As per the title ....Electric Gates ; Anyone installed them and can offer advice on Pros & Cons , together with a rough cost to install ?
I'd like to retain my current Wrought Iron gates & fit motors to these.
Any help / advice much appreciated
I’ll be following this with interest, since we now have free roaming chickens, having to get out of the car and open/shut the gates is a bit of a faff. ( very much first world problems)
I have done a little bit of research, the hardest part is getting a heavy duty power supply to the gates.
Cheers..
Jase
We installed them as part of our self-build. That was 5 years ago, but the cost to supply and fit was £2500 (not inc VAT)
That was gates (13ft wide), motors and intercom with 4x fobs for the cars.
As it was a new build it was easy to run a shielded cable out for the purpose.
I've since upgraded to get rid of the keypad/comms on the pillar and it's now a Hikvision camera/push button system that comes through to our mobiles when pressed.
We can see/speak to the visitor and open the gates from the App if required. This upgrade was only about £300. The technology has become very cheap.
I only have 1 photo handy to show the size
Last edited by demonloop; 15th July 2020 at 13:17.
Go for in ground mounted motors our current ones have been in around 9 years no issues, from memory cost was £2000 fitted to existing gates which are roughly 4m wide maybe a touch more. A friend with arms mounted to the gates has had loads of issues with theirs leaking fluid, pulling bricks out of gates posts etc. We’ve got fobs for most of the time and had a keypad mounted afterwards because every time I was taking the bins out I’d forget my bloody fob lol. For intercom we’ve got a ring doorbell which has served us well the last few years.
A neighbour has had surprisingly regular problems with slugs getting into the power supply and shorting his gates.
"I love the smell of fried slugs in the morning"
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Yes, we have large oak motorised gates.
Generally pretty reliable, but I’d recommend using a local firm for a quick response when they malfunction.
Adding a kit to existing gates is pretty straightforward I should think.
So clever my foot fell off.
Does anyone know about simple gate entry systems here? We want to instal a remote entry system on our wooden front gate to the garden just to kick/unlock. Are they available with mobile tech?
Yes they are. They use a SIM card.Originally Posted by daveyw
You can have just a notification or a voice entry system.
Cheers. Looking for an entry system so we can keep garden secure
I’m supposed to be getting the rear sliding gate automated, I say supposed as I’ve paid a deposit but the fitter had been busy and then COVID -19 means I’m still waiting. For me it’s to modify the current gate, run the wiring, fit and tidy up the current gate, all in £2000.
We have wooden gates on our drives one pair of BFT rams open one pair of 8ft wide gates and another a pair open the 6ft wide gates . They have been very reliable and operate from remotes we keep in the cars and the house
Cost us about £6k to install but everybody's install is different and that included all the underground wiring, posts , gates and some other stuff like garage door automation and a chime on the pedestrian gate that rings in the house if anyone opens it .
I have power within a few meters of one side of the gate .....so its just digging across the drive to get the other side which will be my issue ...........I'll have a little trench to dig in the road tarmac
Mmmm.......so going by initial responses , its looking like £2k-£3k .
The issue I have is that i have a large circular drive , so 2 x sets of Gates ..........so I'm going to be £4-£6k
Not sure the Mrs is gonna approve of that , despite the want of having them shut and being too lazy to open and shut on every journey
After having them so long I wouldn’t be without them now especially in winter rain etc, getting out of the car to open drive 10ft get out of the car to close is not something I’ve ever missed. Sell them on the fact she’s not leaving the car running on the road whilst she closes the gates risking someone taking it. 10 years on now and every time we have a power cut 2-3 times a year I appreciate them just a little more after a day or 2 back to manual.
We’ve got one. This is what I’d watch for.
Set the keypad on a post so people don’t have to get out of their cars.
Have a video phone.
Have the release button/phone in the most convenient p,ace in the house, not just the nearest place to the gate.
Get a massive mag lock. 500kg. Or the wind will force the gate back.
Get it serviced annually and change the code every now and again.
Im assuming all these are systems that swing the gates open, has anyone got a systems where it slides the gates (similar to elevator doors etc).
Small update & another question !
I've order 2 x sets of Gate motors with an installer .........I'm going to do much the same as you've said bootneck.
Keyfobs , Manual Keypad for opening whilst in the garden & a Ring doorbell.
So, my question .......whats the best way to get the Ring doorbell connected to wi-fi way outside in the garden ?
We currently use Devolo around the house . There's a summerhouse near the gate & I placed a Devolo Wi-fi extender in there & I was getting around 1 mbps connection from it. It was okay for website browsing but video was buffering.
Any cost effective options to increase coverage to the gate ?
Have a look at ring elite : https://en-uk.ring.com/products/video-doorbell-elite this uses power over ethernet to deliver power and internet to the unit (but is very expensive). this means no flaky wifi connection which is perhaps my single biggest gripe with our ring.
Hmmmm ....Cheers for the suggestion.
My issue is that I want to put the Ring Doorbell on the original stone pillar which is c30 inches wide by 24 inches deep .....I'd never get the cable behind it
Power and Devolo extender are in the summerhouse .......Power will be put out to behind the pillar , but think the Devolo will stay in the summerhouse.
Side of the Pillar I get 3+mbps but in front of it , it drops down to 1mbps or less
here is a photo....
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2jtz8ef]
I think you will struggle with a Ring. They do their own extenders which are 3 point plugs but even then I'm not sure.
This is an awful suggestion but the only thing to come to mind in the first instance would be:
1. A MiFi device wired into mains with a very data only SIM inside. You could hide or box that in anywhere.
2. The same with an outdoor made WiFi repeater/access point from someone like ubiquity or TP Link. Might help with WiFi in the front garden too.
Could you line it up so that the cable goes through the mortar?Hmmmm ....Cheers for the suggestion.
My issue is that I want to put the Ring Doorbell on the original stone pillar which is c30 inches wide by 24 inches deep .....I'd never get the cable behind it
Power and Devolo extender are in the summerhouse .......Power will be put out to behind the pillar , but think the Devolo will stay in the summerhouse.
Side of the Pillar I get 3+mbps but in front of it , it drops down to 1mbps or less
here is a photo....
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I'm following this with interest. Our now house has a gate and the distance between the posts is pretty narrow. On top of that, the gate is very close to the road. When backing up, one has to drive his/her car almost a car length backwards on the road before one can take the turn. My idea is to reposition the gate further from the road (say 8 - 10m) with new posts and a lot wider and have a 'funnel-shaped' part of the driveway towards the gate.
My wife and I did a cycling tour this afternoon 'gate spotting': what's our favorite design... The jury is still out on that one . What we've agreed in so far: a gate that slides to the left (or right) on a length of rail; not a gutter.
One of our customers does door and gate automation.
We were thinking about getting them in to do ours.
It's a little more tricky with our drive as we need one that slides sideways rather than traditional opening gates.
They are coming round soon to see what our options are, I will let you know how we get on.
Maybe but it would be a tough job......
This is one pair of 2 x sets of original pillars I have.
One of the other pillars had been hit by a vehicle at some point and I had it rebuilt ...so I've seen inside them.
There is a section of back filled solid stone inside the centre and the stone is also held together with iron rods internally.
So not as simple as drilling through the lime mortar unfortunately
I've been thinking of installing a sliding electric gate so am interested in how this develops, but mine would entail removing and replacing the existing garden wall and gate posts, apart from installing a power supply, so I suspect not a small job
I really wish I could have had sliding...
Let me know what they say...that would be great
Other than potential reliability issues with the Devolo units themselves , does anyone foresee an issue with this ;
As the installer will already be running electric to the gates for the motors .....ask him to also install a plug on the 'blind' side of the pillar.
There , house the plug inside an IP66 weatherproof box & put the devolo plugged in there.
I just " demo'd " it with an extension reel , devolo plugged into it , then a thick plastic bucket on top.
pushed it up against the pillar & I then held my phone hard up to the front of the pillar ..........it played youtube videos etc without any buffering at all.
Thoughts ?
Well I don't know. Doesn't anyone have a gateman these days?
I would put your phone into airplane mode then turn WiFi back on and see how you get on. Maybe even do a speed test to see how good/bad it is.
Yeh ....that was exactly what I did .
Felt like I was getting a good enough connectivity.
Guess my worry is two fold....
The Ring Doorbell to Devolo might perform differently to my phone.
Despite being in a weatherproof box , will a devolo survive outside
I’m still bloody waiting for mine to be upgraded
Finally got my Electric Gates all sorted last week !
Glad I posted originally asking for advice .........Went down the Ring Door Bell and Wireless Keypad route rather than a full intercom system, so that saved c£800
My gates were too high for underground motors, so the chap recommended motors for the backs of the 4 pillars. They seemed a bit unsightly at first, but got used to them quickly.
Added a £75 Wifi module to both sets of gates too, so as well as the standard wireless remote control you get with the kit, I can also open, close, partial open & stop the gates via an App.
Only thing I'm struggling with is trying to pair IFTTT app with the Gates App to open the gates automatically via geolocation. But that gives me something to work on !
Thanks to everyone would offered advice
Sorry mate only just caught up, glad you’re sorted I have a netgear powerline adaptor in a weatherproof box on the inside of the gates our wall is sandstone around the same thickness. I’m interested in the wifi module and app you use maybe an upgrade is in order for ours lol
Have you got a pic with the motors attached?
Bit surprised about the gates being to high, this was our last house and very heavy gates about 2.3m high. Had them for ten years when we sold and no problems. FAAC motors I seem to remember.
Now we have moved and just had sliding gates fitted, very pleased with the end result and included a pedestrian gate at the same time. Frame fitted first and infill iroko attached on site.
Sorry .........I meant too high from the ground to the bottom of the gatesBit surprised about the gates being to high, this was our last house and very heavy gates about 2.3m high. Had them for ten years when we sold and no problems. FAAC motors I seem to remember.
Now we have moved and just had sliding gates fitted, very pleased with the end result and included a pedestrian gate at the same time. Frame fitted first and infill iroko attached on site.
Not too high or too big a set of gates !
Not in their best light ...just done , here is a few pics
Front look ;
20201006_171620
Back look of Motors on Gate 1;
20201006_171802
Back look of Motors on Gate 2;
20201006_171915
I got a wee bespoke steel housing made locally for the ring door bell and key pad;
20201007_172320
Before they arrived .........I also put a new postbox for the postie to put our mail
20200906_174420
The Ring door bell and keypad holder looks really smart, how do you open the gate from the Ring app ?
Neat solution
Cheers ....for the money paid, and the few compromises here and there, I'm really happy with both sets
Unfortunately you don't......they press the RING doorbell...we talk ....I say hold a sec
I switch to the Gate App and press open
- - - Updated - - -
Unfortunately you don't......they press the RING doorbell...we talk ....I say hold a sec
I switch to the Gate App and press open
I’ve currently got a BTcino intercom which had the gate opener . Compared to ring the video quality is awful, and it’s not always clear . I’d like change to ring but ideally want the one app to talk and open the gate plus having the monitors at home is useful when the phones aren’t around. Hoping ring add monitors and gate opening one day.
Give the bushes at the motors a good growing season and appropriate trim and you won’t see them?
Agreed ....but its just the one on high up on the pillar at the right hand side where there will never be anything ....and its in full view.
To be honest , the installer said I could spray them black but after 10 days or so having them, I dont mid the grey ....and resorted to thinking they are what they are ; Gate Motors
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