How to make a pair of lumber driveway gates

Introduction – Plans – LumberAny of the framing wood.

Introduction

A fair amount of thought had to go into the design of these gates.
The driveway had an uphill slopeSee fall., therefore the bottom of the gates had to be about 250mm (10″) above the ground in closed position to allow the gates to open over the sloping drive.

There are ways that gates can be hinged off vertical to enable the gates to lift over raised ground such as can be seen here, but with the ‘hinge offset’ method, the gates look a bit askew when opened and gravity can cause the gates to swing shut a bit faster than intended.

So with that knowledge in hand, we decided to go with gates which would open on a level planeA flat surface extending infinitely in all directions (e.g. horizontal or vertical plane). Any flat, two-dimensional surface., meaning that the gates would have to be fixed to the posts high enough so they could open without hitting the up-sloping driveway.

This meant that the gates had to be about 250mm (10″) off the ground in closed position.

To achieve this, we’d have to devise some type of contraption to stopThe part of the plywood wall panels that overlaps the door and window frame, and protrudes into the door or window area and covers any gaps between the door/window and the surrounding frame. It acts as a stop for the door and also stops the rain getting in. kids and dogs from scrambling underneath, while still allowing the gates to easily open.

And that is exactly what we did.

The device, which we called ‘the under-gate movable extension’ for lack of a better term, can be seen on page eight.

Scroll down for the plans and lumber description.

The Plans 

The lumber used in this project was dressedSurfaced; planed; smooth; even surface; gauged. (surfacedSee Dressed., smooth) treatedPressure treated. Refers to lumber that is treated in such a way that the sealer is forced into the pores of the wood. Refers to lumber pressure sprayed with chemicals to lengthen its life expectancy for outside use or inground applications. stock.

Stiles: (verticalPlumb, upright. frame members). The stiles were 90mm x 45mm (1 1/2″x 3 1/2″) stock.

Rails: (horizontalParallel to the horizon, flat, level. frame members). The middle rails were 90mm x 45mm (1 1/2″x 3 1/2″ stock. Both the top and bottom rails were cut out of 240mm x 45mm (1 1/2″x 9 1/2″) stock.

Bottom panels: 140mm x 20mm (3/4″x 5 1/2″) tongue and grooveA joint in which a protrusion (tongue) that runs along the edge of a board fits into a matching groove that runs along the edge of another board. Boards shaped with a tongue on one edge and a groove on the other so that they can be fitted together without gaps. stock.

Top panels: LatticeFramework consisting of an ornamental design made of strips of wood or metal. A framework of crossed wood or metal strips. to suit.