Ornamental Iron-Style Gate Installation

An ornamental gate is the one people choose when the entrance is supposed to say something. Black steel pickets, an arched top, maybe finials or a scroll panel, hung between brick columns or steel posts at the head of a drive. It makes a lake house or an estate look finished from the road, and with an opener it becomes the way you arrive home every day. We build ornamental driveway and walk gates in powder-coated steel and aluminum around Lake Livingston, matched to ornamental fence or standing alone at the road.

Styles

Flat-top and arched gates are the two basic shapes; the arch can rise in the center of a pair or across a single leaf. Pickets can be plain, spear-topped or finialed to match the fence. Rails run two or three high. Scroll panels, circles and custom insets are added where the owner wants them, and a name or brand can be worked into a single-leaf gate. Steel is the standard material and the stiffer one for a big gate; aluminum cannot rust and suits gates right at the water. Black is the usual finish, with bronze and other colors available. See ornamental iron-style fences and gates explained for the terms and what to ask for.

Where they go

• Driveway entrances on lake houses, estates and subdivision lots, usually with an opener, keypad and remotes.
• Front walks and courtyards, as a single walk gate in an ornamental fence.
• Pool enclosures, with self-closing hinges and a self-latching latch mounted high.
• Churches, offices and storefronts that want security without a fortress look. See commercial fencing.

How we build and hang it

Ornamental gates are heavy and unforgiving of a leaning post. We set steel gate posts in footings sized to the gate's weight and width, deeper and wider than fence posts, and plumb them carefully before the concrete sets. Masonry columns get a steel post inside or a heavy embedded plate for the hinges. Hinges are adjustable ball-bearing or heavy weld-on types so the gate can be squared years later if the ground moves. Latches are gravity or magnetic for walk gates and electric strikes or opener-controlled locks on drive gates. Every drilled hole and cut end is sealed so the powder coat is not breached.

Openers

Most ornamental driveway gates we build are automated. We install the opener with the gate so the posts, weight and swing are matched, with solar or wired power, keypads, remotes, exit loops and safety sensors. We service the openers we install. See gate openers.

What affects the price of an ornamental gate

Width and weight first, because they set the posts and footings. Then the style: a flat-top single walk gate is the simple end; a sixteen-foot arched pair with finials and a scroll panel is the other. Steel posts versus masonry columns, an opener with keypad and remotes, solar power at a road with no electricity, and wings of fence on either side each add a line. We price it on site, with the opener included in the same number if you want one.

Matching an existing fence

Most ornamental fence comes from a handful of manufacturers in standard profiles, and we can usually match picket spacing, rail count and finial style closely enough that a new gate looks original. Bring a photo or a panel measurement to the estimate. Where an exact match is not available, we will show you the closest and suggest where the difference will and will not show.

Frequently asked questions

Are ornamental gates real wrought iron?

Almost never today. They are welded steel or aluminum in iron styles, powder coated. They look like iron, weigh less, and do not need painting every few years.

Can an ornamental gate have an opener?

Yes, and most ornamental driveway gates we build get one. Steel gates are heavier and need an opener sized for the weight; aluminum gates are easier on the opener.

Can you match a gate to a fence that is already there?

Usually. Most ornamental fence comes from a handful of manufacturers in standard styles, and we can match picket spacing, rail count and finial style closely enough that the gate looks original.