Hi There,
I’ve decided to do my side gate myself. Before our concrete path was poured I put in a cypress post but since the. It’s warped and twisted a fair bit and also shakes quite a bit at the top when pushed. We have Hebel walls so couldn’t go direct to the wall unfortunately (unless I’m wrong about that?) my question is, should this be fine to take the weight of the hinge and gate and is there a way for me to make it more sturdy? And is there a way of attaching a post or something else to it to get it straight? Doesn’t seem to obvious in the pics but it’s a decent bit off with the level.
cheers,
Tony.
Hello @bow2021
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us and thanks for sharing your question about your gate post.
Anchoring into a Hebel block is not advisable especially if the item in question is constantly moving or vibrating. Eventually the aerated concrete around the anchor will loosen up and will fail. Instead, I suggest putting side supporting posts to steady the main gain post itself. You can also use these support posts to twist the main post a little bit back to its original position. I've placed a sample image below to give you an idea of how it can be done.
Once anchored in place it should stop it from vibrating and allow the gate to swing without adding too much stress to the post. I suggest using a nut and bolt configuration at the top so that you can tighten it back up should the assembly start to shake itself loose.
Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1 and @Nailbag for their recommendations.
If you need further assistance, please let us know.
Eric
Evening @bow2021
Timber does twist over time 😕 Can be a pain but still workable. The posts dont seem to be twisted too much? Would you be able to show with level clamped to the post for a straight edge? But in reality it wont stop it being useful
The wobbly post fix that @EricL has suggested I like as well. Maybe only a support on the inside of the gate (had a thought if its meant to stop access then the support might allow climbing) My thought to strengthing the post is to suggest a bar/post across the top of the two vertical posts to help give ridgility to the structure.
Dave
Hi @bow2021
Though the excellent suggested plan @EricL posted will eliminate forward and back movement, its the inside lean thats going to occur with the post, causing issues with the gate jamming against the other post with with latching.
So, I would hang the gate on the other post and utilise a self adjusting hinge like this one. I only use these latches on gate builds now as they allow for aging and movement of timbers, even when the gate/fence is built to the best possible standard.
This is how to works https://youtu.be/O_c19J39KLs
Nailbag
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