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.
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AfterFast, Reliable Gate Parts & Welding Across Alexandria
A sagging gate on a 1920s brick rowhouse in Del Ray usually needs hinge work and a new post footing, not a whole new gate. That’s the kind of repair we do every week here. If you’re in Alexandria and the gate won’t latch, the post is rusted through at the base, or the operator is older than the safety code, call (877) 610-2993 and a real person answers, any hour. We show up with a welding rig in the truck and most gate hardware on hand, so the fix happens in your driveway, not at some shop across town.
Why Gatewood Fence & Gate Is Alexandria’s Preferred Gate Parts & Welding Company
Hal Gatewood started fixing gates in 2001 and the name is still on the shop and on every invoice. That matters in Alexandria, where a lot of the work is on older properties and the person you hire needs to know what he is looking at. We have rebuilt gates on Federal-era rowhouses near the waterfront, mid-century homes in Hollin Hills, and plenty of postwar splits in the 22304 and 22310 corridors. Alexandria customers tend to ask the same two things: “Can you actually fix it or do I have to replace it?” and “Will you be the one showing up?” The answer to both is yes.
Our Google reviews from Alexandria homeowners consistently mention the same things: the person who answered the phone was the person who showed up, the price quoted was the price on the invoice, and the gate works. Every job carries the 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If it is not right, one call brings Hal back. No runaround, no “that’s normal wear.” We answer calls around the clock with a live person, not a voicemail tree or a call center three states away. That is not a slogan here. It is how the business has run since before smartphones existed.
The crews serving Alexandria are background-checked and uniformed, and they know the city’s streets. From the Potomac riverfront humidity that rusts wrought iron at the grade line to the clay soil that heaves gate posts every freeze-thaw cycle, the failure modes here are specific. A technician who only knows tract-home gates in a dry county will misdiagnose an Alexandria fence. We have seen that work left behind, and we end up fixing it properly.
Our Gate Parts & Welding Services in Alexandria
Hinge Replacement
When a gate drops a half inch and drags on the latch side, the hinge post bearing has usually wallowed out or the hinge strap has corroded. On a wrought-iron gate in Alexandria, that corrosion is often worse on the river side of the hinge, where Potomac humidity settles into the metal. We cut out the old hinge, weld in a forged strap hinge matched to the original profile, and brace the post if it has started to lean. For homes in BAR-designated historic districts, matching the hinge profile is not optional, it is the law. We know those standards.
Post Replacement
A gate post that has rusted through below the soil line cannot be patched. You cut it out and replace it. In Alexandria’s clay-heavy coastal plain soil, the old post is often surrounded by rust-scale and backfill that never drained properly, which means the new post gets a deeper concrete footing with drainage rock at the base. For brick pilaster posts on older rowhouses, we set the new steel core inside the pilaster rather than demolishing the masonry. The gate stays plumb through the freeze-thaw cycles that shift posts every late winter.
Rail Repair
Rails crack where the pickets are welded to the frame, usually at a stress point near a hinge or latch. You see this a lot on Alexandria gates that were built before the 1990s, when thinner stock was common and welds were smaller. We weld the rail in place, grind it smooth, and match the coating to the rest of the gate. If the rail is structurally gone, we replace that section rather than layering weld over rust. Fix the panel without checking the post and you will fix it twice.
Custom Welding
Some repairs do not fit a shelf part. A curved arch on an old iron gate, a missing finial, a bracket that was forged by hand a hundred years ago. That is custom welding, done on site with a mobile rig. We have fabricated replacement pickets to match original wrought-iron profiles for historic district homes, welded steel gate frames for driveway gates, and built custom hinges when the manufacturer stopped making them three decades ago. Show us the broken piece or a photo, and we will tell you honestly whether it can be welded or whether replacement is cheaper.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Alexandria
Our Gate Parts & Welding team carries parts for the operators and gate hardware we see most around Alexandria: FAAC, BFT, Linear, Viking, and more. When a control board fails on a residential swing gate, you do not want to wait a week for a part to ship from a warehouse. We keep common boards, photo-eyes, capacitors, and hinge sets in the service vehicles, and for older FAAC and BFT operators that are still running on original hardware, we can often source the part same day from our local inventory, not a dropshipper. If you are in 22309, 22310, 22311, or 22312, the part is likely already on the truck heading to your job.
Common Gate Parts & Welding Problems We See in Alexandria Homes
- Rusted hinge posts below grade. Potomac humidity settles into the base of wrought-iron posts on older Alexandria homes, and the metal rusts from the inside out. The gate drops, the latch binds, and the post eventually fails. We cut the post out and replace it with a properly footed steel post, then rehang the gate.
- Seasonal post heave from clay soil. Alexandria’s coastal plain soil expands when it freezes and shifts when it thaws. Gates that work fine in August bind at the latch in February. The fix is often resetting the post deeper, not adjusting the hinge a quarter inch and hoping.
- Legacy operators without entrapment protection. Gates installed before the mid-2000s often lack photo-eyes or current UL 325 safety edges. In Alexandria, a failing operator on an older gate may also put the homeowner at code risk. We retrofit modern safety sensors onto older LiftMaster, BFT, and Viking operators rather than telling you to rip it all out.
- Rail cracks at weld points. Old welds fail first at the stress points near hinges and latches. On a 1920s iron gate in Del Ray, that crack may be in a decorative arch. We weld it, match the finish, and check the post alignment so the crack does not return at the same weld.
Pricing for Gate Parts & Welding in Alexandria, VA
Gate repair in Alexandria runs from about $85 to $425 depending on what has failed. That is an honest range, not a teaser. Here is a breakdown of common jobs:
- Hinge replacement, single gate: $85-$220
- Hinge replacement, double swing gate: $180-$380
- Post replacement with new concrete footing: $250-$425
- Weld repair, single crack or picket: $95-$185
- Custom welding fabrication, per piece: $140-$400
- Add safety photo-eyes to legacy operator: $195-$350
Every price is quoted and agreed upon before any work starts. You will not get a different number when the job is done. We never spring a “while we were here” upcharge. Estimates are free, and we offer a free second opinion on any written estimate you have from another company. Take $40 off any repair over $200, and seniors and veterans get a permanent 10% discount. Call (877) 610-2993 and we will give you a number before we touch the gate.
We Also Serve Cities Near Alexandria
Our Gate Parts & Welding in Alexandria coverage extends to the neighboring communities of Huntington, Franconia, Groveton, and Hybla Valley. Same live-answer phone, same 90-Day Done Right Promise, same on-site welding rig. If you live just over the line, call and we will schedule it like any other job in the city.
Serving Alexandria, VA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Alexandria 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 Parts & Welding in Alexandria
If your home is a contributing property in one of Alexandria’s historic overlay districts, any alteration to the gate, including a weld repair that changes the profile, hardware, or material, can require Board of Architectural Review sign-off. A straight structural repair that matches the original profile and hardware typically does not trigger review, but swapping wrought iron for aluminum or changing hinge styles does. We cross-reference the city’s historic district parcel map before we recommend any material substitution, and we will tell you plainly if the job needs to go through BAR before we start. This is not a step that even comes up a mile away in Arlington or Fairfax County. Call (877) 610-2993 if you are not sure whether your street is inside the overlay.
A sagging gate in Alexandria usually runs $85 to $425 depending on whether the hinge, the post, or both have failed. A hinge replacement on a single gate starts around $85. If the post has rusted through at the base and needs a new concrete footing, expect $250-$425. The price is quoted before any work begins and it does not change at the door. For an exact number on your gate, call (877) 610-2993 for a free estimate.
A gate operator installed before entrapment protection was required may still be grandfathered, but if it has been repaired or significantly altered, current UL 325 safety standards apply and missing photo-eyes or safety edges can put the homeowner at code violation risk. We recently added a UL 325-compliant photo-eye to an older LiftMaster on a Del Ray property before testing the loop detector, because the gate had been closing on its own without reversing. If your operator lacks safety sensors, call (877) 610-2993 and we will tell you exactly where it stands and what a retrofit costs.
Yes, in most cases. The hinge strap and pin are replaced, not the whole gate. If the hinge post is solid, we cut out the rusted strap, weld in a forged hinge matched to the original profile, and rehang the gate. If the post is the problem, that gets a new steel core and footing. We only recommend replacing a whole gate when the welding repairs would cost more than a new gate and the old one would still be losing metal to rust. Call (877) 610-2993 and Hal will tell you which one your gate actually needs.
Clay-heavy soil in the Potomac coastal plain heaves when it freezes, which shifts the gate post slightly and throws the latch out of alignment. You notice it in late January or February, and it often resolves by late spring, which is why it never quite gets fixed. The permanent fix is resetting the post deeper with proper drainage, or adjusting the hinge geometry so the latch does not depend on a post that moves with the frost. In Alexandria, this is one of the most common calls we get all winter. Call (877) 610-2993 and we will find out whether it is the post moving or the latch wearing.
Key Takeaways
- On-site welding means the gate stays in your driveway. We do not haul it off or swap parts that do not need swapping.
- Every job carries the 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. One call brings Hal back.
- Prices are quoted and agreed before any work starts. You will never get a bigger number at the door.
- A live person answers (877) 610-2993 24/7. No voicemail, no dispatch queue, no call center.
- We know Alexandria’s BAR historic district rules and will tell you if your repair needs review before we start.
Written by Hal Gatewood, Owner at Gatewood Fence & Gate, serving Alexandria since 2001.