Timber and metal gates in Broadstairs.

Pedestrian gates

Standard pedestrian gate on a garden boundary sits at 900mm wide, 1.5m to 1.8m tall, in timber (braced ledge) or steel-framed. Timber gates cost less to supply and fit than metal; both are quoted from a photo. On the Broadstairs coastal belt we default to hot-dip galvanised hinges, stainless coach bolts, and either galv or brass latches. Zinc-plated hardware rusts through in three years within sight of the sea, and a rusted gate hinge is the item that fails first on almost every seaside gate we replace.

Driveway gates - single

Single-swing driveway gates are the standard for a normal Broadstairs driveway. Width typically 2.4m to 3.0m, height 1.5m to 1.8m. Timber (usually cottage-style braced ledge or contemporary horizontal-slat) or metal (steel-framed, powder-coat), both fixed-priced from a photo. Automation adds the cost of a Faac or Nice hydraulic ram kit with wall-mounted receiver.

Driveway gates - double

Two-leaf driveway gates for wider entrances, typically 3.5m to 4.5m clear opening. Timber or metal, both quoted from a photo. Automation adds a dual-motor swing kit to the job. On the Kingsgate and North Foreland clifftop belt, gate posts need to be sized up for the wind loading: a leaf that big is a serious sail.

Sliding cantilever gates

Where the driveway does not have room for a swing gate to open, a cantilever sliding gate runs on a track parallel to the boundary. Higher spec than a swing gate, quoted after a site visit for a 4m to 6m clear opening with automation included.

Hardware and materials

Salt-air Broadstairs standard: hot-dip galvanised hinges (not zinc plated), stainless coach bolts, brass or stainless latch mechanism, marine-grade timber preservative on any timber gate, hardwood upgrade where the budget allows. Gate posts are always concrete-set, 750mm deep, mixed concrete not postcrete on any driveway gate.