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Most folks don’t think about the gate hinges when buying a fence or driveway gate, so today I wanted to familiarize you with the gate hinges available for both our iron and aluminum gates.
We offer hinges for our wrought iron and aluminum gates in two configurations: A j-bolt style hinge and a self-closing style hinge. Check out our YouTube Video below or read on to see which will work best for your project!
J-Bolt Style Gate Hinge
Let’s start with the 2-piece j-bolt hinges. The name comes from the threaded bolt portion that is in the shape of a ‘J’. This j-bolt fits into a plate receptacle where there is grease and a ball bearing for smooth, fluid movement.
We offer the j-bolt hinges in two sizes. The smaller 5.5” j-bolt for the walk or pedestrian gates and the larger one is the 7” j-bolt for the larger driveway gates.
The flat plate portion will install against your post (right side of below photo) and the threaded bolt portion will go through your gate frame (left side of photo below).
The j-bolt hinges are our recommended gate hinge for a couple reasons:
- Next is adjustability. By setting the two adjuster nuts at different positions along the bolt, you can move the gate frame left and right. It basically leaves you a little fudge factor in your post spacing.
- The first is strength. J-Bolt hinges are have an all steel construction and rated well above the standard weight and width of even our heaviest iron driveway gate. Not only is the hinge strong, but by drilling and mounting through the gate frame and post, you are using the full strength of the piece instead of just one face.
- Lastly, the j-bolts are more versatile. They can be mounted flush against any flat surface. They can be used not only with our posts, but also with wood, brick or masonry posts as well so long as you use the appropriate securing bolt for those options. You can also mount them to the back of a post rather than in-between if you want the gate to swing back against the fence fully or have a tighter opening.
Self-Closing Style Hinge
The other iron and aluminum gate hinge option is the self-closing style. They have an ABS plastic body with metal internals. As the name implies, the hinge will ‘self-close’ the gate.
They also come in two sizes based on weight rating. The smaller one is rated up to 66lbs and the larger one to 154lbs. These hinges are only used for walk gates and not driveway gates.
When you open the gate and let go, there is a mechanism inside that will pull the gate back shut. So it basically closes itself. Hence the name.
You can adjust how hard the gate pulls itself shut by adjusting the top portion of the hinge with the supplied allen key tool. If you have a lighter aluminum gate, you would want to set it for less pull than say if you had a heavier iron one.
These hinges are usually required when you are putting a fence around a pool. The reason being that if you leave the pool and forget to close the gate, the hinge will pull it shut to the latch automatically and kids won’t be able to accidentally wander in and get into trouble. However, we do have people that like the look of these hinges more or have a tight gate opening.
The self-closing hinges are not as strong or versatile as the j-bolt hinges, but they require less space between the gate and post. The self-closing action can also be beneficial if you have forgetful kids that don’t remember to close the yard gate and then your dog gets out.
In Conclusion…
I hope this has helped describe the iron and aluminum gate hinge options available and how they work. Got further questions about which one to use for your project? Give us a call at 800-261-2729 or shoot an email to [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you!
