Is a Swing or Sliding Gate more suitable?
see here for info.
Can an existing manually operated gate be made automatic?
see here for info
What is the intended use of the gate?
see Private Residence, Gated Communities or Commercial Gates for info.
What is the Correct Size and Type of Operator to Match a Gate
This information is available for each operator chosen from the Swing Gates or Sliding Gates pages.
Will the gate need to be locked electrically or not?
Sliding Gate operators lock the gate automatically so nothing further is needed.
Swing gate operators do hold a gate closed reasonably well and if the gate frame is rigid enough there is no need for an electric lock. If a gate is wider than 2m (per side), has an opening angle of more than 110 degress or has a high security requirement then and electric lock is recommended. We recommend an Electro-magnetic clamp for vehiculars gates.
You may also have a Small Side Pedestrian Gate and would like an intercom installed for visitors that electrically unlocks with the push of a button inside, then relocks once the visitor has entered, there are a variety of different electric locks available for pedestrian gates.
See Electric Locks for more information.
How will you get power out to your gate?
Well if you are putting in a new driveway it is resonably economic to get an electrician to run a mains power cable before concrete is poured for a power point at the gate. The power point should go on the hinged side only for swing gates or opening side of a sliding gate.
If you aren't putting a new driveway in then running a power point out to the gate may be too expensive so we have an alternative that can save a lot of $$$$$. Click here for more information.
What happens if there is a power cut?
Well if you don't have a battery backup you have to manually release your gate from the inside of your property so will need some other access like a small side pedestrian gate. If you have a battery back up the gate will work normally that is if the battery is ok, quite often if a battery is used for back up only the very time you need it the battery is no longer any good so won't open your gate. With e-Gate operators we run the gate from the battery all the time, which extends the working life of the battery considerably and when it does evenually reach the end of its life it does so gracefully with the speed of your gate getting a little slow, rather then just suddenly not working. It can also be a lot more economic installing cabling than installing a power point at your gate.
See Power Solutions for more information.
What other cabling is required for an Intercom, Digital Keypad, Photocell etc...?
This is quite often over looked when a driveway is being put down or new house built. You can make things a lot easier for yourself if cables are run in a driveway just before the concrete is poured or inside a house for instercoms before wall cadding is fitted. Details of what cabling is required can be found on our brochures and installation manuals for all operators on this web site.
Allowing for Traffic during installation
Some thing that is quite often forgotten about and must be allowed for is how accessable is the Gateway when the installation of an automatic gate is to take place?.
Quite often a gateway into a property is the only access by a large number of people. There maybe other building working going on so tradesman are coming and going all day, it may be a large housing complex, factory, office building or school that has large volumes of traffic wanting to use the gate spuratically during the day. In these situations if there is a seperate entry and exit gate or a gate wide enough to allow two lanes of traffic to pass through, you can block off one gate or lane with traffic cones or barriers while you work in the other. People in cars can be very unpredicable and you cannot spend all day watching out for them.
If traffic flow is too much of a problem you may need someone to help you by keeping an eye on the traffic and directing it as necessary, so you can get on with your work. If there is a lot of traffic or there is only one access lane you may need to plan your work scheldule around low peak traffic times and close the entry altogether while you work.
You will also need some where around the work site to park your vehicle and arrange tools and equipment used for the job.