How much should I spend repairing an Automatic gate system?

What a great question. One hardly anyone asks and yet probably the most important question everyone should ask and the sooner the better...

We asked a number of the top product manufactuers of electric powered gate, door & barrier systems, "How long is the actual life expectancy, of most of your equipment and components once they have been installed correctly?"

7 to 10 years with routine maintenance, was the answer and this assumed the installations design was suitable within the working environment, used accordingly and void of excessive damage and abuse.

Therefore, one could suggest that newer installations, less than 5 years old may justify more costly repairs as well as greater amounts of investment for additional items or upgrades. Installations between 5 and 10 years old, may justify less costly investment accordingly and installations over 10 years old, may well be better off being replaced altogether?

Quite a broad sweeping statement, but how far from the actual truth is it? We suggest this logic is very acurate when you are considering the Automatic element of a system, especially with any internally rated cables, used in a damp environment (underground or wet ducting, etc.) Whereas, the physical element, the structural items, the gates and supports, the furniture and fittings, etc. could have been engineered and installed to provide for a far greater life expectancy? This is common but not always the case and it may or may not allow for this valuble part of the original installation to be reused?

Therefore, when repairs are carried out on any exisiting installation, it is worth considering how reliable the rest of the system is likeliy to remain. Replacing 10% of anything does not gurantee the remanding 90% will last any time at all. The other problem with gate systems is that a new parts performance is wholly relient upon the rest of the installation and failure elsewhere could cause damage to the new part consiquencially.

The older the original installation is; Quick cheap repairs do not usually last, without huge amounts of luck and often become the beginning not the end of further issues.

Great value can only come from great engineering so please spend some extra time making a more informed decision. We are here to guide you, but it remains your final decision.