Free on-site gate assessment - hinges, posts, and your LiftMaster or Nice gate operator checked before anything is quoted
The assessment is free and the quote is the invoice.
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterFast, Reliable Gate Installation Across West View
Gate installation in West View usually means working with what’s already there: a 1940s brick pillar, a vintage steel post, or an ornamental iron gate that’s been swinging since before Eisenhower. That’s the reality of this borough, and it’s why our approach here is different from what you’d get from a company that mostly pours new footings in open lots. We handle Gate Repair - West View and retrofit first, replace only when it’s actually cheaper than nursing old hardware along. If you need a new driveway gate, a pedestrian gate, or a security gate hung on existing masonry in West View, call (877) 610-2993 and Hal will talk you through what’s realistic before anyone shows up with a truck.
Why Gatewood Fence & Gate Is West View’s Preferred Gate Installation Company
We’ve been owner-operated since 2001, and Hal Gatewood’s name is on the shop and on every invoice. That matters in a place like West View, where neighbors still talk over the fence and a bad job gets around the block faster than a good one. West View customers call us because we show up when we say we will, we quote a price before any work starts, and we don’t swap parts that don’t need swapping. The person who answers the phone at (877) 610-2993 is a live person, 24 hours a day. Not a voicemail. Not a call center three states away.
Most of what we do in West View is restoration work dressed up as installation. A homeowner wants a new gate, but the pillars are original to the house. A driveway double gate from the 1950s needs new hinges and an operator, but the steel posts are still solid. That’s our bread and butter. We weld on site, in your driveway, so the gate never leaves your property. Every job carries our 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If it’s not done right, one call brings Hal back. No runaround.
Our Gate Installation Services in West View
Driveway Gate
Driveway gates in West View are often hung between two brick pillars set 90 years ago to no particular standard. The spacing isn’t square, the pillars aren’t plumb, and the hinges are some size nobody manufactures anymore. We measure everything, re-plumb the columns when needed, and build or source a gate that actually fits the opening you have, not the opening a catalog assumes. We handle Gate Installation from the first measurement to the final latch adjustment, including operators and safety edges.
Pedestrian Gate
Most West View lots are tight, and pedestrian gates here are usually tucked beside a brick garage or between a porch and a retaining wall. We install swinging and sliding pedestrian gates that match the scale of the house, with hardware rated for the freeze-thaw cycles that move everything in this soil. If you have an existing iron gate that’s sagging or dragging, we’ll likely fix the hinge post rather than sell you a whole new frame. Fix the panel without the post and you’ll fix it twice.
Sliding Gate
Sliding gates make sense on West View’s small lots where a swing gate would eat half the driveway every time it opens. We install cantilever and track-style sliding gates, but we’re honest about the tradeoffs. On a West View lot with mature trees and heaving clay, a track gate needs more attention over time than a cantilever setup. We’ll show you both options, quote both prices, and let you decide. No pressure, no upsell.
Swing Gate
Swing gates are the most common installation we do in West View, and the one with the most ways to go wrong. A gate sags in the hinge post, not in the middle, and a hinge post that’s an old brick pillar needs to be re-plumbed before the gate goes on. We do that work ourselves, on site. We don’t hire out the masonry, and we don’t hang a new gate on a post that’s already leaning. Half our swing gate jobs in West View start with fixing what the last installer ignored.
Double Gate
West View has a lot of double driveways on corner lots and side streets off Center Avenue, and those call for double gates. Two leaves, two operators or one, a center drop rod, and careful latching. The challenge here is that the two pillars are rarely the same height or plumb. We level the leaves to the ground, not to each other, so the gate closes clean every time. We also install security gates on double driveways where neighbors share a boundary or where the alley access invites foot traffic.
Security Gate
A West View Gate Access Control system is often added to an existing ornamental iron driveway gate, not installed from scratch. We retrofit operators, add maglocks or keypads, and wire in safety edges and photo eyes. If you’re converting an old post-and-chain setup to an automatic security gate on a double driveway, we’ll talk you through the power run, the loop detector placement, and what the borough requires. We certify service on LiftMaster, FAAC, BFT, Linear, Viking, Ghost Controls, DoorKing, Elite, and Mighty Mule.
What happens when you call
- 1
A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
- 2
You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
- 3
A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
- 4
You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in West View
We’re certified to service nine major gate brands, and in West View we see a lot of FAAC, BFT, and Viking operators on older installations, plus LiftMaster on newer retrofits. We stock Gate Parts & Welding - West View locally, which means a job here doesn’t stall for a week while a motor ships from somewhere else. Whether you need a new operator installed on a 1940s iron gate or a full security gate system, we’ll match the hardware to the gate’s actual weight and hinge geometry. Sizing a modern operator without accounting for mid-century iron weight is how motors die early.
Common Gate Installation Problems We See in West View Homes
- Heaved brick pillars. West View’s clay-rich soil and 30 to 40 freeze-thaw cycles a year lift old, shallow-set pillars out of level every few winters. A new gate hung on an out-of-plumb pillar sags within months and binds against the latch side. We re-plumb first, then hang.
- Non-standard post spacings. Mid-century pillar spacing here was often whatever the mason felt like that day. Modern gate kits assume a standard opening. We build or order gates to the actual measurement, not the catalog spec.
- Oversized operators on heavy iron gates. A 1950s ornamental iron gate can weigh two or three times what a modern aluminum gate weighs. An operator sized for aluminum burns out fast on that load. We size the motor to the gate’s real weight and hinge friction.
- Frost-jacking from new footings next to old posts. Pouring a fresh concrete footing beside an existing shallow vintage post creates a differential frost lift that cracks the adjacent walkway or pillar base within a couple winters. On West View’s built-out lots, we almost never pour new footings unless the old post is completely gone.
Pricing for Gate Installation in West View, PA
A typical single swing gate installation in West View runs $1,300 to $2,800 when hung on existing, solid pillars. A double driveway gate with a new operator usually falls between $3,200 and $6,500 depending on gate weight, operator brand, and access control. Pedestrian gates run $600 to $1,500. Security gate retrofits with keypad entry and safety edges start around $1,800. The biggest cost variable in West View is pillar work: if your brick columns need re-plumbing, that adds $300 to $900 per pillar, but skipping it guarantees a sagging gate and a second service call. Every quote is written and agreed before work begins. Call (877) 610-2993 for a free estimate. We’ll measure, we’ll test the posts, and we’ll give you a number that doesn’t change at the door.
We Also Serve Cities Near West View
We serve West View and the surrounding boroughs and townships, including Bellevue, Glenshaw, Franklin Park, and McKees Rocks. If you’re just across the line in any of these communities, the same crew, same Gate Installation in West View approach applies: measure what’s there, quote honestly, and fix before replacing.
Serving West View, PA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the West View area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Gate Installation in West View
Yes, in most West View homes we can hang a new gate on your existing 1940s brick pillars, provided the bricks themselves aren’t crumbling and the pillars are at least 16 inches square or 18 by 16 with a concrete core. We’ll re-plumb the columns first, reset the hinge post with an epoxy-bonded anchor if needed, and fit pintles and bands that match the gate’s weight. On a side street off Center Avenue, our crew hung a new ornamental iron swing gate on two original brick pillars that had heaved 1½ inches out of plumb. We re-plumbed the columns, reset the hinge post with an epoxy-bonded anchor, and fitted matched 1940s-style pintles and bands. No new post footing was needed, and the gate swings clean without a sag correction. If the pillar is hollow brick with no fill, replacement is usually cheaper than repair. Call (877) 610-2993 and we’ll tell you which situation you’ve got.
It sags because the hinge post or pillar heaved during the winter freeze-thaw cycles, and the installer hung the gate without re-plumbing it first. West View’s clay-rich glacial soils and 30 to 40 annual freeze-thaw cycles push shallow-set posts and pillars out of level every few winters. A gate sags in the hinge post, not in the middle. If the pillar moves and the hinge doesn’t get realigned, the gate binds and scrapes. The fix is re-plumbing the post or pillar, then rehanging the gate with fresh hinge hardware. Call us at (877) 610-2993 and we’ll fix what the first installer left behind.
Yes, you can add a modern operator to an original mid-century iron gate, but the operator has to be sized for the gate’s actual weight and hinge geometry. A 1950s ornamental iron gate can weigh two to three times what a modern aluminum gate weighs. If you hang an operator rated for a light residential gate on that old iron, the motor burns out in a season or two. We measure the gate’s weight and swing resistance, then match an operator from FAAC, BFT, Linear, or LiftMaster to the real load. We also check the existing hinges and pintles, because stiff old hardware adds strain to any new motor. Call (877) 610-2993 for a free assessment.
Yes, we install loop detectors on small West View lots with brick aprons, and we cut the saw slot carefully so the brick isn’t cracked. On very tight lots where the driveway is only a car length long, a loop detector alone may not give the gate enough time to open before the car reaches it. In those cases we often pair a loop with a photo eye or a keypad, so the gate starts opening as soon as you pull up, not as soon as the car sits on the loop. The slot gets sealed with a flexible compound that moves with West View’s freeze-thaw cycles instead of cracking out like rigid epoxy. Estimates are free at (877) 610-2993.
Usually yes, if you want real control over who enters your driveway. A post-and-chain setup is a visual barrier only. An automatic security gate with a keypad, photo eyes, and safety edges actually closes off the driveway and keeps uninvited cars from pulling in. On West View’s double driveways, we typically install two swing leaves with a center drop rod and one operator per leaf, or a single operator with a mechanical linkage if the gate is light enough. The pillars have to be re-plumbed and reinforced first in most cases, because mid-century pillars weren’t built to carry the dynamic load of an automatic operator. We’ll quote the whole job before any work starts. Call (877) 610-2993.
Written by Hal Gatewood, Owner at Gatewood Fence & Gate, serving West View since 2001.