Sure, it looks a little unsightly, but that is nothing compared to the other problems it will cause. Before you know it, you will have a stack of receipts for flooring repairs and drain cover replacements.

When a Home Depot drain cover rusts over, it blocks the entrance for water and other fluids to your drainage system. Now, all it will take is a rainy day to flood your garage. This will invite mold and mildew to form in your garage and cause nearly irreparable damage to the concrete and your belongings.

You’re probably thinking, “Okay, I’ll just pull it out,” but you might be in for a surprise. When you start pulling, it feels stuck. You pull a little harder, and the drain cover falls apart, dropping directly into your drainage system. It is out of reach, and you’re back at square one. However, you now have to pay a plumber to fix your drainage system and spend more money than you ever expected.

This might seem a non-issue in comparison to the others, but sizing is still a major problem. Floor drain covers from Home Depot go adopt a one-size-fits-all design, but this simply does not work for garage drains.

If you get one that’s too small, it will jiggle around and chip the concrete. Or, it will just fall into the drainage system. The plumber might as well have you on a weekly schedule at this point.

If it’s too big, it will stick out and create a tripping hazard. Or, you will force it in, so when rust and expansion start, it will do major damage to the surrounding concrete. Now, you need to repair your floor and a crowbar to remove the rusty drain cover.

When choosing the ideal drain cover for your garage floor, powder-coated steel is the best choice. These materials are entirely resistant to rust and corrosion as well as Ohio’s weather conditions. Steel also has a much higher tensile strength and density than cast iron, so these drain covers are virtually indestructible.

Most importantly, we can tailor our selection of garage drain covers to fit your garage’s unique system. We offer covers for clay bell drains, PVC drains, square drains, and more! Steel covers might seem a bit pricey at first, but you will spend far more replacing Home Depot drain covers in the long run. We even offer a lifetime warranty, so you can feel confident in your purchase!