ABOUT FENCE!
I must be living right. I have friends who know how to do things I can’t do and tools and materials to make things happen (in the right season).
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| Brit, PieFace and Shotzee in Tiger Fountain Garden behind cattle panel gate. This gate has 2" x 4" fencing so cats can't go through it, and a fence post scrap on the edge to stiffen it so determined dogs can't bend it out and squeeze through. |
Our ‘quick’ solution to the gate dilemma is using sections from 52” tall, 16 ft. cattle panels made from 4 gage (3/16”) steel wire on a 6” h. x 8” w. grid. They stand up to any animal and are infinitely reusable. You do have to use a long bolt cutter or a saw to cut them. I lay the panel on the ground, set one arm of the bolt cutter on the ground and push down to cut it. Gate widths should stay in the 8” or 6” module. I have screwed wood strips together to cover the pointy ends but that adds weight to the gate so it sags and slides off if you don’t watch out. We add 2”x4” welded wire fencing to the gates for cat excluders.
I got back to the project a few days later; finished packing the posts which were already quite stable. I 'tacked' deck screws to both gate posts to line up and hold up the gate before I added the hinges and catch. For hinges I folded a two hole pipe strap so the holes lined up (in a vice), slid it over the outside panel wire (the hinge 'pin') and deck screwed it in place using my battery screw gun. This gate is a little bent so the middle hinge is an opened strap for more wiggle room.
I took out the tack - screw on the catch side to test the hinge and see where the gate would land before screwing the catch in place. I made sure it swings shut and latches on its own. That was it for the day so I propped the gate open so nobody would run into it while the dog racing track was open.
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