Automatic Driveway Gates, Christchurch and Canterbury

Gates designed to suit your property

Designed to suit each individual circumstance, you can have peace of mind that your home, your business, your children and your pets are contained in a safe and secure environment.

Sliding or swing?

This is the first decision, and your property usually makes it for you.

• Pedestrian gates are most likely the gate used most on the property, every day. Robust materials and experience demand a solution that works not only today and tomorrow, but in years to come.
• Sliding gates run sideways along the boundary. They need clear run-off space beside the opening, but they need no space in front of or behind the gate at all. That makes them the answer on a short driveway, on a driveway that slopes up from the street, and anywhere a swinging leaf would foul a car that is still half on the road.
• Swing gates hinge open like a door, usually as a matched pair. They look more traditional, they suit a longer driveway with a flat apron, and they are generally the cheaper installation where there is room for them. They do need level, clear ground through the whole arc.

On a sloping site, or where the driveway rises steeply from the footpath, sliding is normally the sensible answer. We will look at your driveway and tell you which one actually fits rather than which one is easiest for us.

Materials

We offer a complete range of gates, from powder coated aluminium and steel, to timber cladding or other composite materials.

• Powder coated aluminium. Light, so it is kind to the motor and to the hardware over thousands of cycles. Will not rust. Any colour you choose.
• Steel. Heavier and stronger. The choice for a wide opening, a commercial entrance or anywhere the gate needs to take some abuse.
• Timber cladding. A steel or aluminium frame clad in timber, so you get the warmth of a timber gate without a timber gate’s tendency to sag out of square.
• Composite. The look of timber, none of the recoating.

Automation, access and safety

An automated gate system increases the selling price of your home. Potential buyers will appreciate the convenience and appeal of an automated gate.

We can advise you on all aspects of auto gates - from basic sliders and swing gates to keypad access and intercom.

Things worth thinking about before you commit:

• How people get in. Remotes for the household, a keypad for visitors and tradespeople, an intercom if you want to see or speak to whoever is at the gate.
• Power at the gate. An automated gate needs a supply run to it. On a long driveway that trench is a real part of the job, and it is much cheaper to do while the ground is already open for the gate posts.
• Power cuts. Every automated gate needs a manual release so you can get the car out when the power is off. Make sure you are shown where yours is.
• Safety. An automated gate is a heavy moving object near a footpath. Safety sensors and correctly set force limits are not optional extras on a gate that a child could walk into.
• Electrical work. The electrical connection is done by a registered electrician. We coordinate it as part of the job, so you are not left holding two half- finished trades.

The gate and the fence, built by the same team

This is the part that is easy to overlook. A driveway gate sits in the middle of a fence line, and it is the first thing anyone looks at. When the gate is ordered from an automation specialist and the fence is built by a fencer, the two rarely line up: the blade spacing is different, the colour is close but not the same, the top rail is at a slightly different height, and the whole frontage looks like it was done in two goes - because it was.

We build the fence, the gate and the aluminium or steel panels either side of it. Same team, same materials, same day. The frontage reads as one piece of work.

Phone us today and prepare to make an impressive opening statement with an automated gate from Vogel Fencing.