Last update: 19-AUG-2018
I was tired of people driving up my driveway ignoring the 5 large no tresspassing signs so it was time for a gate.
One of the major problems was running power down from the house. Since we had to dig a hole to run cable Internet down in 2005 I used this work to run power.
Had a local blacksmith weld hinges to the gate and the new baseplate. 1/4 inch steel... I want it to last !
I had never planned on having such a heavy gate on a 4x4 in 3 feet so I was starting to have some alingment issues. It was time to replace the mounting post.
Had to cut the driveway to install power over to the opener.
New 6x6 post in 500+ lbs of cement down 6 feet. Amazing... Still had some play. Wanted to go with metal but did not want to make it too fancy as they will raise your taxes around here if you have a fancy gate.
Power and the old way we locked it.
The new post
Actuator installed. Had to come up with a way to attach it to the tube without drilling. So far this way is working.
Now the control box getting installed.
All done. Works great !!
Update: 10-JAN-2009
The only issues that I have had with the unit is that I have to align it twice a year when we have major temperature changes. It causes it to loose alignment (by a few inches) and I have to open it up to make the adjustment. Not a problem and after the first year I figured out that it does it.
Also, I had a ant colony that decided that they could enter the conduit many feet away and travel up into the system. Some good old fashion chlordane took care of that problem !
Update: 23-SEP-2011
Summer of 2011 has brought us some interesting weather. Intense lightning storms, over 20 inches of rain above normal. When we went house shopping back in 2011 we wanted to be on a hill. But, we really did not consider the risk of lightning. Being a person who likes technology I have invested a considerable effort and money in surge protectors (whole house on each panel / sub panel) as well as a number of UPS systems for anything of value. Up till now, it had worked !
But, the storm of SEP 08 was very intense. Besides knocking out power for a few hours it must have struck down in the area of the gate. In this same strike it came in via the cable TV and destroyed 3 HD cable boxes (Comcast's $$) TV's Sound system (those were under warranty) and the card in a server that controls my web cams. Very expensive !
Looking at the gate controller (which I had it grounded) first it destroyed the power transformer, Blew the plastic cover off of the unit and fried the power supply area on the card.
Looking at the way I installed it before I probably made two mistakes. First I grounded it in the unit. I should have grounded the power BEFORE it entered the unit.
Second, the antenna touched the arm mount on the post. This allowed another path to ground and may be why I see some arcing and circuit board damage near where the antenna connects to the unit.
So, this event allowed me to change the way its on the post and the electrical connections.
First, when I ordered it from West Georgia Gate & Door I told David what had happened. He suggested I put a surge protector in the power before the unit. So, I got a weather proof box and placed this on the power and it goes to a copper grounding rod.
Then the protected power continues up to the unit which is not grounded at all now.
Clean install. With the box up higher I am getting better range. Perhaps 200 feet now.
I don't want it to be seen from the road. And its not.
Lets hope that the circuit board stays nice and clean without any burned marks !
