BE WEATHER WISE TO GATE SAFETY

As Brits, we do like to talk about the weather, winter is just around the corner and we’ve had an unseasonably high level of rainfall in recent weeks, however how does this impact on the maintenance of a gate or barrier?

The almost unprecedented downpours of late can be a trigger for a number of problems. It is important to check whether the foundations of the gate been undermined by these severe weather conditions and to identify if there are any signs of movement around the gate posts. If the gate features an underground operator, make sure that it is not sitting in a pool of water due to a blockage in the soak-away or simply because the soak-away just cannot cope with the high volume of water. 

Significant leaf fall from trees may also represent a hazard, from obscuring road markings to building up around the gate itself which can ultimately lead to the derailment of a tracked gate. Large quantities of leaves could also potentially obscure the line-of-sight between the photocell and the transmitter. In the same way that a clean workplace represents a safe workplace the same is true for a gate or barrier…

It is also worth remembering that if rubber pressure edges are fitted to a gate they will perform very differently during colder conditions, (compared with how they operate in the summer) requiring more force to activate them. Gate Safe has always maintained that non-contact safety should be the first line of defence so be warned that if a gate is relying on force detection and safety edges it may be that during extreme cold weather, it isn’t as safe as it should be, and as a result, could cause serious injury or worse!

Whatever the weather, be aware of the seasonal risks posed by an automated gate or barrier.

#wintergatesafety #gatemaintenance