5 Things That Affect Gate Installation Cost
If you’re shopping for a new gate for your home or commercial property, price is almost certainly a factor. In fact, you’ve probably tried to get some ballpark figures for a new gate from at least a few companies. Many won’t give you that kind of information over the phone or email, though.
The reason for that is that there are many things that could affect gate installation costs that fence companies won’t know without a site inspection. Here are five of the most common.
1. Non-Standard Gate Sizes
The first thing that might affect gate installation cost is if you need a non-standard gate sizes.
Some fence companies make their own gates for certain types of fencing, but in some cases, they might need to purchase a gate from another manufacturer. If your gate is not an off-the-shelf size, you will probably pay more to have it manufactured.
2. Very Heavy Gates
Another thing that will affect gate installation cost is if your gate is very heavy.
If you’re having a manually operated swing or sliding gate installed, this would mean larger hinges, wheels or rollers. If you’re planning to automate your gate, too, you’d need a larger and more powerful gate operator too, which would also cost more.
3. Lots of Clearing and Demolition
Another thing that can have a big impact on the cost of installing a gate is the type of clearing and demolition required to get the job done.
If your new gate is being installed in an existing opening and there’s nothing that needs to be removed, you will pay less for gate installation. However, if your gate company has to remove an existing fence or trees and vegetation from the gate location, the price for gate installation will go up fast.
4. An Out of the Way Site
If your gate is being installed in a major city, close to your fence or gate company, they won’t have to travel much, and freight costs will be low.
However, if your site is out of the way, you can expect to pay more for travel time for the gate installers, accommodation if they have to stay over to do the installation, and for freight. If your gates are very large and heavy, those freight costs will be even higher.
5. The Type of Soil on Your Site
The last thing that we want to list as a factor in the cost to install your gate is the type of soil on your site.
If your gate company is installing gate posts (and in most cases, they will be), they will probably need to dig to install gate posts. If the ground is very hard and rocky, they will struggle to dig the holes and might have to resort to core drilling. If your holes are very sandy or you have a high water table, they might need to use shoring or forms for the concrete for your gate posts, or they might need to pump out water.
All of these things will increase the cost to install your gate.
Always Ask for a Site Visit
The best way to be sure that there are no surprises when it comes to gate installation costs is to ask every fence and gate company that gives you a quote to visit your site and view the site conditions.
While this can’t eliminate every potential problem, it will give those companies more information to base their quotes on, and that will probably mean you have less chance of surprise costs.
