Sliding gate opener

[strutaeng]

Hi, I built a cantilever gate that is approximately 23' opening. Overall is about 29' long, about 80" high. I used steel tube for the frame and R-panel to infill the frame. The overall weight is probably around 500 lbs. My garage is like 25' feet away and I'm going to run power for an operator.

Can someone recommend me a gate opener? The gate is for my alley, and won't see much use, as we park in the front. Occasionally, I pull through the alley for unloading construction materials or to work on cars.

I was going to go with Liftmaster, but looks like there are other options: Eagle, Platinum, All-o-matic, Ram-set, Viking... then there's Aleko.

Also, it seems that the "light-duty" residential units are almost as much as the "heavy-duty" models....Are there any differences other than the duty cycles.

Any advice?

Thanks in advance.

 

[kbs2244]

Any interest in a "home brew??"
Lots of you-tube videos.
Most are adapting chain drive type openers.

 

[MrBalll]

I will say that I have similar gate, only it's a 20' wide opening. I have a liftmaster and am pleased with it. Nice to use the app and open it when I enter the alleyway so it's fully open once I arrive to it.

 

[Hot Rod Grampa]

The commercial model will give you years of service. Home brew 20' gate opener seems sketchy. Safety systems must be in place. Biggest concern is that the gate is rolling level, not up or down a hill. Regular service in chain and bearings and you will be fine.

 

[tthornto]

Safety systems on a rolling gate are much more complicated than a garage door, there are more pinch points and all of the pinch points are at a height that is accessible to small children as well adults who have even less common sense than small children.

http://www.milleredge.com/slide-gate-safety.html This page is a good starting point to learn about it.

 

[ard]

Find a used Elite. They last forever.

 

[Garage1]

Besides duty cycles, you also need to consider the size and weight of the gate. If it is a large gate (i.e. not a normal residential gate), then rather go for a heavy duty model. You don't want to constantly have to fix it.

 

[MikeF]

We install a lot of liftmaster gate openers. Usually the heavy commercial ones but a few smaller csl24u and sl3000 (had t look up the models) the csl has battery backup and we haven't been back for repairs in the 2 years they've been in service. 1 is on a storage unit and 1 is on a salvage yard gate once you pay to get in. The rest are swing gates or larger commercial ones.

The smaller ones have a force setting similar to garage door openers. Set it as low as possible, a bump edge and photo eyes are also highly recommended. Most come with photo eyes. The covers do a good job of keeping stuff out of the drive gears

 

[strutaeng]

Thanks guys.

I had just pulled the trigger on an All-O-Matic SL-90-DC model. It is their second line from the bottom. The 45 model probably would have worked rated for up to 800 lb. I'm calculating my door weighs just under 600 lb. The 90 model is rated for 1600 lb and has a separate DC motor and gear reduction box, whereas the 45 looks like it is all integrated.

I wanted to use a DC unit because they have the battery back-up in case of power failure. We rarely have power go out, but just wanted the feature. The AC models are little bit less, but not much.

I also ordered a receiver and photo eye sensor, which the UL325 requires.

As far as brand, I looked at all of them, and they all seem well built and comparable. It seems that all are in the West coast. Liftmaster is in AZ, per one of the sales reps. I talked to.

I follow up after I install it.

 

[Mesozoic]

And...

 

[bad_idea]

I am curious to see pictures.

 

[Speed of heat]

Pictures or it never happened!

 

[tarmy]

My gate is similar to yours...30 cantliver about 1100 lbs...

I have a Mighty mule. When I got mine in 2009 they were getting mixed reviews. Sure enough, mine had all kinds of issues...they finally sent a new mother board and battery tender for the two batteries...

Has worked great ever since.

 

[strutaeng]

So, I have been using the gate over the last few months. I built some cast-in-place concrete columns. I was concerned about the uplift force as the gate extends fully. The concrete's weight acts like a counterweight. The footing for the columns is like 8" thick. Pretty solid.

I also did a little pad for the opener, per the manufacturer's recommendation.

I had a pretty big gap at the bottom because of the slope on the alley. I have since run a drain pipe though this area and added more concrete to reduce the gap at the bottom and create a more gradual approach.