Site Survey Before a Gate Is Ordered

Nothing about an opening looks complicated until the tape goes across it, and a metal gate installation in Carlsbad, CA starts with a site survey (the step the notes at metal gate installation carlsbad museum house on bloor put ahead of any drawing) because a gate built from a guessed width or a flat assumption about the ground will bind or gap on the first swing. In neighborhoods from La Costa to Aviara, driveways and walks often slope, curve or meet walls that are not square.

Measuring the opening

The width is taken at the top, middle and bottom between the posts or walls, because masonry columns are rarely plumb. Height is measured on both sides. The surveyor notes whether the gate will hang on existing posts, new steel posts or wall mounted hinges.

Reading the grade

A level and a string line show how the ground rises or falls across the swing path. A swing gate that opens uphill hits the ground partway open. The survey records the rise so the gate can be built with a raked bottom rail, set higher, or switched to a slide gate.

Swing path and clearance

The full arc of each leaf is marked. Sprinkler heads, light fixtures, planter edges and parked cars all show up in that arc. In tight side yards the swing direction is chosen so the gate does not block a walkway or a hose bib.

Utilities and footings

Before any digging, underground utilities are located. In San Diego County the call before you dig service marks lines in the work area. Irrigation lines are found by hand. The survey notes the soil, since sandy coastal ground near Batiquitos Lagoon needs wider footings than firm clay.

Power and access

If an operator is planned, the survey notes the nearest power source and the route for conduit. It also notes how a crew will get the gate in, since a long steel leaf has to be carried past landscaping and through side yards to reach its posts.