Sliding versus cantilever gate for a Georgetown driveway
Nothing about the two gate types looks different from the street until the leaf moves, and the running record sliding gates georgetown apollo pony holds shows that the difference sits almost entirely in the ground. Both gates open by sliding sideways along the fence line in Georgetown, TX, and both need a clear run beside the opening, but one rides on the pavement and the other hangs in the air.
What does a track slide gate do?
A track slide gate rolls on small wheels set in a steel track bolted or cast into a concrete strip across the opening. The track carries the weight and keeps the leaf straight, so the frame can be light steel tubing with a simple picket infill. The strip across the driveway stays in the way of tires, sweepers and any grit that blows in off Interstate 35, and debris in the groove is the usual cause of a stuck gate.
How does a cantilever gate differ?
A cantilever gate has no track across the drive. The frame is longer than the opening, with a counterweight section called the tail, and it rolls through two or more carriages mounted on tall posts at the fence line. The leaf floats a couple of inches above the ground, so it clears gravel, slope and a rough slab. That clean opening is why cantilever frames are common on rural lots in Williamson County with uneven drive surfaces.
What does each one ask of the ground?
A track gate needs a flat, well-drained strip with a footing that does not move, which is hard where limestone soil gives way to clay a few feet down. A cantilever gate needs deep post footings instead, because the carriage posts take the full overturning load of the tail. Each design fails where the ground fails, so the soil is checked first, before a frame size or operator is chosen.
How do weight and frame length compare?
A cantilever frame runs about one and a half times the opening width, because the tail balances the leaf. That is more steel, more weld and a heavier leaf than a track gate for the same gap. A track gate runs only slightly longer than the opening. Where a lot near Georgetown Square leaves little room beside the drive, the shorter track frame may be the only one that fits.
Which one suits a given lot?
A flat drive with solid footing and a tight side run suits a track slide gate. A sloped or rough drive with a long fence line suits a cantilever gate. Either one can take a gate opener with a chain or rack drive, and either can be built from galvanized steel with a powder coat finish. Choosing between them is mostly a question of what the ground and the fence line allow, and a walk along the opening with a tape settles it faster than any drawing.