Gate hinges require a lot of attention to detail. Picking the right ones for your home or commercial property may not be as easy as it sounds. You need to consider all the minute details, including the size and strength of the gate hinge appropriate for the weight and width of your gates.
All of these elements have a direct impact on the center of gravity of your gates. Gate hinges may be the most challenging part, but the good news is when you land your hands on the best ones, the rest of the work becomes easy. This includes latches, gates and wheels for the gates.
So what are the primary considerations when it comes to choosing gate hinges? Let's look at the details below.
BASICS OF HINGE SELECTION
Choosing the right hinges are of monumental importance because the functionality and strength of your gate and fence (if applicable) depend entirely on the hinges. You need to ensure maximum useful functionality and maintenance of the gate hinges you select, in addition to being easy to use.
So when you plan to hang a gate, carriage or barn house door, your most important consideration must be the weight, width and what you plan to attach to. For example, you can intend to attach to a door frame, wall, post, etc.
As the width or weight of your door increases, you need the hinges' substantiality to increase as well. Hinges for heavy and wider doors need to be strong enough to carry more oversized loads.
As a basic example, let's suppose you have a gate door that is 5 feet high, 55 pounds heavy, and 3 feet wide. We will call this an average door while 4 feet wide, 6 feet high and weighs 132 pounds will be a heavy door. With this comparison, try to observe as many doors as possible within this measurement and note the size of hinges they require.
If you come across a neighbor's door that is either average or heavy, note whether it is sagging, not swinging open smoothly or functioning perfectly well. The hinges' size is the reason behind its functionality.
If you're looking for hinges to use outdoors, you need to prioritize durability in the options you consider. Outdoor gate hinges will not only have to bear the weight of your gate but also stand firm against the harsh elements of the outdoors. These include harmful UV rays, corrosive salt, rain, snow, sleet, ice, etc.
Inferior materials are also never the right choice for gate hinges. They will turn inoperable, prematurely rust and even fail to give support within no time at all. You must note that hot and cold temperatures can heavily impact hardware; materials may contract or expand; gate hinges may fail, and fasteners can loosen as a result.
With that said, let's look at the different types of hinges available.
TYPES OF GATE HINGES
BUTT HINGES WITH DUMMY STRAPS
The best option for massive gates such as carriage house, barn doors, or heavy hanging gates is butt hinges with dummy straps. We recommend using Commercial Grade Ball Bearing Hinges as your butt hinges. In addition, you want to go with the stainless steel in a 4 inch square or 4.5 inch square since stainless steel will hold up to the elements the best. You can install the butt hinges just as you would hang the ones for your front door. The only difference is that you don't need to mortise hinges. We also offer many butt hinges in a Black Stainless Steel which pair nicely with Black Dummy Strap Hinges. For the Black Dummy Strap Hinges, we partner with Wild West Hardware to bring you the most unique selection around.
Installing butt hinges like that would render them capable of bearing hefty weight. You can then attach dummy straps to achieve an actual strap hinge look. You must consider stainless steel hinges with US32D finish, especially for the pool and outdoor areas. They are more sturdy and durable.
BULLET HINGES- WELD-ON
You may have heard of bullet hinges as weld-on pin style hinges as well. These make the ideal choice for gates, doors, safes, waste container lids, cab enclosures, metal cabinets, toolboxes, safety containers and lots more.
You can find them in various materials and sizes, such as brass, stainless steel and aluminum.
HEAVY-DUTY GATE CLOSERS
We all tend to have a streak of carelessness in us; it is no surprise, therefore, when we forget to shut the gates after us all too often. If you join this category, how does the idea of a secure gate closing itself appeal to you?
Gate closers are the most beneficial and practical solutions to this little dilemma of ours. They ensure our residential or commercial gates also close securely and increase safety, security, and property.
Gate closers are self-close and easy-to-install mechanisms that have a controlled speed. With this, they close any external door or gate when someone fails to do so. You can operate this gate comfortably by hand, too and when your release it, the gate closes itself at a safe speed.
These gate closers work well for all domestic and commercial properties. You can control the closing speeds and forces of the gate when you attach these gate closers, as per your convenience. The best advantage is that you can fit these gate closers to both new and old gates alike.
HEAVY-DUTY WELD ON/ BOLT ON HINGES
The more massive, more enormous metal gates typically demand something concrete. Our heavy-duty welding on hinges is just the right support for your large metal gates on the property. These hinges generally earn the highest ratings in weight-often, even surpassing 1000lb for every pair.
If you consider the long-lasting functionality and strength, you will find the cost of this heavy-duty weld-on hinges too cost efficient. However, the installation of such hinges may require a professional hand, so you should not consider a DIY project with these hinges.
POLYMER SPRING HINGES
If your gate swings in only one direction and you need it to self-close, then you may consider the polymer spring hinges. Considering the weight and size of the gate, you're using, you may need more than one or two polymer spring hinges.
These hinges self-close and dual feature adjustability for closing speed and gate weight. The new series of polymer spring hinges has new features that offer advanced patented tension and improved strength. These can also be used on vinyl gates, wood gates, or metal gates depending on the hinge selected.
COMMERCIAL GRADE SPRING HINGES
Commercial grade spring hinges are one more worthy option. High-quality stainless steel ones are particularly worthy of purchase because the 304-grade stainless steel renders the hinges resistant to rust.
If you live in the coastal areas or plan to use hinges outdoors, you must strongly consider the commercial-grade stainless steel ones. The elements that work to weaken or damage your hinges will have no chances against the steel meant to last for long.
DOUBLE ACTION SPRING HINGES
The double-action spring hinges execute perfect closing action while offering easy adjustability. You can close the gate from both directions, and each time, the gate will return to the closed, central position. All of our double acting spring hinges can be used outdoors. The steel ones are the most durable and hold the most weight. We also have a stainless steel double action hinge that will work well with lighter duty gates.
STRAP HINGES
Strap hinges are the kind that has two long flaps of a somewhat triangular shape. You screw one strap into the moving part's surface, like the gate and the other screw goes into the stationary surface adjacent to it.
These long flaps offer extra stability for your gates, and you can use them typically for garage doors, shed doors, barn doors, etc.
TEE HINGES
T Hinges also known as Tee Hinges or T-Hinges are a combination of a strap hinge and a butt hinge. They are most commonly used on gates, garage doors, and a variety of doors to add a decorative classic rustic look.
Customers love these because they add classic styling in addition to their functionality.
GATE ACCESSORIES
Choosing a gate hinge is not all it takes; you need to give due consideration to the gate accessories. It is a good idea to consider a gate wheel if you have an exceptionally wide gate, the gate wheel will lend support to the unhinged end.
You cannot undo the damage of choosing the wrong hinge for your gate with a gate wheel, but this hardware piece will at least maximize the life of the hinges longer and reduce the stress on them.
Similarly, you may consider buying bolts, various latches, spring gate hinges, safety gate latches, etc. as part of the gate accessories. Gate latches can help keep your gates firmly in place, while gate locks for double doors will also stabilize one side so the other can lock easily against it.
Every hardware piece you purchase has a range of benefits for both commercial and residential applications. You can use these accessories to improve the function and quality of your gates, regardless of whether you use them at home, in offices, schools, hospitals, etc.
FINAL THOUGHTS
You can make your gates as beautiful and as serviceable as possible by choosing the right hinges and the right accessories for them. Suppose you wish to enhance the functionality, strength and life of your gates. In that case, you need to educate yourself on all the technical details, advantages and drawbacks of the variety of options to make the right choice for your properties.
For more than a decade, HingeOutlet.com has delivered the highest quality door hinges at the best possible prices. We offer the largest selection of door hinges online, as well as door accessories like wood screws, door hinge stops, ball catches, flush bolts, and more. In addition to our premium product offering from the leading hinge manufacturers, HingeOutlet.com manufactures a custom line of door hinge products.
