Do It Yourself Wood Fence Gate Construction

Plan gate post locations.

Do it yourself wood fence gate construction.

Put the gate into place supporting it on the bottom with a 2x4 1 5 inch off ground. Some towns might require this plan for an approved building permit. You might want to lay them out left to right and right to left depending on the hinge side try to get things even. Note the post locations and gate locations.

I used cedar fence slats and do not plan to finish them in any way. Predrill where the screws will go. After building a fence staining or treating the wood can be the first step in proper maintenance that can extend its life. Prop up the gate and screw the hinges into the gate and attach the hinges to the post.

You can purchase split rail fencing materials at most hardware stores but the original way to do it is to split the logs yourself. Add some wire mesh to make the enclosure more secure. Install hinges and attach the gate to the fence. At that point they call the wood barn wood and sell it for 3x what it initially cost.

Gate pickets should be flush with the inside faces of the posts. I live in a fairly dry climate so wood fences like this turn gray in a few years and then just last until they re deemed too ugly and someone tears them down. Since you are building the fence and the gate you control the opening and the dimensions so think ahead. Use graph paper to draw a plan for your fence.

Step 2 the posts if new posts are needed you ll need to bury them at least a foot into the ground maybe as much as two feet if the posts are big and the door will be heavy. Step 3 add screening to gate frame. These easy to build do it yourself fence gates. Make sure you keep your gate square while assembling.

If there are already fence posts spaced the distance apart you want you can skip to the section constructing the gate s frame. When the fence is in place apply paint stain or a weather proofing finish according to manufacturer s instructions. Apply wood preservative around the base posts to prevent the wood from rotting. Worst case senario you have to play with the picket spacing or cut a picket.

Plan your gate size to use full pickets. Use a pencil to mark where the hinge should go on the post and then put the gate down. There are many different types of wood to use for gates.