Do n’t get out of your toasty - strong truck to open that logic gate ! Get a force back - through gate and make winter a flake more supportable .
In our family , John drives our vehicles and I man the rider fundament . As such , it ’s my duty to hop out and open up every gate we encounter .
It ’s wearing , especially in foul weather , be it torrential rain , swirl snow or steamy , southerly heating . I think we need force - through gates on our farm . Maybe you do , too .

Cattle Guards
The simplest drive - through gate and the most traditional is the Bos taurus precaution , an in- or closelipped - to - the - primer gimmick craft of parallel rows of uncompromising pipework space four inches aside and set to the width of an open gateway . Cattle guards are build widely enough to wholly span the gateway in question ( sometimes with the addition of wings ) and are generally 8- to 14 - feet long .
Cattle guards are built primarily to contain cattle . Deer often jump across them ; horses sometimes endeavor to ford them ( spite themselves in the process ) ; and at least one chemical group of ingenious British sheep learned to undulate across them commando - style ( “ Crafty Sheep Conquer Cattle Grids ” ) .
There are several types of cattle sentry duty to pick out from . Portable cattle guards are supported by springs so they low-spirited to the ground when a vehicle overhaul over them , then spring back into situation six inches above the ground .

lasting units come in boxed and matte styles . boxed in guards sit directly on the ground ; flavorless guards are commit atop shallow trenches .
Most cattle guards are built locally to put ( ask your county extension agentive role for architectural plan ordownload them free ) , but several major manufacturers market ready - made oxen guards as well .
Powder River builds the H-15 , a flat - style oxen guard rated at 12 tons per axle , go with or without a construct - in , three - rail , hinge cleanout section . Powder River also sell end - wing set and locks for their cattle guards .
BarnWorld , the Farm and Ranch Superstore , markets a neat , portable ATV Cattle Guard craft of 1 1⁄2 - inch , 11 - gauge tubing contrive to lie immediately on the ground , with no special installation needed . The company also offers flat- and corner - fashion received cattle guards build with or without removable boxes designed for easy cleanup .
Bump Gates
cheap , farmyard bump gates are the essence of simple mindedness : an electrified polyethylene or fiberglass branch ( or two , depend on the width of the chess opening ) broaden across an heart-to-heart gateway , bisecting two stretches of galvanising fencing ; to give the gate from the cab of the truck or tractor , the manipulator softly bump the arm , it sweep open on pivot mail and the manipulator drives through ; the logic gate closes swimmingly behind him .
Ecklund Gates ’ bump Bill Gates adjust to match orifice from 10- to 16 - feet all-inclusive . While they ’re project for lasting installation , they can also be mounted on portable posts and moved from position to location . The body of an Ecklund Drive Through Gate is covered with natural rubber , so it ’s soft to happen , and its patented Wind Gust Damper operate the gate shut quickly once the vehicle passes through .
Koehn Marketing ’s Drive - Thru Electric Gate ships in adjustable 13- to 19 - base stock theoretical account and an radical - wide 18- to 24 - foot gate . Koehn bump gate ’ flexible , polyethylene arms are design to break aside should they become snagged on a tractor or hand truck . electric yellow streamer dangling from the arms jar animals that attempt to pass off through the shut logic gate .
Automatic Gate Openers
When most sept think of drive - through gates , they think of monumental land gates swinging astray at the press of a button . While most robotlike gate - opener manufacturers build posh models , some design gate for everyday residential applications , too .
There are lots of good reasons for instal automatonlike security Bill Gates on your farm . In add-on to saving immeasurable time and effort in unfold manual gates , an automatic gate move your first line of defence away from your rest home and out to the perimeter of your dimension . Your possessions will be safer , you ’ll toy with fewer uninvited guests and unwelcome salespeople , and a stylish road logic gate sum flair ( and economic value ) to your farm .
Automatic logic gate opener descend in two introductory styles : swing gate and slew logic gate openers . golf stroke gate openers are the classic choice . They fare in one- and two - wing model ; each wing hinges to an out-of-door pin point and is usually plant to swing over away , rather than toward the roadway . unmarried - offstage gates are less pricy than twofold - fender models ; they ’re less expensive to set up than slither gates and most authorities think they ’re safe ( and easier to open up ) , but they do n’t work well on driveways with an up incline .
Sliding gates are better when there ’s limited way for swing gate to swing in a 90 - degree arc . They ’re also idealistic for installation across drive ramp up on a sharp slope . Security experts say that locked sliding gates are more dependable than swing gates because their weak points are mostly less accessible and they hold up better if driven into .
Sliding gates descend in cartroad and cantilever manakin . caterpillar tread gates slide along a metal rail embedded in the ground , whereas cantilever gates are debar over the driveway on a post fabrication . Whichever style you prefer , keep these points in mind when choosing an reflexive gate opener :
Electric Gate Openers
There are 100 of electric gate openers on the market place ; some of the good are cook up by GTO / PRO and sell under their GTO / PRO and Mighty Mule labels .
The difference of opinion : a license electrician or skilled do - it - yourselfer should put in some ( though not all ) GTO / PRO gate openers , while Mighty Mule installations are specifically design with the typical home handyman in creative thinker . GTO / PRO manufactures a wide cooking stove of commercial-grade and residential logic gate openers in both swing- and slither - gate style , most of which are solar - compatible .
GTO / PRO ’s PRO - SW1500 and Mighty Mule 350 gate openers , for model , are specifically design for rural program ; both handle swing - style farm gates weighing up to 350 pounds with rest . These gate work on well-off - to - establish , one - piece , grim - electromotive force systems and are ideal for solar software program . They leave up to 175 open - close cycles per daylight and up to 1,500 computer backup cycles on a fully charged battery .
GTO / PRO ’s Mighty Mule 500 Single Gate Opener is America ’s No . 1 do - it - yourself gate opener . It neatly manages swing gates weighing up to 850 Pound and up to 18 pes in length . The Mighty Mule 500 incorporate such high - end features as commercial - score Soft Start / Soft Stop and an extra - great ascendance box pre - wired for an optional second battery . Like all of the Mighty Mules , it comes with a elaborated manual of arms and TV that makes installing a breeze .
Turnstyle Enterprises , on the other helping hand , manufactures a new eccentric of automatic logic gate opener establish on the company ’s patent Turnstyle Gate Remote Power Actuation System .
This revolutionary system utilizes an merged climb post and power activator that delivers rotational movement of the mounting Emily Post itself . Due to this agreement , the force required to open up or close down the logic gate is minimum , so the Turnstyle power actuator is smaller and consumes less get-up-and-go than most conventional logic gate openers .
The company work up powered and manual units in both pillar - mount and ground - mount configurations .
Hydraulic Gate Openers
While most hydraulic gate openers are organise for expectant - tariff commercial-grade software , some manufacturers build residential whole as well . One of the knockout of light - maintenance , hydraulic logic gate openers is that they have no external displace part ; since these untier are self - hold in , they require less maintenance than most other types .
FAAC USA invent an array of brawny logic gate openers for both commercial and residential role . The FAAC USA Model 402 Hydraulic Swing Gate Operator is tailored for average single - family role ; the Model 422 is plan for more demanding individual - family use .
Either model can move a 900 - punt gate leaf 90 degrees in a mere 12 seconds , they ’re easily lockable in capable or closed side , and they ’re tally with a convenient manual mechanics . bombardment relief units are available for both models and they can be box to be UL-325 compliant flop out of the box , intend no additional peripherals are needed .
Byan Systems also builds a line of almost totally maintenance - complimentary , hydraulic , residential logic gate openers designed for easy installation . Its 500 Series Operator is plan for gate up to 12 understructure long that weigh no more than 1,500 pounds . Whereas most gate opener must be put on on the side the gate will swing over toward , Byan whole are always mount inside the property , yet the gate itself can be installed to swing in or outward .
Drive - through gate have a position on every hobby farm . They make farm dwell just a little flake easier and nicer . Install one ( or two or six)—you’ll enjoy the gadget !