In which direction should gate posts be placed

[Blab601]

I bought ready-made concrete plinths for a gate at Byggmax, see image. But with two simple holes per rail instead of four in pairs.



I became unsure of which direction they should be placed, I mean how should the rails be loaded?

So that the bolts go from the street side inwards, i.e. the rails are loaded in the direction they are most torsionally rigid.

Or that the bolts go through the gate posts along the gate in a closed position. That is, the gate stops pull on the rail on the outer edge and press down the rail closest to the gate.

Unsure which direction is optimal. Also wondering if the wood at the bolts can compress in different ways depending on placement.

 

[KnockOnWood]

So that the bolts go from the street inwards, i.e. the tracks are loaded in the direction they are most torsionally rigid.

Yes, that's how I would have placed them!

 

[tompax]

I have bought prefabricated concrete blocks for a gate at Byggmax, see picture. But with two simple holes per track instead of four in pairs.

[image] [image]

I became unsure about which way they should be placed, I mean how the tracks should be loaded.

So that the bolts go from the street and inwards, that is the tracks are loaded in the most torsionally stiff direction.

Or that the bolts go through the gate posts along the gate in a closed position. That is, the gate stops pull the track at the outer edge and push down the track closest to the gate.

Unsure about which direction is optimal. I'm also wondering if the wood at the bolts can be compressed differently depending on placement.

It depends on the effect you want. You get the most stability in the same direction the bolt points. So if they go from the street and in, as you mentioned, the plank will be stable on the same axis, that is, between the street and the garden.

Sometimes the plank is braced against an existing building, like a garage or similar, and therefore doesn't require additional stability in that direction. Then it might be more suitable to set the bolt in the same direction as the plank runs, making it stable in that direction.

You could also alternate them, but then you get the effect that the plank becomes more unstable from inside to out on every other post, so to speak.

If the plank is completely free-standing, it is best to set the bolts so they go from the street and into the garden, and then complement the plank with a pair of diagonal braces, one at each end.

Yes, the wood compresses when you tighten, and I would probably rotate the post so the bolt lands as close to 90-degrees against the annual rings as possible. That makes it most durable.
You can always go back and retighten them after the wood has had time to dry a bit. So wait a couple of months and let a proper dry period pass without rain, then it might be suitable to tighten them a bit.

If you're totally paranoid, or if necessity demands for some reason, you could always cast iron on all four sides and offset them in height so the bolts don't collide ...though this of course assumes you're casting your own blocks.

Hope this is your best answer. Good luck with your project!

 

[Nötegårdsgubben]

I had attached the fittings to the gates. The biggest impact you have is the weight of the gates, and it applies pressure inward towards the gate hole (with the reservation for how you attach the gate brackets and whether the gates are open or closed).

 

[Nötegårdsgubben]

Hope this will be your best answer.

Then you probably also have to hope that TS actually wondered about something other than what he asked about.

 

[KnockOnWood]

A small reminder: For heaven's sake, make sure the gate posts are stable! Not just so that the gate(s) don't sag, but to avoid risking worse damage.

I once had a cousin named Svante. He tied a rope between the gate posts and made a swing that way. He swung, one (or both) gate post fell inward from the pull of the swing line, and Svante died at the age of seven