Making my own garden gate

psd99

psd99

psd99

Soldato
Joined
7 Sep 2008
Posts
5,750
Hey guys,

I'm looking to replace my see through metal garden gate with a nice wooden one, mainly for two reasons

- Security
- Privacy from neighbours

Now, I could easily just go online and order a generic garden gate and be done with it, however I think they are overpriced and I feel confident enough to make my own gate.

I was considering going into somewhere like band q and getting some wood and get them to cut it to size then I fit it and then paint it with something like cuprinol (already got a can too)

I want the gate to be fairly big so it fits on to my trellis on the wall (another thread)
I'd say roughly I'd want the gate to be 2m high x 0.9m wide but I will double check this information of course...

this is my list of parts I think I need

- Hinges - which ones though? I was thinking three of them equally spaced out.
- Got screws and rawlplugs already as the hinges are going into a brick wall.
- Wood - which type of wood?
- some type of locking mechanism

Anyone, done something like this before?

I'd be grateful for any tips etc. especially keen on knowing which wood I should go for.

Thanks,
Psd99.
 
My dad built a side gate for their house quite a few years ago as the alleyway was quite narrow so most standard gates online were too wide.

I don't remember what wood he used, however some tips based on how the gate has performed over the years.
- Don't skimp on the hinges, the gate is likely to be heavy.
- Wood expands/contracts throughout the year, so whilst it might fit snugly during the winter, you'll find it a royal pain to open during the summer. My dad also made the mistake of having the bottom of the gate fit quite flush with the ground, when the gate expanded it was then impossible to open.
- He fitted a combination lock from Screwfix i believe, saves having to remember keys etc. And means any of the family can have access to the rear garden without a key.
 
good point about the weather having an impact on the wood as it expands etc
I will make sure that the gate is actually NOT touching the ground and there is enough space on either side
 
Find a builders merchant or woodyard - B&Q wood is utter pap and overpriced - otherwise crack on and good luck - post up the finished pics :)
 
I would get the wood from anywhere but B&Q.

Go overkill on the fittings to hold it up to the wall. I would use Wallbolts or Thunderbolts.

Not the cheapest, but my preference would be for oil over wood stain. I think it looks better and lasts longer, plus oil doesn't flake off and can just be re-coated.

As well as expansion/contraction, depending on the design, be aware of the gate warping and make sure it's cross braced.

Dave
 
If you've seen a style you like post a link up and I'll run through how to make it. Without the right tools to do either mortise and tenon joints or hire a festool domino dowel machine you are a little limited in design.

As others have said consider expansion, if using tongue and groove then use a couple of spacers at either end about 1mm to 1.5mm just to give somewhere for each board to expand to without affecting the next one.

If you use glue then wipe any excess off with a wet rag as any you leave on will show thru the stain or finish and look horrendous.
 
I built mine. As mentioned make sure it's cross braced. If doing again i think i'd have an extra horizontal brace in the middle with 2 smaller diagnoals

F0FOa5B.png


Mines a pretty basic design, pieces of tongue and groove wood and then braced. As mentioned above, try a local timber merchant as they'll have much better wood, generally be cheaper and can offer good advice.

Where are you as people may be able to recommend somewhere.
 
The photo above is of a very nice looking gate. The once criticism would be that the brace should start at the bottom hinge and go up and out to the latch side. That way the natural sag places the brace in compression and reduces the droop over time. On such a small gate it’s less of an issue the bigger and heavier the gate the more important this becomes.
 
Ah interesting, i didn't know that.

I think the previous gate was as you mention but i had already cut the cat flap i think so my hand was forced!
 
I've had a quick measure of where I'm wanting to install a gate and have encountered a problem.

I want to install a gate between two brick walls. The width at the bottom is 34", but at the top the width is 35.5". Neither wall is plumb.

How would I go about installing a gate here? I'm thinking that I'm going to have to install a wooden post on each wall. But I'll have to cut off a portion of each post so that they are plumb when offered up to the wall.

It wouldn't look as good, but I could probably get away with using some wooden packers. Ideally not what I want to do.
 
Are both walls out of vertical or just one? I would recommend planing the posts on the wall side to get them vertical and once parallel re-measure for the gate. You could use packers if the gap is small and then use mastic to hide the gap, which is good advice whatever to reduce water ingress.
 
One is more out than the other. But I think I want a post on each side to make the job look neater.

I think I'll be able to get away with packers on one side, but certainly not the other.

Good idea with the mastic.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom