Five Reasons Why Electric Gates Are So Popular In London
The popularity of electric gates in London has increased significantly over the years. There are more and more electric gate installers and suppliers of gate motors in the Greater London area every year. While the technology may have become slightly cheaper, there’s still a lot to pay for including the gates, the automation system and professional installation.
So why, if electric gates obviously aren’t cheap, are they so popular?
We looked at London life, the types of property across the capital and the development of gate automation over the years. Consequently, we believe the popularity of electric gates in London is down to a combination of the following five benefits they provide:
- Convenience
- Security
- Privacy
- Exclusivity and style
- Safety
In this article, I’ll go into detail about these benefits. If you live in London and you’re thinking about getting electric gates, this is where you need to start.
Read on to reveal the five ways that electric gates are great for homes throughout London.
The Benefits Of Automatic Gates In London
1: Convenience
Automatic driveway gates open and close automatically at the touch of a button. This means that your gates are normally closed and only open when you need to pass through them.
Manual gates are the opposite. They are open until you physically close them. This means that they can become neglected after a while. Their owners get fed up with having to move them by hand. They have to get out of the car in the cold or the rain to open them. Then they get back into the car, drive out onto the road and get out again to close them before they can finally drive away. This is highly inconvenient, so eventually they just leave them open all the time.
What Happens When You Go On Holiday?
Most owners of manual gates try and close them when they go on holiday. But they’re doing this for the first time in months. Often the gate hinges have seized so it’s a struggle to close the gates. When they do start to move, the gates might drag across the driveway because they’ve sagged on their hinges. Eventually, the owners get them closed and can go away on holiday. Unfortunately, it’s possible that burglars now know that they’re away because they’ve closed their gates for the first time in months!
With electric gates in London, they’re always closed unless you’re leaving through them or coming home. No-one knows if you’re in or out when they’re shut, and you don’t have to struggle to make them open or close. All you do is press a button and wait in the comfort of your car for a few seconds while they quietly open. Then you drive off and they magically close behind you.
2: Security
Because electric gates are normally closed, you present a barrier to entry to any wood-be burglar. Life on busy London streets with many houses close by on both sides works for you because burglars nearly always choose the easy option. Why try and force security gates open or bother to climb over walls and fences when next door has an open driveway? So, your closed automatic gates at the front of your London property discourage thieves when there are easier options next door.
Most electric gate owners have intercom systems or access control devices at their gates and inside their houses. This means that you have control over who you open the gates for or who can open them for themselves.
Gate Remote Control Fobs
Key fob gate remote controls provide the simplest gates access control. You keep them in your pocket, handbag or in your car. Gate key fobs are small and light like a car remote but without the key. As you arrive at your gates, you push a button on the remote and the gates open. It’s that simple. This means that you control who can get onto your property by controlling who has a gate remote control.
Electric Gate Intercom Systems
Gate remotes are highly portable but there are also many fixed types of gate access control. Probably the most familiar is the intercom system. A gate intercom has two main components, the gate call unit and the house receiver. The call unit is mounted on a wall, gate pillar or dedicated intercom post just outside the gates. But it should be in a place that drivers can reach from their cars as they drive up to the electric gates. They press the call button and wait for the homeowners to answer. In the house, the receiver rings. This often looks like a phone with a base unit and handset. The homeowner answers and talks to the visitor waiting at the gates. If they want to let them in, they simply push a gate release button on the base unit to open the gates.
Intercom Communication
Intercom systems provide audio and often video communication so you can see who is at the gates as well as talk to them. Intercoms use one of a few different communication technologies. With wired intercoms, the call unit and receiver are connected by cables. This provides highly robust communication but needs the most installation work.
Wireless Intercoms Systems
Wireless connections include radio, Wi-Fi and GSM. Mobile phones use GSM communication technology so you do away with a receiver unit and just use an app on your smartphone instead. Now you can communicate with visitors at your electric gates in London and let them in from anywhere you have a signal on your phone. This could be while you’re waiting to go into an appointment at the dentist, while you’re at work or even when you’re on holiday anywhere in the world!
Gate Release Keypads
Keypads and gate release push buttons installed inside the gates shouldn’t be reachable from outside the gates. Ignoring the possibility of a burglar being able to get to them, there’s a safety issue. It is dangerous for someone with their arm pushed through the gate if the gate starts to move.
When you leave the property you punch in specific numbers onto the keypad to open the gates. A push button opens the gates when you push the button.
You can also use keypads to control entry from outside the gates. Different visitors who you are happy to enter your property without your involvement have their own code. However, it isn’t impossible for a criminal to watch a code being entered into a keypad. So, ideally you install keypads outside London electric gates in a concealed location.
3: Privacy Behind Electric Gates In London
London can be busy, loud and crowded. Everyone is much closer than in the countryside and it’s difficult to get away from it all. While this means that your neighbours are close if you need help, it also means they’re close when you want privacy.
Automatic gates with a close-boarded design have no gaps between the boards they are made from. Once your gates are shut, they provide a degree of privacy. These gates can be 1.8m high before you need planning permission. They give you a privacy screen where most people have an open driveway. Combine this with a tall hedge or fence and you’ve hidden your property’s ground floor and front garden or parking area from the street.
Now your children can play without being seen from the street and your car is not on display. You can also open your ground floor window curtains without passers-by being able to see into your front room.
4: Exclusivity and Style
One of the first thing visitors see when they arrive at a property in London with electric gates is the gates. Taller, close-boarded gates and wrought iron gates can be quite imposing. Even a low sliding gate in front of a semi-detached London house stands out. Visitors to a house with electric gates can’t miss them when they contact the homeowners to get let in. You’ve made a statement about your style, desire for privacy and how your property is different from your neighbours who don’t have electric gates.
Because driveway gates say something about a property, your choice of gate design is important. Ideally, you pick gates that match the style of your house. It’s probably not a great idea to have modern gates in front of a traditional property or classically styled gates in front of a modern building.
You can then decide if you want a solid gate or one with spaces. Do you like curved tops, flat tops or something more ornate? And what about colour? Many iron gates are black but wooden or aluminium gates can be any colour. You can also select composite gates that have a metal frame and inserts made of aluminium or wood.
5: Gate Safety in London
Strong motors power electric gates. These work against the weight of the gates and any disadvantage caused by leverage. This does raise the possibility of cost-cutting installers creating a dangerous gate automation system.
Any London gate engineer you hire must know about the gate automation safety equipment available. This is important if they install new electric gates for you or work on your existing gates. They should carry out a safety audit to determine what safety devices they install on your automatic gate system. Installers should also be clear on how you will use your electric gates and who will have control.
However, when electric gates in London are designed and installed with the right levels of safety built in and the owners know how to use the gates properly, they can be safe. But please note that choosing electric gates for your family home is not something that can be skimped on. Get it done right or not at all.
But What If I Don’t Have The Space For Electric Gates?
There are basically two types of gate automation systems. These are for gates that swing or slide open and closed. Each type of gate needs a certain amount of space to move into when they open. There isn’t always a lot of space for electric gates in London. But this doesn’t mean that there aren’t options for Londoners who want electric gates.
Here’s a brief description of the standard forms of swing gates and sliding gates followed by options for both that need a lot less space.
Swing Gates
Swing gates are very popular throughout London. However, they need a lot of space to open into. Unfortunately, many London properties don’t have enough room on the driveway for swing gates. Also, swing gates can’t open outwards onto public property. So if you don’t have space on your driveway, sliding gates might be the answer.
Sliding Electric Gates In London
A sliding gate slides from the closed position to one side of the driveway entrance. You need space alongside your front fence or wall that is slightly longer than the width of your driveway opening. This must also be inline with the driveway opening and not obstructed by hedges or other plants.
Gates Where Space Is Limited
Many London properties don’t have the space on the drive for swing gates to open. A lot also don’t have a straight wall next to the opening that is long or straight enough for a sliding gate. This is when novel and less usual gates will solve the space problem in London.
Concertina Gates
Concertina sliding gates are made of a number of sections. These slide against each other on their own tracks as they open. As a result, three-part concertina sliding gates need only slightly more than one third the width of the driveway opening to slide into.
Round The Corner Gates
Round the corner sliding gates are made up of even more sections than concertina gates. Each section has its own wheels and is connected to its neighbours by hinges. These gates open along tracks that curve round bends. A concertina gate will even work if you have a wall with a right angle bend in it near your driveway opening.
Bi-Fold Swing Gates
If electric swing gates in London are your thing, bi-fold swing gates might be the answer. Normally, two large standard swing gates close the opening to a driveway. But bi-fold swing gates fold in half as they open. This means that they need much less space on the driveway.
One final consideration with your choice of gate type concerns rising driveways. Swing gates on standard hinges hit a rising driveway as they open. To avoid this, special hinges open the gates at an angle. Alternatively, the gates can be installed with a larger gap at the bottom when closed. Ideally, the best solution here is a sliding gate or possibly bi-fold swing gates.
More and more electric gates are installed in London even where there’s not enough room for traditional electric gates. So, more and more Londoners have seen the benefits of having automatic gates at the entrance to their property. You can too.
If you have often wanted electric gates or you’ve seen your neighbours have them installed, contact us for a chat about your options.
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