Need ideas - gate too short for doorway

[weedsportpete]

This is also posted on TBN.

We have an indoor arena for horses; I asked for doors on each (long) side to be 12 feet wide, and the door on the far end to be 10 foot wide. They installed sliding doors. In doing so they added an extra 2x6 to the door jamb interior 6x6 post [img]/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif[/img] and then mounted some door latch hardware on that.

The inside diameter of the side doors is now 11 feet 7 inches. [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] Even if I took off/cut into the 2x6 board, I'd still have 11 feet 9 (approx) inches of inside diameter. Yes, the doors should have originally been 12 feet wide inside diameter [img]/forums/images/icons/blush.gif[/img] , but they are not and we were not thinking about interior gates a year ago when it first went up.

The standard (livestock) gate sizes are 8', 10', 12', etc. The gate must fit into the door jamb - if it was mounted on the inside of the arena, the hardware/gate would stick out a couple inches and possibly snag horses or riders if they were too close. It can't be mounted on the outside because of the sliding door. Note: gates are typically 2 1/2 inches shorter than stated size in order to accomodate the gate hardware. I'm not going to cut into the 6x6 posts - they are a main structural element.


I've got a 10' gate for a 11'8" opening.. I could:
a) insist on attaching it to the inside of the arena, and maybe build up a little edge protector (2x4 with plywood 'ramp') that covers the gate hardware and keeps the horses from getting snagged- but this faces opposition from the CFO/horse-person-in-charge [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] , or
b) just build up more 2x6's on the door jamb until the diameter is 10' (I really don't like this for several reasons), or
c) install the gate/gate hinge hardware on one side and find 'some' way to latch the other end (over a distance of 1 foot 6 inches, give or take an inch).

I'm focusing on c). Other options are welcome. If c) sounds good, how can I:
a) keep the 'latch contraption' inside the door jamb
b) be reasonably strong (against the pressure of an inquisitive horse (not a wild, fired up horse who would run through a horse fence anyway))
c) be able to swing out of the way (90 degrees) when the gate is open
d) have a latch that is easy to open and close.

Any thoughts, suggestions or comments will be appreciated.

Thanks.

[MikePA]

Pete, get some Breezy Gates. They make them according to the dimensions you send them and they are so much better than standard gates you can get at places like TSC. We have two of them at either end of the main aisle in our barn and love them.

[Stoneheartfarm]

Pete,

I'm assuming these are the standard tube steel gates? And you have one that is too big by about 1 foot and one that is too small?

Could your local weld shop narrow and widen them? Just depends on what kind of metal and how good the shop is. Having the gate customed sure beats the heck out of the alternatives.


Steve

[Fawteen]

Yup, that'd be my choice. Take a 12' gate and cut it down. Anybody with a MIG welder should be able to do it no sweat. Shouldn't cost any more than building up the jamb, and will look a lot more professional.

[Justaplain]

How about running another pipe inside as a spline if the tubing is light weight as most gates tend to be?? bcs

[weedsportpete]

Do you mean cutting a round hole on the end, on the vertical pipe, just across from the spot where a horizontal pipe connects to the vertical pipe? So it would basically extend the horizontal pipe out farther than the end-vertical pipe?

This would be one (or two or three) horizontal extensions, perhaps themselves joined to a new vertical-end??

I wish I had a welder.

I would order one of the gates Mike suggested. I've seen them at a number of arenas and they work very well. If not that just get ahold of a gate maker and have one custom made. We make our own but I know alot of welders that make gates and panels.

[Autotech]

Shortening or extending the standard size gates is easy enough. Any good wrought iron shop, or even decent exhaust shop, should be able to handle it. If you have several gates to do though, I'd get prices from a couple of sources.

If you already have the standard gates, it might cost you enough to have them modified to justify the cost of purchasing a welder of your own, which you could then use for a multitude of tasks. Decent 120V MIG welders have gotten relatively inexpensive in recent years.

If you don't have the gates yet I'd be tempted to order custom sized - providing they were cost effective.

Gregg

[weedsportpete]

I would LOVE to get a welder, of any kind. That is unexplored territory. I'll start asking for xmas...

Followup - I couldn't talk the chief stylist/CFO into shortening the gates or creating a neat latch, so I did one gate by adding 2x6's to the door jamb.. 5 on one side and 4 on the other. Looks very odd, was kind of a pain. Told her the price of the P.T. lumber and that was enough to decide to go back to the welding/shortening the gates method! So the other two gates, $50 each (including a strengthening metal tube on the inside of the crossbars), will be done today, and I'll redo the first gate in a month or two.

Thanks to all for your suggestions.