Advice & guides
Kent Gate Guides: Planning, Pricing, and Specification
National Landscape planning rules, coastal material specification, cost breakdowns by area, and how to tell a specialist from a generalist. Written specifically for Kent homeowners.
28 guides
Automation
Video Intercoms, App Control and ANPR for Driveway Gates
How you open the gate matters as much as the gate. Wired, 4G and Wi-Fi intercoms each suit different drives, ANPR opens the gate for your own cars, and cameras that see the street bring data protection rules.
Planning
Can You Put Electric Gates on a Shared Driveway?
A gate can be put across a private right of way, but only if it does not substantially interfere with your neighbour’s use of it. With electric gates, how they are opened is what decides that.
Automation
Electric Gates in a Power Cut: Manual Release, Batteries and Access
Every automated gate should open by hand in a power cut. Battery backup keeps many working for a few cycles, and the UK 3G switch-off has quietly broken some older phone-based gate openers.
Safety
Electric Gate Safety Regulations in the UK
An automated gate is legally a machine. The person who installs or automates it becomes its manufacturer, and owes you a Declaration of Conformity, user instructions and a force-tested gate.
Planning
How Far Back Should Driveway Gates Be From the Road?
There is no single national figure, but highways authorities commonly look for 5 to 6 metres so a car can wait off the road while the gate opens. Gravesham in Kent says six.
Pricing
How Much Do Driveway Gates Cost in Kent? Prices and Real Quotes
Real South East quotes for automated gates cluster between about £5,000 and £11,000, with sliding and hardwood gates often higher. Here is where that money goes and how to judge a quote.
Buying Guide
Sliding vs Swing Gates: Which Suits Your Kent Driveway?
The choice between a sliding and a swing gate usually comes down to three measurements: how deep your drive is, how much straight wall you have beside the opening, and how much the ground slopes.
Planning
Do You Need Planning Permission for Driveway Gates in Kent?
Most driveway gates are permitted development up to 1 metre beside a road and 2 metres elsewhere. Listed buildings, Article 4 directions and new accesses are where Kent homeowners need permission.
Materials
Best Driveway Gate Material for Kent: Wood, Steel, Aluminium or Iron
The right gate material depends on where you live, how heavy a gate your motor can move, and how much maintenance you will actually do. Here is how wood, steel, aluminium, iron and composite compare.
Automation
Adding Electric Motors to Existing Gates in Kent
Most sound manual gates can be automated for a fraction of the price of new ones, but the same safety rules apply as for a new installation, and old posts and hinges are where retrofits go wrong.
Buying Guide
How to Choose an Electric Gate Installer in Kent
An automated gate is a machine, and the person who installs it takes on legal duties. Here is how to check a Kent installer before you sign, and what you are entitled to at handover.
Maintenance
Electric Gate Servicing in Kent: What a Service Should Include
A gate service is a safety check first and a tune-up second. Gate Safe recommends one every six months. Here is what should happen on the visit and what it typically costs.
Security
Driveway Gates and Home Security in Kent: What Actually Works
A driveway gate will not stop a relay thief unlocking your car, but it can stop them driving it away quickly. Here is what gates do and do not do for security, and what to pair them with.
Buying Guide
Do Electric Gates Add Value to Your House?
There is no reliable UK figure for how much electric gates add to a house price. What you can judge is whether gates fit the house and the street, and whether the daily benefits justify the cost.
Materials
The Best Timber for a Coastal Driveway Gate in Kent
A wooden gate on the Kent coast lives with salt, wind and constant wetting and drying that a sheltered inland gate never sees. The timber you pick decides whether it lasts five years or fifty. Here is how Accoya, iroko and oak really compare on a seafront plot.
Buying Guide
Five-Bar and Estate Field Gates for Rural Kent Drives
On a working farm drive or a paddock entrance the ornate estate gate looks wrong. A five-bar or estate field gate fits the agricultural setting and the vehicles that actually use it. Here is how to choose one for rural Kent land.
Security
Protecting a Rural Kent Gate Against Farm and Plant Theft
Rural crime hits Kent hard, and a farm gate at the end of a long unlit drive is both the first line of defence and, done badly, an easy weak point. Here is how to design and secure a gate against quad, plant and trailer theft.
Automation
Off-Grid Power for Gates on Long Rural Kent Farm Drives
Working farms, orchards and Marsh smallholdings often put the gate hundreds of metres from the nearest mains. Here is how solar, trenched mains and battery backup really compare on rural Kent land.
Planning
Do You Need Listed Building Consent for Driveway Gates in Kent?
A driveway gate on a listed Kent property, or even one within its curtilage, can need listed building consent that ordinary permitted development rules never trigger. Here is when consent bites and how the process works.
Materials
Do Metal Driveway Gates Rust by the Sea? Coastal Corrosion Protection in Kent
Salt air on the Kent coast attacks metal gates faster than inland. The galvanising, powder coat, marine-grade aluminium and stainless specs that actually resist corrosion, from Whitstable to the Romney Marsh edge.
Buying Guide
Adding a Pedestrian Gate Alongside Your Driveway Gates in Kent
A separate pedestrian gate keeps people on foot away from the swing or slide path of the main gates and saves you cycling the motor every time someone walks in. Here is how to plan one for a Kent property.
Maintenance
How to Look After Wooden Driveway Gates So They Last 25 Years or More
A hardwood gate is a long-term investment that rewards a modest maintenance commitment. Neglect it and you will see deterioration within five years. Look after it and it will outlast the house.
Buying Guide
Can You Install Driveway Gates on a Sloped Driveway
A sloped driveway does not rule out electric gates. It does rule out certain configurations and it does require an installer who has solved this problem before. Here is what you need to know.
Maintenance
What to Do When Your Electric Gates Stop Working
Electric gate failures are stressful, especially when the gate is stuck open and the property feels exposed. Here is what to do immediately, what to check yourself, and when to call a professional.
Design
Driveway Gate Ideas for Older Houses and Period Properties in Kent
Period properties need gates that respect the architecture without looking like a museum piece. The right design references the building without copying it, and the material should belong in the setting.
Automation
The Best Electric Gate Motor Brands in the UK and What Sets Them Apart
The motor is the hardest-working component in your gate system. Choosing the right brand affects reliability, parts availability, and how long the system lasts. Here is how the main brands compare.
Maintenance
How Long Do Electric Gates Last Before They Need Replacing
Electric gates are a significant investment. Knowing how long the gate, the motor, and the access control will last helps you plan maintenance and budget for eventual replacement.
Buying Guide
How Wide Should Driveway Gates Be and How to Measure Your Entrance Correctly
The width of your driveway gates affects everything from the motor specification to the post foundations. Getting it wrong is expensive to fix after installation. Here is how to get it right first time.
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