Do-it-yourself sliding gates - instructions with drawings

An integral part of the protective construction of the suburban area is the gate. Today, there are many varieties. Let's consider the process of manufacturing and installing sliding gates.

Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages:

• This design of the gate does not interfere with the exit / entry of the vehicle in a small area. Cantilever gates save space.
• The presence of the lower mounting console system allows you to equip the gate in any climatic conditions.
• Finishing can be made of different materials, for example, vertical lathing, decking, forging and more.
• Possibility of the choice of option of a design, for example, from a sandwich panel or the professional leaf.
• In comparison with other types of gates (for example, swing), there is no such thing as sagging loops. Available automation and gate closing / opening mechanism provides for a long operational period.
• There is an opportunity to choose various automatics for the gate.

Disadvantages:

• Unlike other types of gates, for example, swing doors, the arrangement of sliding doors requires more financial expenditures, approximately by 10–20%.
• For fixing the console part and the drive, it is necessary to produce an additional foundation.
• Along the fence will need to allocate sufficient space.

Types of construction

The design of the gate is divided into several types, each of which is different from each other:

1. Suspended. Since Soviet times, this heavy, but at the same time reliable construction has gained immense popularity. In it, the canvas on roller carts is attached to a beam, which is located above the passage, up to 5 m high. As a result, this height is a limitation when entering high cars.
2. Console. This type of gate is ideal for the climatic features of Russia. This design is not equipped with a beam above the passage. Such gates will not be able to disable snow drifts, wind, dust, and the like. So, the cloth is fixed to the beam with the help of roller carts. In this case, the entire structure is fixed on a powerful foundation, which is poured on the side of the opening.
3. On screw piles. To a depth of 1500 mm metal piles are twisted into the ground, which will be the carriers of the entire structure. Their manufacture and installation will take up to 3 days.
4. Mechanical. Such gates are opened / closed manually. Mechanical is much cheaper in cost and easier to install. They are suitable for those cases if the cottage or a country house is rarely used.
5. Automatic. Such gates are the exact opposite of mechanical. They are equipped with electric and remote control. For regular use the best option.

Regardless of the type of construction, sliding doors require free space along the fence on one side. At the same time it should be equal in size to the opening. As for the console systems, the place should be 120–200% more.

Calculation features

Design calculation is one of the most important and first steps. Ignore this stage is not worth it, since the construction of recoiling is much more difficult than swing.

The calculation process includes the following steps:

1. Determining the height and width of the opening. As a result, it will be possible to choose the necessary type of gate for free movement.
2. Calculation of the counterweight.
3. Estimation of the weight of the constructed structure.
4. Making a sketch or drawing.

The calculation of the width and height of the structure should be repelled by the market mix. So, if a profile or a pipe can be easily welded, then cutting the sheets of corrugated board is very difficult to add. Plus, the result will be unaesthetic.

Moreover, realizing what the weight of the structure will ultimately be, appropriate mechanisms and moving parts are selected that will be able to cope with the load.

If the canvas is supposed to be large, then be sure to consider the wind load. Add a little margin to the available wind force prevailing in your area.

Although the easiest way to get calculations is to contact a specialized company that will provide a folder with drawings and calculations, you can do it yourself. It is worth noting immediately that all the above calculations relate to cantilever-type sliding gates. They are harder on all other types, so consider them in more detail.

Height and width data

Gate width (L) will be equal to:

• opening width;
• technological indents of opening / closing;
• minimum distance between the centers of the carriages.

Based on this, there will be more openings.

Counterweight calculation

When moving, the sash should be balanced. This indicator is achieved by calculating the counterweight. Due to this, the specific gravity of the structure will be evenly distributed throughout the carriages. Accordingly, in order to make the load as small as possible, the counterweight must be large.

But what if there is not enough space for the movement of the sash? In this case, you must understand that the length of the counterweight should not be less than 40% of the width of the sash. The ideal rate is 50%. As a consequence, the width L in its design has a counterweight.

With such calculations, you can determine how much space is needed to roll back the gate along the fence.

Weight calculation

This value is determined based on the weight of the material used:

• Decking ~ equal to 4 kg / m².
• Steel, 2 mm ~ 17 kg / m thick².

Gates with a frame of 4 × 2 m will have an average weight of 200 kg. Having such data, you can determine the performance of the guide beam. In this case, you can build on the standard.

For gates weighing 300 kg, a beam of 9 × 5 cm thick and not less than 3.5 mm is sufficient. However, a safety margin of up to 40% is required. It will greatly simplify the operation of the gate and increase its operational life.

The calculation of the strength of accessories

The gates will need rollers, catchers and a supporting tire. Modern products of such a plan allow you to choose the necessary design. We take the simplest wind load estimate, which is 12 m / s to 90 kg / m² and evenly distributed on the support zones of the canvas.

How to make sure that the structure made by you, even with strong wind, will work without interruption? For this, it is necessary to ensure that the strength of the fittings is greater than the calculated gate weight. Also taken into account is the lateral moment of 100 kg / m, multiplied by 8 kg / m, which is equal to 800 kg / m. In principle, this is a little ~ for each supporting element 150–180 kg / m.

When buying a roller mechanism, make sure that it has a margin of up to 30% in relation to the weight of the gate. But this figure does not affect the life. This is directly affected by increasing the distance between the centers of the carriages.

Additional calculations

In addition to all of the above, it is worth paying attention to other aspects. Pay attention to the rail for the gate, supports for roller carriages and the number of anchors. It is also important to correctly calculate the mortgages on the support pillars. In this case, it is necessary to make a start from 60% of the total mass of the gate divided by the number of mortgages.

As for the calculation of the foundation, there are no special secrets. But despite this, you should not lose sight of this component, because often the cost of the foundation reaches 40% of the total project cost.

Device

This type of gate has the following structural elements:

• Guide rail. It takes on all their weight.
• Trolley or roller bearing. They need 2 pcs.
• Removable end roller. In the closed state, it serves as a support.
• Top / bottom trap. The bottom one with a closed gate takes the load, while the top one reduces the sail area.
• Bracket. It is important for keeping the sash from lateral swing.
• Stand. It is installed on the support, which organizes the movement of the sash.

Roller bearings are installed on the foundation, which take up the load of the guide beam. The rollers are placed inside the carrying console.

Sash

High demands are also placed on the sash. Its structure must be sufficiently rigid and stable. It is important that in case of a strong gust of wind or ice, the flap functions well. Moreover, it must be equipped with additional stiffening ribs so that it does not sag under its own weight. All this should be considered when creating drawings.

Selection of components

The presence of certain components directly depends on the height and width of the leaf, as well as its weight. So, today on the market you can find a number of companies that provide high-quality equipment, namely:

• Combi Arialdo and Flatelli Comunello from Italy.
• Roltek and Doorhan from Russia.
• Alutech from Belarus.

For example, we will make some calculations. In the basic configuration, a carrier rail must be installed, 6 meters long. And in order to choose the right components for it, you must take into account the length of the sash plus 40%. Also selection is carried out according to the length of the guide beam and possible loads. So, if the width of the opening is 3.8 m, then the length of the trunk is 3.8 m + 40% = 5.32 m. In this case, you can purchase a ready-made set with a beam of 6 m.

If the width of the opening significantly exceeds 4 m, then the purchase of components should be oriented taking into account the load of 500 kg. In them, the guide beam has a wall thickness of 3.5 m, and a cross section of 71 × 65 mm. If the width is more than 6 m, then it is necessary to take from the calculation the load up to 600 kg.

Assembly work

The movement of the canvas should be carried out from the inside of the site, namely along the fence. Based on this, it is necessary to prepare a place for the gate, so that absolutely nothing interferes with this process.

The installation process includes 4 steps:

1. Foundation Manufacturing.
2. Electrical wiring.
3. Installation of the counter post.
4. Installation of automation.

Foundation Manufacturing

Stages of foundation construction:

• Markup is done first. You measure 500 mm from the fence (foundation width). Also measure the distance from the gate edge equal to the recoil (the length of the foundation). So, you will see the perimeter of the future foundation.
• Often it turns out to use the pillars of the fence support. If this is not possible, then a counter pole should be installed on the opposite side. It must be installed so that it is inside the site, and not in the opening. Otherwise, it will reduce the width of the opening.
• If the gate will work on automation, then be sure to arrange a place for wiring. To do this, you can use a square metal or plastic pipe / box. The diameter of the pipes is not less than 25 mm.
• Now you can begin to dig a pit. The depth of the trench is up to 2 m, below the level of soil freezing (in each region differently).
• For the manufacture of the mortgage element, you can use the channel 16. Its length must match the length of the trench. The foundation is laid reinforcement O12 mm. The armature must be welded to the channel and be connected by cross links.
• Thus, the resulting mortgage element is placed valve down. When laying, make sure that the side of the channel is adjacent to the fence post. Also, the channel must be set strictly on the level and exactly parallel to the line of opening the gate.

Mortgage element should be flush with the road surface. The minimum clearance that is allowed between the lower edge of the gate and the road is 10 cm. This gap can be increased by means of an adjustment pad. But to reduce this gap will be impossible without breaking the bindings.

If for one reason or another, a gap of 100 mm does not fit, then perform a deep installation of the embedded element.

As for the concrete work, they are carried out when the installation of the mortgage element is fully completed. The level of concrete must be flush with the mortgage element.

Installation

When the foundation is frozen, you can install the gate. To do this, first you need to make markup. Along the line of the opening, not reaching the return column of 30 mm, pull the cord. This cord is the trajectory of the gate movement. Cord tensioning height - 200 mm. Further work is as follows:

• Determine the extreme position of the first and second roller bearings. From the edge of the opening, retreat 15 cm along the plane of the embedded element and draw a line of position of the extreme first carriage. Calculate the line of the second carriage as follows: measure the entire length of the gate with the cantilever part and subtract 10 cm from the edge of the counter column along the plane of the mortgage element. As a result, you determine the location of the second cart.
• Now insert the roller bearings into the support profile, placing them in the center.

After it is necessary to weld the second trolley of the adjustment platform. Then roll out the door leaf in the opening and make the final adjustment of the position. Make small tack welding of the second adjustment pad, as a result of the action look like this:

• You remove a cloth from the roller cart.
• Next, remove the carts from the sites.
• You weld the pads to the mortgage element.
• To them fasten roller carts.
• On roller bearings push the canvas.
• Close the gate and use a wrench to adjust their position.

Make holes in the carrier profile, this is necessary in order to install the trolley correctly. To do this, loosen the upper nuts attaching the carts to the platforms. After this, roll the gate back / forth. If the sash is free, tighten the nuts. If there are some difficulties in moving the sash, the fasteners slightly loosen and level up all the design flaws, for example, correct the carriage distortions.

• Now it is necessary to mount the end roller. It should be inserted into the support profile and carefully tighten the bolts. Also weld the end roller cover to the profile. This will allow the roller to play the role of the end stop in the case of manual control of the gate. But in this case, the fastening by welding will be much better than the bolt.
• As for the carrier profile plug, its installation is carried out from the inside of the door and is welded in place. It is necessary so that the snow does not roll under the rollers.
• Now the upper retainer is mounted to the rollers. Therefore, loosen the fasteners of the rollers and install the brackets so that its side is facing the support pole and the rollers grab the top of the canvas. Considering this, press the bracket to the post and fix it.

At the next stage of the work, the door frame trimming is carried out. For this you can use profiled sheets of metal. They must be cut to size of the sash. Fastening is carried out by rivets or screws. Each subsequent sheet is mounted overlap.

When the trim is made, it is possible to mount the lower / upper trap. The lower catcher performs the role of reducing the load on roller trolleys in the closed state. Therefore, they must be installed with a loaded gate. Place the lower catcher under the end roller with the gate completely closed in such a way that the reference plane of the catcher is above the level of the end roller. As for the installation of the upper trap, this process takes place in the same way.

In conclusion, it remains to carry out the installation of automation. To do this, fix the rack rail, which implies a universal part with electric drive. Usually it is included in the fastener kit.

Choice of automation

The choice of automation depends on the weight of the gate:

• For an aperture in 4 m the drive is used - 500–600 kg.
• For an aperture in 4–6 m the drive is used - 600–1300 kg
• For cases with intensive opening of the gate, a drive is used - 1200–1800 kg.

Coloring

All metal elements of the gate must be painted. Pre-degrease the surface. To do this, clean the surface and grind with a grinding wheel on the grinder. Some places, for example, protected, wipe with acetone. Now you can proceed to the primer. It is applied evenly. Moreover, the primer should be applied so that there are no drops and streaks. Thanks to such preparatory work the paint will fall evenly. As a result, the entire structure of the door will be completely protected from the appearance of corrosion.

Paint should be applied in two layers and only after the first is completely dry.

Necessary tools for work

To carry out all the work, you will need to have such a tool:

• Invertor welding material. Such a unit will not spoil the metal.
• Bulgarian.
• Air compressor for painting.
• Passatures.
• Drill.
• Roulette.
• Level.
• Riveter

Common mistakes

If you do not have sufficient experience in performing such work, then there is a big risk of making certain mistakes:

• Insufficient foundation preparation.
• Incorrect installation and fasteners of all components.
• Incorrectly selected weight of the gate under the carrier beam.
• If a creak is heard, then this is evidence of sand getting into the bearings.
• Do not allow drips of paint.
• Be sure to consider the depth of soil freezing. Otherwise, the pillars may twist in one of the sides.

Video: gate production

Photo: ready sliding gate options:

Scheme

On the diagrams you can find a lot of structural parts for the manufacture of sliding gates: