Hinging a garden gate

[Mr. Clueless]

The old gate we had was badly warped & the hinges rusted & twisted after it blew back on itself years ago.

I finally got round to making a replica, this time with tanalised T&G boards as the face instead of rough sawn which the previous owners had used.

Everything is set so far. Just looking at the hinges that were used before - 450mm T-hinges.

They're screwed in for the most part except at the far end (finest point) and the near end, there is a big screw (it's probably not called a screw but look at my username i don't know what it's called) which is beefier than the others. I imagine it's there for support.

The supports on the rear are 4x1 & the thickness of the T&G is claimed to be 19mm so i was only getting away with say 32mm screws before they start poking out.

That's from the previous gate.

* what are they called?
* how do i fit them (Got my biggest screwdriver & it's a bit of an awkward head on it)
* Are they the best option here?
* I'm assuming standard screws on the hinge are not the best idea & this is why the previous owner would've used 2 of these per hinge?

 

[JohnD]

It looks like a roofing bolt. Probably galvanized. Best used with copaslip or grease on the thread outdoors It is OK but you would do better to put a galvanised penny washer or "C" form washer under the head and the nut to prevent them pulling through (I live near the sea so I use stainless with hex heads, they are cheap unless you get through lots, buy a dozen on ebay).

Yours is not a Philips or Pozi cross head, it is two screwdriver slots. A large carpenters driver will fit it.

T hinges are usually flimsy pressed steel. Hook and Band hinges are better but more expensive. Paint hinges (using a metal preservative primer) before fixing.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/A2-STAINL...hash=item53f6e5d1e5:m:mJLq10RcFbg6znnRMYPyPKw

"M6" means the hole in the washer fits a 6mm bolt.
C-form means it is an unusually wide washer.

If your hinge has square holes in it they are for coach bolts. Observe the head. They cannot be removed from outside so are often used on gates and padlocks. Coach Screws are not the same.

 

[Mr. Clueless]

Thanks for the reply.

I was looking at those hook & band hinges after what you said (simply highlighted & searched google).

Saw these: http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Ironmongery/d170/Heavy+Gate+Fittings/sd2947/Hook+&+Band+Black+Cranked+Hinge/p84185 I don't mind the price.

Like you say, the T hinge is pretty flimsy. I only selected it because it's what was used on the old one & i don't know enough about this to say "oh such & such would be better".

Regards fixing these hook & band hinges to the gate - are standard screws (think i've used 4x32 or whatever that sizing is) going to be good enough or is that also going to be too flimsy & i'll need to use a coach bolt? (or more than one)?



EDIT: Just watched this video

the other one he had going through the first process. Don't know if his info is sound but it seems decent enough & detailed.

 

[r896neo]

Hook and band are indeed stronger hence their use on wider gates but they are slightly more troublesome to fit and need a bit more thought.

One problem though is that they can reduce the space of a small opening as they need more room to open and restrict the way the gate opens a little unless you use a cranked type face mounted on the rear of the gate post and they therefore require a substantial 3 or 4'' post to hang on.

For simplicity as long as your gate is 3ft wide or less I would use large 300mm galvanised T hinge.

 

[Mr. Clueless]

Hook and band are indeed stronger hence their use on wider gates but they are slightly more troublesome to fit and need a bit more thought.

Really? I can sense i'm on the verge of making (another) DIY boo-boo then because it looked fairly straight forward to me. Not to say that it is - i could quite easily miss some finer points that end up making a mess of the whole thing. It's been done before.

Regards the size of the gate - 1.8mtr high & 1.1mtr wide.

 

[r896neo]

If your gate is that size then t hinges wont be up to the job anyway so hook and band it is.

They are not difficult but the fact that they need bolted on not just screwed and you are less free in terms of positioning and therefore lining them up than a butt mounted t hinge which can be fixed to the inside face, rear face even front face if needed.

Don't be daunted there really is nothing to it, I just thought id mention it because of your self confessed clue-lessness

 

[Mr. Clueless]

Thanks.

When the wife's relatives came down, the partner of her aunt who's quite good at DIY pointed out the T-hinges & said such-&-such a hinge would be better than those. It's a few years ago so can't remember what he said but i do remember him saying the T hinges weren't up to the job.

Watching YouTube videos of hanging gates & such, what (at the moment) appears to be the most difficult thing will be the holding it in place. I have some thermalite blocks to lift it up a bit, but getting it perfectly level against the hinge post looks like it'll be a task. I read about packers but can't see what i'd get in there to make it perfect all the way down & stationary too.


Still, i'll have a go. It'll either work or it wont

 

[JohnD]

The video shows him packing it up then fixing the bottom hinge first. There might be some reason for that but I found it easier to do the top one first. It takes the weight and I think is less liable to blow about or fall over while you do the bottom one.

There is a bit of play in the hinges so push the bottom one out to take up the slack.

In the vid he put the coach bolts through from the "wrong" side. The idea is that you insert them from the hinge side so the square hole in the hinge fits the square shank on the bolt and prevents it turning when you spanner the nut.

 

[ironsidebod]

There are adjustable hook and band hinges available which take a look of the agro out of fitting, see here http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/200994951787

Handy upside is the gate can be adjusted when the gate/posts move over time.

 

[Mr. Clueless]

Bit of a dummy question here maybe, but the hinges - i'm assuming they would have to go on the side of the fence where the public wouldn't be?

So in my case, the gate supports will be on the 'rear' of the gate (my garden) side & the 'nice' side of the gate will be facing the front of the house/road side ... so the hinges would have to be on the rear of the gate (the side facing my garden)

Correct?

Seems like a daft question to me, but i know if there is a specific side & i don't ask & i get it wrong then i'll only regret it later.

 

[JohnD]

the gate must open onto your own property, not the pavement.

Mine opens towards the hinge side (which is my sideway).

If you were to put the hooks of the hinges on the garden side of the posts, I think you could open it inwards even with the bands on the outside, but I've never tried it.

In the video, he has the hinges on the inside face, and the gate swings inward.

In my case the timber is stained dark brown and the hinges are painted dark brown, so it all looks "nice" to me.

 

[Mr. Clueless]

I'm just wondering what i should use to screw in the hinge bit that screws to the wooden post (don't say screw )

I've a hook & band hinge for the gate which is 1.8mtr high & 1.1 mtr wide.

The square hole closest to the hanging part of the hinge takes a M12 bolt. Maybe it'd take a M14 but i wasn't so sure. The 3 holes leading out to the point take M8 bolts. I don't know if they're supposed to be screwed & not bolted but the size is M8 bolts.

So then i was looking at the bit that screws (or locates) on to the wooden post for the hinge to 'sit on'.

Are standard screws going to be strong enough to take the weight? Although i can't go all the way through & out the other side so that isn't an option either.

If screws then what size should be used (or what kind of screw maybe)?

I measured the post & i can get in a screw up to 60mm in length, perhaps 65mm but no bigger.

I measured the hole for it to go through & it's 6mm wide.

Don't want to use anything flimsy that isn't up to the job & find it's been pulled off.

 

[r896neo]

Don't worry, use 5x60mm screws or similar. As the the bands you only need bolt the fist and last holes the rest could be screwed if you prefer.