GATES SURPRISE MOST PEOPLE

/ Handy Work/

Handy Work makes a wide variety of custom gates from vertical picket fence styles to fully framed, screening style gates as well as tongue and groove paneled gates.

After many years of building, hanging and designing gates for clients, I have grown to discover that many clients, despite seeing gates every day are often quite ignorant of the details about gates. Probably the biggest learning curve I find I need to navigate with clients are the complexities of things like Federation style gates and the complete lack of knowledge clients have about what is involved with automating gates.

Gates can be almost anything.  Including :

  • Pedestrian gates, like one down the side of the house

  • Double gates across a driveway

  • Safety gates to protecting children or pets, installed at the top of stairs from a deck, protecting a pool area or keeping a pet safe.

  • More fancy front entry gates like Federation or Contemporary styles.

Materials will vary depending on the client's architectural and environmental preferences, but Handy Work will recommend materials that last, including treated pine (both the painted kind and the yellow/green CCA kind of treated pine), hardwood and cedar.  Handy Work will only use stainless steel or galvanised fixings that will stand the test of time and weather and recommends the inclusion of magnetic latches to ensure long-term trouble free closing.  We also install steel and aluminium fencing gates and can project manage the fabrication of galvanised steel or stainless steel gates for you.

Pricing for custom made wooden gates varies, depending on how much complex joinery is involved. Contemporary gate styles using straight pieces of timber joined together and paneled gates are often quite cost effective (between $800 and $1,800 for a good pedestrian gate) , where more complex Federation Style gates incorporating curved timber, multiple mid-rails, fancy spokes, or champhored edges etc increase the cost significantly (between $1,800 and $2,700).

Metal gates such as Galvanised steel and welded aluminium gates are factory made and therefore mostly require CAD drawings, hot dip galvanisation processes or powdercoating and are therefore relatively costly to custom make. The exception is pool gate style aluminium gates. They can be sourced through specialist fabricators fairly inexpensively and Handy Work installs them.

Automated gates such as electric rolling gates require concrete footings, laser aligned tracks, electricians etc so are a more expensive proposition again. Where Handy Work has made many a gate for Automation, specialist firms are required for the actual automation part of the project.