Electric Gate Installation in Southampton: What to Expect

If you're thinking about electric gates for your home or business in Southampton, it helps to know what happens from the first phone call to the day you press the remote for the first time. We're a Southampton company. We design and make our own steel gates, install them, and look after them afterwards, so you deal with one team from start to finish.

Step 1: Getting in touch

Call or WhatsApp us on 07890 387915. If you can, send a few photos of your entrance by WhatsApp: the opening, the driveway behind it and the posts or walls either side. It gives us a head start before we visit.

Step 2: A site survey

We visit, measure and talk through what you want. At the survey we look at:

  • The width and height of the opening, and whether new posts or piers are needed
  • The slope of the driveway, which affects whether swing gates can open inwards
  • The space available: behind the opening for swing gates, or to one side for sliding and cantilever gates
  • The ground, for foundations and any track
  • Power, and whether a cable can be run or a solar-powered gate would suit. The site survey is free for every gate.
  • How you'll use the gate: who needs to get in, and how often

Step 3: Choosing the right gate

Swing gates open on hinges and suit most driveways with room to open. Double gates have one motor per gate.

Sliding gates run along the boundary on a track. They suit short or sloping drives.

Cantilever gates slide without a ground track, carried on rollers to one side. They suit uneven ground and gravel.

We'll recommend what works best for your entrance and explain why. Our guide to sliding vs swing gates covers this in more detail.

Step 4: Design and manufacture

We make our own steel gates. That means the design can match your property, from a plain, modern look to something more traditional, and it can be built with automation in mind: the right hinge positions, motor mounting points, and gap sizes that avoid finger traps.

Step 5: Access control

Decide how you and your visitors will open the gate:

  • Remote handsets
  • Keypads for visitors and deliveries
  • Intercoms, audio or video
  • GSM units so you can open the gate from your phone
  • Exit loops so the gate opens as you drive out

Step 6: Installation

On installation day we fit the posts, gates, motors, control panel, safety devices and access control. We'll talk you through any groundwork beforehand, so you know what to expect on your driveway.

Step 7: Safety and force testing

An electric gate must be safe for your family, visitors, pets and anyone walking past. We fit photocells, which are non-contact sensors that stop the gate when a beam is broken, and safety edges, which are contact devices that stop or reverse the gate on touch. Most gates use both.

Before handover, every installation is force tested. We measure how hard the gate pushes against an obstruction and set it up so it stays within safe limits.

Step 8: Handover

We show you how everything works, including how to open the gate by hand in a power cut. You get:

  • an O&M (operation and maintenance) manual
  • the force-test readouts from commissioning
  • a settings book kept in the control panel, so any engineer can see how your gate is set up

After installation

Electric gates should be serviced at least every six months to keep them safe and reliable. We offer maintenance contracts tailored to your site. Out-of-hours emergency call-outs are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Extra charges apply outside normal hours.

Areas we cover

We install electric gates across Southampton, including Bassett, Chilworth, Shirley, Bitterne, Woolston, Hedge End, West End and Totton, and across Hampshire, Dorset, Surrey and Berkshire.

Frequently asked questions

Do you make the gates yourselves? Yes. We make our own steel gates, designed for your entrance and for automation.

Is the site survey free? Yes, the site survey is free for every gate. Call or WhatsApp us to arrange one.

Can you install electric gates for businesses? Yes. We also supply and install barriers, bollards and industrial gates.

What happens in a power cut? Every gate has a manual release. We show you how to use it at handover.

Will my gate be safe for children and pets? We fit suitable safety devices, usually both photocells and safety edges, and force test the gate before handover.

How often will it need servicing? At least every six months.

Book a free site survey