Automated Gates and Equipment - Residential Gate Resources

Kirkland Driveway Gates

Things You Should Know Before You Invest in a Driveway Gate for Your Kirkland Home

An automated driveway gate is a purchase that can result in increased value and improved beauty to your Kirkland residence. Learn the details now and you’ll be on top of what you need to know at every step.

Kirkland Driveway Gates – Permits

Based on where you live, you may be required to obtain a permit for your new driveway gate. Kirkland City Hall will certainly help you determine what driveway gate permits are required, according to your home’s address, and let you know how to apply. Check with them early, to ensure you have your permit before your driveway installation date. It is also essential to ensure that your gate installer obtains the required electrical permit to perform the work.

Electricity to Power Your Gate

A power supply is critical when installing an automated driveway gate: your gate requires power to open and close. Check to see if you have a source of electricity adjacent to your gate location. If not, even in cloudy Bellevue, Washington, solar energy can provide enough power to your driveway gate and could even be more economical over time

Security and Access Control

In Kirkland, and many other areas, safety is often the number one reason a family invests in an automated driveway gate. Your gate’s access control system makes it simple for you to know who enters and leaves your property. The gate that deters would-be lawbreakers from entering your property is the same gate that grants easy access to members of your family, friends and delivery truck drivers. The amount and frequency of people entering and exiting through your home driveway gate determines the most suitable type of access control system to choose for your residence. Popular driveway gate access systems in Bellevue include keyless, digital entry pads (like a 4-digit code), card readers, intercoms, and telephone entry systems.

Types of Driveway Gates

There are two basic types of driveway gates: slide and swing. Space is often the determining factor for the type you select. If your Kirkland home has plenty of space on either side of your entrance or a very short driveway, a sliding gate (which slides across the driveway), will almost definitely be the most suitable fit. However, if you are restricted in space on either side of the entrance and you have extra driveway space, a swinging gate (that opens parallel to the driveway), is often the optimum fit. A reputable driveway gate professional will visit your Kirkland location to evaluate the layout of your entry and driveway. They will recommendation the type of gates that will work best.

Driveway Gate Repair and Maintenance

Our wet Kirkland weather is hard on automated driveway gates. Routine maintenance for your driveway gate system offers benefits similar to routine car maintenance – it helps you lengthen the functional life of your driveway gate as long as possible. A vehicle gate that doesn’t function properly could leave your Kirkland home a target for criminal activity or pose a safety risk. Getting the correct driveway gate manuals and having a detailed walk-through when your gate installation is done, is essential to understanding your driveway gates functionality – helping you to know under what circumstances you should call for automated gate maintenance or repair.

Safety Features

Without safety features, an automated driveway gate can pose significant safety risks. Safety devises can prevent pedestrians from physical entrapment and protect vehicles. Consider these standard safety features for your new driveway gate.

  • Gate edges are devices which are activated by contact. They operate when touched, using sensors made to be pressure sensitive. If an obstacle is encountered, the device commands the automated gate to stop and/or reverse.
  • Photo eyes are “non-contact” devices that operate by shooting a beam of light across the gate opening. Interrupting the light beam will prevent the electric gate from closing, or will stop the gate and reverse its movement.
  • Loop detectors, primarily meant for vehicle safety, are installed underneath the driveway and instruct the gate to open or prevent it from closing on a vehicle in the path of the gate.

Get in touch with us soon to talk to a gate systems specialist about our selection of Kirkland driveway gates for your residence.