How much to come build me one?
Great work!
Great work!
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Rolling Driveway Gate (pic heavy)
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80 Replies |
Last: 2 yr ago by GrandStand93
Really impressive build.
Question: do you have a pedestrian gate in the works so you don't have to roll that big ass gate open every time? Like such as when the basketball bounces over the fence?
Question: do you have a pedestrian gate in the works so you don't have to roll that big ass gate open every time? Like such as when the basketball bounces over the fence?
Yes, I do have plans for a pedestrian gate, but it's a little tight. Will be a 38" opening or so.
I'm gonna hang it off the corner post, so need to weld a couple braces in (red). Also planning on fabricating a metal tubular frame (blue) and hanging it off the post with some bulldog hinges (green).
I'm gonna hang it off the corner post, so need to weld a couple braces in (red). Also planning on fabricating a metal tubular frame (blue) and hanging it off the post with some bulldog hinges (green).
This thread makes me feel slightly incapable.
That's ridiculously impressive. In an effort to briefly highjack your awesome thread, does anyone know the level of effort/cost to rehab this gate opener to make it functional? We're getting ready to list our house and I'd like to get the gate functional if the ROI makes sense. The gate functions fine and is not hard to slide manually, but having the opener up and running would be nice.
Hard to say without knowing some details - could be as high as $1500-2000 if you plan to have a new opener installed and have a tech install it. Could be cheap if it's a sensor that's out and you can self-diagnose. I do see an item unplugged. I found a refurb kit for that opener's motor/gear for $600 online.
We just replaced the motor and control panel on our iron swing gate. The primary issue was the batteries were shot but the gears were also wearing out on the control arm (10 years old). $2,000 for a new one.
You may be able to replace the battery(ies) and get it back to life. Obviously see the green battery but it looks like funky wiring and then it looks like either another battery or transformer to charge the battery. That could also be bad but less expensive than a new motor.
On our liftmaster swing arm, I was unaware and learned from the installer that these gates typically run off the battery and the power supply is used to just recharge the battery and power the control panel. So if the battery is bad or not being charged, you gate likely will not operate.
Most also will sound an alarm on the battery issues. That disconnected cable may simply have been done to shut the alarm off.
You may be able to replace the battery(ies) and get it back to life. Obviously see the green battery but it looks like funky wiring and then it looks like either another battery or transformer to charge the battery. That could also be bad but less expensive than a new motor.
On our liftmaster swing arm, I was unaware and learned from the installer that these gates typically run off the battery and the power supply is used to just recharge the battery and power the control panel. So if the battery is bad or not being charged, you gate likely will not operate.
Most also will sound an alarm on the battery issues. That disconnected cable may simply have been done to shut the alarm off.
"The absence of the word accountability is not the same as wanting no accountability" -unknown
"You can never go wrong by staying silent if there is nothing apt to say" -Walter Isaacson
"You can never go wrong by staying silent if there is nothing apt to say" -Walter Isaacson
In another unfortunate illustration of why not to hire the guy I hired, he spent a couple weeks figuring this out. He would come out, flip the breaker on, and try to get the gate to work. Alarms and no open/close, so he'd quit around sunset each day and flip the breaker off. Turns out the battery never got charged and after a bunch of cycles the first time trying to set open/close travel, the battery was dead. The Liftmaster dealer finally explained it once he called to get the "bad motor" replaced under warranty.
Do you have a multimeter? Can you check that battery to see what the voltage is?
This looks super impressive, but I still can't figure out whats really going on here.
Is the sliding gate supposed to replace your back fence as well as act as a driveway gate? So either the driveway or the backyard is open to the street?
Is the sliding gate supposed to replace your back fence as well as act as a driveway gate? So either the driveway or the backyard is open to the street?
one MEEN Ag said:
This looks super impressive, but I still can't figure out whats really going on here.
Is the sliding gate supposed to replace your back fence as well as act as a driveway gate? So either the driveway or the backyard is open to the street?
I think it added the driveway to OPS's backyard space
Ohh okay. There was a fence separating the driveway from the backyard. Driveway was open to street. Putting this gate at the end of the driveway allows them to take that fence down and bring the driveway 'into' the backyard space. There is still going to be a fence from the backyard to the street. Gate rolls either in front of or behind that fence.Kenneth_2003 said:one MEEN Ag said:
This looks super impressive, but I still can't figure out whats really going on here.
Is the sliding gate supposed to replace your back fence as well as act as a driveway gate? So either the driveway or the backyard is open to the street?
I think it added the driveway to OPS's backyard space
Thanks for the help.
You got it.
That's a bunch of good luck.Van Buren Boy said:
That's ridiculously impressive. In an effort to briefly highjack your awesome thread, does anyone know the level of effort/cost to rehab this gate opener to make it functional? We're getting ready to list our house and I'd like to get the gate functional if the ROI makes sense. The gate functions fine and is not hard to slide manually, but having the opener up and running would be nice.
I want to see OP's gate crush an F350
Question for op....why no more bearing feet on the track? Looks like there are only 2?
Yes, that's correct. The reason for 2 is that the track has to be perfectly level to use more, otherwise the gate will kind of rock as it moves over uneven terrain and jumps from wheel to wheel. My property bows just slightly, so only the outer two wheels would be in contact anyway.
As for design, two is completely adequate. I figure this gate weighs 1500lbs or so, and these are 4000lb wheels each. Also, each wheel is about 1/4 of the way in, so half of the weight is between the wheels, and the other half is outside the wheels. This helps keep the load balanced and it doesn't sag in between wheels much.
The only real benefit at this point to more wheels is that it can help with deflection performance against any wind, and I've just beefed up the steel design to mitigate that.
As for design, two is completely adequate. I figure this gate weighs 1500lbs or so, and these are 4000lb wheels each. Also, each wheel is about 1/4 of the way in, so half of the weight is between the wheels, and the other half is outside the wheels. This helps keep the load balanced and it doesn't sag in between wheels much.
The only real benefit at this point to more wheels is that it can help with deflection performance against any wind, and I've just beefed up the steel design to mitigate that.
curious, what was your degree in?
also, just curious what the price of a job like this would be if you contracted it out. im thinking at least 10 grand, that about right?
Electrical Engineering.
I can post some more details on cost later if you want, but I think for my design, it'd be more like $20k to contract out for the gate (not including rest of the fencing). My neighbor put in a smaller gate for about $10k, but there was no driveway mods, they didn't paint it, and the frame and opener are definitely lighter duty.
I can post some more details on cost later if you want, but I think for my design, it'd be more like $20k to contract out for the gate (not including rest of the fencing). My neighbor put in a smaller gate for about $10k, but there was no driveway mods, they didn't paint it, and the frame and opener are definitely lighter duty.
and id imagine half of that would be labor. thats awesome. did you have to rent the fork truck or did a neighbor happen to have one lying around?
As a mechanical engineer, you've done a better job on the mechanical side of things than a good chunk of my peers would put together.BenTheGoodAg said:
Electrical Engineering.
I can post some more details on cost later if you want, but I think for my design, it'd be more like $20k to contract out for the gate (not including rest of the fencing). My neighbor put in a smaller gate for about $10k, but there was no driveway mods, they didn't paint it, and the frame and opener are definitely lighter duty.
Usually though, people need to get worried when its the MEENs trying to do electrical work. We've got a knack for blowing up breadboards and terrible coding practices.
My FIL had one out on his farm, really a no-brainer after flipping it with people.
Some more cost info for the gate materials:
- Concrete (includes forms, sand, rebar, mixer) - $1400
- Metal for gate - $1800
- Opener & Accessories - $2400
- Gate hardware (rollers, wheels, track, anchors) - $800
- Paint/Booth - $300
- Welding Supplies (gas, wire, sanding disks) - $400
- Cutting out & Hauling off Concrete - $250 - proud to say this is the only labor I've paid for on this whole project
- Wood (just for gate) - $1000
- Hardware - $100
- Tools/consumables - $250
Total - $8700 - I'm just taking a stab at labor being a little over 1:1 to materials. It could be more for all I know.
ETA - I've got no problem with craftsmen/contractors who are paid for their work and expertise. There's just something to be said for learning and doing it yourself.
Some more cost info for the gate materials:
- Concrete (includes forms, sand, rebar, mixer) - $1400
- Metal for gate - $1800
- Opener & Accessories - $2400
- Gate hardware (rollers, wheels, track, anchors) - $800
- Paint/Booth - $300
- Welding Supplies (gas, wire, sanding disks) - $400
- Cutting out & Hauling off Concrete - $250 - proud to say this is the only labor I've paid for on this whole project
- Wood (just for gate) - $1000
- Hardware - $100
- Tools/consumables - $250
Total - $8700 - I'm just taking a stab at labor being a little over 1:1 to materials. It could be more for all I know.
ETA - I've got no problem with craftsmen/contractors who are paid for their work and expertise. There's just something to be said for learning and doing it yourself.
Thata awesome. I hope you're proud of yourself. I sure as hell would be.
Haha, thanks. I've worked with some great MEs and C/SEs in my day, and learned many things from them. We had some fun rivalries between disciplines. And I've got a stamp or two which has been a bigger influence for me than the degree. I've learned from some great men in my career.
Thank you. I've definitely been pleased with the final product. Wasn't sure what to expect when I first started burning holes in metal a few months ago, haha.
I've got some more fencing to work on, but for all intents and purpose, the gate is complete.
Pedestrian gate frame (I know it looks small, but it's 78" tall and 40" wide):
From the inside:
With wood:
Final shot:
Pedestrian gate frame (I know it looks small, but it's 78" tall and 40" wide):
From the inside:
With wood:
Final shot:
Bravo, man. Bravo.
That looks great! Amazing job!
looks really good. Great job
Awesome
That looks awesome. Well done and thanks for sharing all of the pictures.
Everything has been wrapped up for a few months - just wanted to add a few thoughts for anyone who considering a gate like this in the future if they come across this thread.
First of all, the kids love the extra space. Really great to see them play out in the backyard all the time. Secondly, the security of a taller and privacy fence has been awesome, especially for my wife. I leave my garage doors open a lot more, our young kids can go out and bike around on the driveway more, etc. with no worries. The benefits have been money well spent.
Lessons learned:
If you're thinking about it for yourself, go for it. The yard size has always been the weakest part of our property, and I feel like for relatively little cost, we doubled our backyard space.
Here's a few final shots to show off the space increase, and just show-off the final install.
See the increased yard space:
From another angle - don't judge the lawn :-) I've had a hard time reestablishing in the heat.
Another pedestrian gate:
Gate closed:
Gate open:
Final shot (the lighting was just much better in this than my last post):
First of all, the kids love the extra space. Really great to see them play out in the backyard all the time. Secondly, the security of a taller and privacy fence has been awesome, especially for my wife. I leave my garage doors open a lot more, our young kids can go out and bike around on the driveway more, etc. with no worries. The benefits have been money well spent.
Lessons learned:
- My neighbor has had issues with his operator being close to the gate. When it rains, the wood swells and it drags. We offset ours 4", which had some challenges with the supports, but worth it.
- I scrutinized over the slope of the track so that I could have a really low profile bottom. It's worked, but I'm afraid that in the future some settling will cause it to drag on spots on the ends and I'll have to cut a little bit of metal out. Having seen it in action, I probably would have used a slightly smaller member, or offset it so that it wouldn't be at risk for contacting the peak of the track.
- I should have put extra conduits in before pouring concrete just to have more options. This was especially boneheaded because I know better in my professional background, but I was under the gun to get concrete poured. Nothing bad, but I could have saved myself a headache or two.
- I'm very happy with the extra money spent on a nicer operator. It's quiet, got great app support (can open/close the gate remotely, or check the status) and has a lot of power.
- It was worth the effort to scrutinize the opening and size, and make the gate as wide as I could. I feel like I used every inch at my disposal, but there are no issues with vehicles making turns, etc. because of the time spent measuring and drawing it out.
- Conversely, because the gate is so wide, it takes a few seconds for it to open when parking in the double door. I do wish there was an internet based opener so I could easily open it from further away. Might be a good arduino project for another day.
- Footers for the fence took a lot of time and effort, but I think it was worth it.
- Someone suggested an ice dam cable under the track to melt snow in the winter. Haven't weather tested it yet, but I think it will come in handy with that first snow storm. Was definitely easier to install up front.
- Pedestrian gate has been really nice.
- I let the wood dry in the garage for as long as I could, and then stained it immediately before screwing on. Screws took forever... but I'm glad to be able to remove pickets in the future if needed. It wasn't fun, but glad we didn't have to stain after installing. Used a metric ****ton of stain, though. Would have used a different tape measure, my good one is all covered in gunk now.
- Spending the time to do it right is totally worth it. This project took a LOT of time, thought, effort, and energy. Wouldn't have done that part any differently.
If you're thinking about it for yourself, go for it. The yard size has always been the weakest part of our property, and I feel like for relatively little cost, we doubled our backyard space.
Here's a few final shots to show off the space increase, and just show-off the final install.
See the increased yard space:
From another angle - don't judge the lawn :-) I've had a hard time reestablishing in the heat.
Another pedestrian gate:
Gate closed:
Gate open:
Final shot (the lighting was just much better in this than my last post):
The amount of time, effort, planning, and patience that went into this is hard for me to comprehend. Incredible job.
That really does look incredible! Great job!
I'm happy to report that the track heater works! We got a good 4-5" snow this morning, so I flipped the switch to see how well it would melt down the snow. If you live in a cold area, and put in a gate, it's a great feature to make sure you don't get stuck:
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