Gate Repair

So many gates are being dragged across the yard every day just to get them open. They are then hung back up and barely held on by the latch and some loose hinges. We are talking about old wood gates that are probably due for a replacement. Occasionally we come across one of these gates that are actually repairable, but most are not. Occasionally we get called out to repair nearly new gates. We are big fans of steel framed gates. Most fences in the DFW area have steel polls. This is the perfect opportunity to take advantage of a steel framed gate but unfortunately most fence companies for some reason just don’t take the time and energy to make this a part of their business.

Fence repair and fence work in general is not cheap. It’s labor intensive and materials are expensive. For an average size gate it only makes sense to spend a few hundred dollars more to have a gate that will open and close as intended for the life of the fence with very little adjustment needed. Steel framed gates are attached to steel poles by steel latches with the fence rails and fence pickets attached. The weight of the fence rails and pickets are just not a factor when using a properly constructed steel framed gate.

The first thing we look at when assessing a gate repair is the poles it is attached to. Are the poles standing straight and solid. If not then they need to be replaced. When digging up posts and replacing them we need to get with 811 first to see if there are any utilities in the area. This is normally not an issue but it is a necessity. If you want to change the height of the gate you will want to check with your homeowners association or HOA to make sure there are no issues. Pulling poles out of the ground is always fun, if they are made of wood and the pole breaks and we have a two foot long clump of cement stuck in the ground. If the poles need to be replaced then you might as well replace the entire gate structure. 

If the poles are wood, standing straight, and not loose, it really doesn’t make sense to use a steel frame for the gate unless you want to replace the poles. If the wood poles are solid, we can just replace the gate if you like. If you have steel poles and they are standing straight and solid we can replace the gate only with a steel frame. If you have one of those old gates, just putting a bandaid on it really doesn’t make sense. We can put new hinges on it but attaching them to old wood will produce poor results.
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If you have a gate that needs repairs we are happy to take a look at it to see if anything you have is salvageable. We can give you some options and hopefully get you squared away.