Gate · Hinge · Latch
Gates and gate operators, built and fixed in Yakima
Walk gates, double drive gates and rolling gates for fences in Yakima County, repaired when they drag and fitted with operators when you want them.
Chapter 01
Swing gate or rolling gate: how the opening decides
Every gate starts with the opening it has to close and the ground it has to cross. A walk gate is the narrow one for people, hung on a single post. A double drive gate is two leaves that meet in the middle, and each leaf swings on its own heavy post. A rolling gate does not swing at all: it slides along the fence line on wheels, which is the answer when the drive is steep, the ground is soft, or there is no room for a leaf to sweep through.
A rolling gate needs fence line beside the opening to travel along, so that is the first thing we look at on a drive or a lot. A swing gate needs open ground on the side it swings toward, and ground that does not rise where the leaf passes. Picking between them is a measuring job, not a taste job, and we do it at the opening.
Gates are built to match the fence they sit in: galvanized or black vinyl-coated chain link, privacy slats, ornamental, or custom steel. The frame, the fill and the hardware are chosen as one piece so the gate does not look added on after the fact.
Black rolling gate between new posts on an orchard road
A gate that drags is almost always a post problem
Most gate calls come down to one of a few things: a gate that drags on the ground, a latch that will not catch, a leaf that has sagged out of square, or a rolling gate that binds on its track. A gate is the heaviest moving part on a fence, and all of that weight hangs from two posts. When a post leans even a little, the gate leans with it, and the latch is the first thing to notice.
So we look at the posts and the hinges before we touch the gate itself. Sometimes the fix is resetting a post, sometimes it is squaring the frame and replacing worn hardware, and sometimes the gate needs rebuilding. We tell you which it is before the work starts.
Gate repair is a large part of what the crew does, on swing gates and rolling gates alike. Call the shop and describe what the gate is doing, or email a photo of it.
Chapter 03
Gate operators: a motor sized to the gate
An operator is the motor and control that opens and closes a gate for you, so you never leave the truck.
L S Fencing lists gate operators as one of its specialties, next to chain link and ornamental fence. What matters is that the operator is sized to the gate. The weight of the leaf, the width of the opening and how often it cycles all decide what the motor has to handle. A heavy gate on an undersized operator wears it out early, and an operator cannot make up for a gate that already drags. That is why the gate gets squared and the posts get checked first.
If you are planning a new drive gate and might want an operator later, tell us up front. The posts, the gate frame and the ground at the opening can all be set up with that in mind, and the opening is then ready when you add the operator.
Every gate is measured at the opening it has to close. Call (509) 452-3000, Monday to Thursday, 8 AM to 4 PM.
Hung and swinging
Gates on the jobs we have set
“Always have been able to help with our gate problems in a timely, orderly, and professional fashion.”
A gate is only as good as the fence it hangs in. See how the runs are built on the chain link page or look at the privacy slat jobs, or send us the opening you need to close.