Top 7 Problems with Vinyl Gates | How to Fix

What can go wrong with a vinyl gate? Here are the top 7 problems and fixes that I have seen over the last 40 years.

Hello, I’m David Bryant from Knoxville TN. I owned and operated a vinyl fence company (factory and installations) for over 35 years and I gave a 5 YEAR LABOR WARRANTY on my installed premium vinyl gates. How could I do that when the industry NEVER gave labor warranty on vinyl gates? It’s simple! We built our vinyl gates right!

Your vinyl gate is a dead weight hanging off a single post!

Vinyl Gates (plastic, pvc) are like other gates for your fence. They are the only working part of a fence and will also take the most abuse. So for the best use and longest life out of your vinyl gate follow these tested tips!

Here is the #1 Most Common vinyl problems that I have seen over the last 4 decades! No gate bracing or gate bracing installed backwards.

Vinyl fence is hollow inside and to remain square and operate correctly ALL vinyl gates need diagonal gate bracing! Installing vinyl gate bracing correctly the brace starts at the upper hinge side corner and goes diagonally downward to the opposite lower top corner. This prevents your vinyl gate from sagging!

Courtesy: vinylfenceanddeck.com

Most people, installers included, think that the bracing goes the other way and PUSHES UP from the lower corner. NOT SO! Same as with cable turnbuckles, start at top hinge and attach lower opposite side to keep gate square.

When building square vinyl privacy gates in the shop we would have a slight gap (1/8″) in the top and bottom frame channel. This gap allowed for expansion and ease in installing.

ALTERNATE VINYL PICKETS WHEN INSTALLING VINYL DIAGONAL BRACING

Since we used individual tongue and groove vinyl pickets, we could push one to the top rail and the next one to the bottom of the rail, then screw them thru the diagonal bracing. Following the alternating pickets increased the vinyl gate strength and rigidity.

Some box store vinyl fencing will not sell a gate. They only sell panels and want you to make a gate out of a panel. The problem is there needs to be a frame around the panel section to create a gate out of a vinyl panel. You should have a top and bottom rail to the fence panel, now just add the left and right sides with a heavy piece of hollow 2×4 vinyl extrusion. Cut out for the opening and slide over the sides and attach with color coated self tapping stainless steel vinyl fencing screws.

Problems with vinyl gate hinges. There are different materials used for vinyl gate hinges and after replacing most of them I found the absolute best vinyl gate hinges are stainless steel powder coated. Stay clear of box store hinges, I have replace many of these and the metal is so weak I can bend the hinge in my hands. Vinyl and aluminum posts are hollow and will need hinges that cover two faces of the post (corner angles). Here is the brand I recommend and have had great success Nationwide Industries you can even find these online.

So what to do if you have the correct latches and hinges for your gate and the latch bar is dropping so that it will not latch? This is a very simple fix to adjust the hinges to bring your gate back into alignment. Brandon Jensen’s video from Best Vinyl Fence is the correct way to adjust your gate panel and clearly demonstrates how to adjust your hinges.

Courtesy: Best Vinyl Fence

WOW! I have seen this many time by contractors cutting corners or from DIYers that did not know any better. By using wood gate hinges on a vinyl gate you are simple asking for trouble! Vinyl gate hinges ARE going to be about 3 times the cost of wood gate hinges for a reason! Vinyl gate stainless steel hinges powder coated black do not rust out like wood gate black zinc coated hinges. Also wood gate hinges are made for flat surfaces and will waller out screws set in vinyl. Vinyl hinge frames are set on 2 faces so the screws attach to 2 sides of the vinyl extrusion for a secure long lasting fit.

Many of the vinyl hinges are self closing which is required for swimming pool gates and are really nice for all fences.

So how important is your gate latch? It is critical to the security for your fenced area! Vinyl gate extrusions are hollow so your gate latch needs to attach to 2 faces to fasten the hardware securely.

Looking at your vinyl gate in a closed position, do you have a narrow gap at the top of the gate where it meets the latch post? What causes that?

Vinyl gate post reinforcement is a common problem.

The most common problem for a vinyl gate panel that is square and rubbing the top of the latch post is hinge post failure. Vinyl gate post reinforcement is a common problem. Fence contractors cutting corners will use pieces of wood to try to stiffen up the gate post and that will work for awhile.

We use the aluminum I beam, a heavy aluminum extrusion specifically made to stiffen and support the vinyl gate post. The heavy aluminum I beam should be wet poured (minimum 120 lbs concrete) concreted into the ground about 3′ deep leaving the last 4″ at the ground level open. This will set the aluminum I beam concreted tight to the ground . Once the concrete is set (24 to 48 hours) then you can sleeve the vinyl post over the aluminum I beam dropping it to the concrete (2″4″ below grade) and backfill with dirt.

Courtesy: Nationwide Industries

Is your gate slamming closed against the latch post and the post is becoming flimsy? How to fix that? Check for a metal post stiffener for the latch side. This will be concreted in just like the hinge side post and sleeved over with the vinyl post. Many fence contractors don’t reinforce this latch post since it doesn’t support the gate. BUT the latch post take a tremendous amount of abuse from the wind slamming the gate closed to regular closing of the gate. And the bigger the gate the more wind resistance and force it exerts.

Building your vinyl privacy gate using these simple common sense tips will make for a long lasting problem free vinyl gate. Over time slight adjustments to your hinges will align your gate.