Field Gate

What is a field gate and where is it used?

A field gate is a double leaf gate built to close the entrance opening of rural sites such as arable land, vineyards and orchards, animal pens, olive groves, greenhouses and storage yards. It consists of a galvanized steel section frame with a welded wire mesh infill tensioned inside it. In the trade it is also known as a farm gate, a garden entrance gate or a paddock gate.

This gate is not about looks, it is about doing a job. It lets a tractor and trailer in and out comfortably, keeps livestock from wandering off and makes unauthorised vehicle access to the land difficult. Because the frame is galvanized there is no annual repainting chore; even after years without maintenance in the countryside, the first places to rust are the cut and weld points, not the body. The two sizes we hold in stock are 300x150 cm and 400x150 cm, and the gate is sold per unit.

The gate is double leaf, and in rural use that has a concrete payoff. A single leaf gate of the same width swings through a far wider arc as it opens; on narrow tracks and on land with no turning area in front of the entrance there is simply nowhere for the leaf to go. With two leaves each leaf is half the width, so the opening arc shrinks. On top of that, opening one leaf is enough for everyday foot and motorcycle traffic; the load of opening and closing the whole gate only arises when a vehicle enters. It is a simple detail, but it noticeably extends the life of the hinges and the drop bolt.

Sizes and technical specifications

The width in the table is the gate's own dimension. Once post thickness and hinge clearance are deducted, the clear passage opening is a few centimetres narrower than that figure; you have to allow for this when measuring.

300x150 or 400x150? Choosing the right size

The choice is set by the widest vehicle that enters the land, not the one that enters most often. Use this as a rough guide:

• 300 cm: Enough for cars, pickups, a standard tractor and a narrow trailer. This is the size used at most garden, olive grove, small plot and hobby garden entrances.
• 400 cm: If a bale trailer, a water tanker, a digger, a lorry or a tractor with wide implements attached has to get through, this is the right choice. On land where a combine harvester comes in at harvest time, even 400 cm can be marginal; if there is any chance of that, buying the gate in the widest size works out cheaper than pulling the posts back out later.

On land with a tight turn off the road, vehicles approach the gate at an angle and the room for manoeuvre disappears. If the turning area in front of the entrance is cramped, going one size up is the decision that pays off most in practice.

Gate posts and hinges: the parts that decide service life

On most field gates that fail on site, the problem is not the gate but the post it hangs on. The weight of a 150 cm high double leaf gate bears on the post at a single point; a thin walled tube or a shallow foundation leans forward over time, the leaves stop meeting each other and the drop bolt no longer holds.

That is why the gate post is chosen heavier than the fence post and set deeper. The hinges are the adjustable type; the gate is levelled at first installation and can be fine tuned at the hinge a few months later, once the ground has settled. Setting a ground stop pin into the surface at the centre point where the leaves meet stops a leaf being thrown about by the wind.

Hinge count is another point that gets overlooked. Two hinges are theoretically enough on a 150 cm high leaf, but on heavily used field gates a third hinge reduces leaf twisting noticeably. Once the hinges are welded on, the weld area has to be sealed with galvanizing spray; otherwise the point that carries the most load on the gate is also the first point to rust. The gap left between the bottom edge of the leaf and the ground should be settled at the outset as well: in the countryside earth surfaces heave over time, mud builds up, and a 3-5 cm allowance is used up in no time. Where the entrance is bare earth, being a little generous with that gap beats cutting the leaf down a few years later.

Installation: foundations, plumb and clearance

The sequence is simple, but getting it out of order cannot be put right afterwards:

1. The entrance opening is measured, and the post centre distance is set by adding hinge and drop bolt clearance to the gate width.
2. A foundation hole is dug for each post; the gate post goes noticeably deeper and into more concrete than the surrounding fence posts.
3. The posts are set plumb with a spirit level and held with braces until the concrete cures. The gate is not hung before the concrete has hardened fully.
4. The leaves are fitted, height and clearance are set at the hinges, and the drop bolt and padlock lug are aligned.
5. Any cut or scratched surfaces are sealed with galvanizing spray.

Gate installation is not one of our standard services. On perimeter projects of approximately 1000 metres and above our teams are already on site, so gate installation can be carried out within that scope. On single gate orders we send the product out and give technical support over the phone wherever you get stuck during installation.

What determines the price of a field gate?

The price does not depend on a single item; when we prepare a quotation we look at:

• Size: a 400 cm gate means both more section and a heavier leaf; there is a clear difference against 300 cm.
• Section size and wall thickness: a gate of the same size built from heavier section weighs more and is priced higher.
• Infill type and density: as the mesh aperture gets tighter, more wire goes into each unit of area.
• Accessories: posts, stop pins, additional locks and special hinge requests are separate items.
• Quantity: on housing estate, farm and cooperative jobs, putting several gates into the same shipment brings the total cost down.
• Dispatch distance and transport method: a gate is a bulky product; the freight charge is shown separately in the quotation.

All our prices include VAT, and we give the current price once we know the size.

Common mistakes

• Choosing the gate post the same as the fence post: this is the most widespread mistake; the post leans forward before long.
• Hanging the gate without waiting for the concrete: concrete that has not cured shifts under the weight of the gate and the post loses its plumb.
• Forgetting the clearance: if the opening is built exactly to the gate width, no room is left for the hinges and the drop bolt, and the gate has to be forced shut.
• Ignoring the slope of the ground: where the ground rises towards the gate, the leaf scrapes the earth as it opens; the bottom clearance has to be set accordingly.
• Leaving cut ends bare: on galvanized steel, rust always starts at an exposed cut face.

Products used alongside it

A field gate does not do its job on its own; it works as part of a perimeter line. On site it most often goes together with these products:

• Steel tube post — as the gate post and as the line post; the gate post is always chosen in a heavier section.
• Galvanized chain link fence — the most economical way to enclose long land boundaries; it has the same galvanized finish as the gate.
• Panel fence — where a tidier, more rigid appearance is wanted around the entrance.
• Barbed wire — as a deterrent top strand above the fence.
• Double swing gate — for villa, housing estate and business entrances where appearance comes first and a painted, solid clad gate is needed.

Ordering, site survey and dispatch

Our core business is manufacturing and selling: you place your order by phone or through the contact form, the gate is prepared from stock and sent from our warehouse in Ostim to anywhere in Turkey. Because the gate is bulky and heavy, the transport method is decided according to quantity and is written clearly in the quotation.

If you are in Ankara, the site survey is free of charge; we measure the entrance opening on site and tell you the right size and post thickness for the ground and the slope. In return, delivery is always charged — this applies to deliveries within Ankara as well, and we do not offer free shipping or free delivery. Our prices include VAT.

When you send us your entrance dimension and the perimeter length of the land, we price the gate, the posts and the fencing material in a single list, so nothing is missing on installation day.