Free on-site gate assessment - hinges, posts, and your LiftMaster or Nice gate operator checked before anything is quoted
The assessment is free and the quote is the invoice.
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AfterFast, Reliable Gate Repair Across North Hollywood
Gate repair in North Hollywood usually means one of three things: a motor that quit, a gate that drags, or a post that’s leaning. Most calls we run are on 25 to 30 year old automatic gates that were installed right after the 1994 Northridge earthquake, and they’re failing now in waves. We answer the phone 24/7, and a live person picks up. If you’re on a street in the 91601 or 91605 ZIP and your gate won’t open, call (951) 749-5734 and we’ll get someone out to look at it, usually the same day.
Why Gatewood Fence & Gate Is North Hollywood’s Preferred Gate Repair Company
Hal Gatewood started this shop in 2001, and the name is still on the door. We’re not a franchise. The person who shows up at your driveway is someone we know, someone background-checked and in uniform, and someone who can tell you exactly what’s wrong before touching a tool. Gate Repair isn’t a side line for us. It’s all we do, and it shows in the way we talk about your gate.
North Hollywood customers keep our phone ringing because we weld on site, right in the driveway, instead of hauling the gate to a shop across the Valley. That matters on those narrow postwar lots off Burbank Boulevard where getting a flatbed in means blocking the whole street. We’ve fixed sagging iron gates on Cahuenga, realigned sliding tracks off Vineland, and rebuilt hinge posts near the NoHo Arts District. The 90-Day Done Right Promise is stamped on every invoice, in writing. If it’s not right, one call brings us back. No runaround.
Our Gate Repair Services in North Hollywood
Electric Gate Repair
Electric gate operators in North Hollywood take a beating from August heat. When the temperature hits triple digits for the fifth straight day, old circuit boards hit their thermal limit and shut down for good. We keep extra operators and thermal fuses on the truck through July and August for exactly this reason. North Hollywood is one of the hottest pockets in the San Fernando Valley, and we plan for it.
Automatic Gate Repair
Most automatic gate calls in this area start the same way: the gate opens a foot, groans, and stops. On 1990s-era Viking and DoorKing operators, that’s often a stripped rack and pinion after 30 summers of expansion and contraction. We carry replacement racks in stainless steel, which holds up better than the original zinc coating in Valley heat. We also recalibrate loop detectors so the gate doesn’t short-cycle when the driveway concrete radiates heat in late afternoon.
Hinge & Post Repair
A gate sags in the hinge post, not in the middle. That’s where we start. North Hollywood is full of 1950s and 1960s stucco pilasters that were never poured deep enough for a heavy iron gate, and after three decades they crack and lean. We cut out the bad concrete, repour the footing, and set new anchor bolts while the gate stays put. Fix the panel without the post and you’ll fix it twice.
Gate Realignment
The concrete tracks on older sliding gates crumble, especially where driveway aprons meet sidewalk on streets like Lankershim and Magnolia. A gate that scrapes or binds mid-day, when the metal track has expanded in the heat, is a track alignment problem more often than a motor problem. We re-level the track, shim the rollers, and test the gate at 2 p.m., not 8 a.m. Summer heat is the real inspector on this work.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in North Hollywood
We’re certified to work on nine major gate brands: LiftMaster, FAAC, BFT, Linear, Viking, Ghost Controls, DoorKing, Elite, and Mighty Mule. The ones we see most on North Hollywood’s 1990s gates are Viking, Linear, and DoorKing. We stock boards, receivers, and safety edges for all three locally, so we’re not waiting on a parts warehouse in Texas while your gate’s stuck open. If you’ve got a Ghost Controls swing arm on a bungalow off Tujunga, we know that unit’s quirks too.
Common Gate Repair Problems We See in North Hollywood Homes
- Dead operators after heat waves. The hottest week of August brings more motor failures than the rest of summer combined. Thermal cutoffs trip repeatedly, and eventually the board gives out for good.
- Santa Ana hinge stress. Fall wind events push lateral force against swing gates that have been hanging for 30 years. Hinges shear, welds crack, and frames twist. It’s a second peak season, separate from summer motor failures.
- Crumbling concrete tracks on narrow driveways. Postwar lots in North Hollywood were built tight, and the sliding gate tracks installed in the 1980s and 90s are now spalling and heaving. The gate jumps the rail or drags the rollers.
- Failing post footings behind leaning pilasters. The stucco column looks fine until you pull the gate open and see the crack at the base. We repour the footing and anchor the post properly, which means the gate hangs true again.
Pricing for Gate Repair in North Hollywood, CA
A typical electric gate operator replacement in North Hollywood runs $850 to $1,400, parts and labor. Hinge and post repair work usually falls between $300 and $600, depending on whether we’re repouring a footing or just replacing pins and welding back a cracked bracket. Gate realignment runs $200 to $450 on most North Hollywood driveways. Weld and rust repair is $150 to $500, depending on how far the corrosion has climbed up the frame. Every quote is written down and agreed to before any work starts. No trip charge inside the county, and we take $40 off any repair over $200. Seniors and veterans get 10% off permanently. Call (951) 749-5734 and we’ll give you a number you can hold us to.
We Also Serve Cities Near North Hollywood
Gatewood Fence & Gate runs routes across the Valley. We handle gate repair for homeowners just over the hills in Studio City, up in Van Nuys, across Burbank Boulevard in Sun Valley, and down into Sherman Oaks. If your gate’s acting up and you’re within a few miles of North Hollywood, call us. A live person answers, and we’ll tell you honestly when we can be there.
Serving North Hollywood, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the North Hollywood area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Gate Repair in North Hollywood
North Hollywood sits in the Valley basin, where summer heat gets trapped and runs 15 to 20 degrees hotter than coastal LA. When it stays above 100°F for days, the thermal protection in older operators keeps tripping until the circuit board gives out permanently. Any shop working the area stocks extra operators and thermal fuses specifically for late July and August. Call (951) 749-5734 and we’ll bring one out the same day.
Santa Ana wind events push sustained lateral force against the face of a swing gate, which stresses 30-year-old hinges and frame welds in ways they were never designed to absorb. Hinges shear, welds pop at the corners, and gates that hung fine all year start dragging. We see a second spike in hinge repair calls every fall, separate from the summer motor season. If the wind’s moved your gate, we can weld it back in the driveway before it drops.
Crumbling concrete tracks. Most sliding gates in North Hollywood were installed decades ago on tracks poured across driveway aprons that have since spalled and heaved with Valley heat and occasional seismic settling. The gate jumps the rail or binds against the expanded metal mid-afternoon. We re-level and re-shim the track, then test it in the heat of the day, not the cool of the morning.
Because the posts were never built for the load they’re carrying. The 1950s and 60s stucco pilasters on North Hollywood lots are shallow, and a 200-pound iron gate swinging 20 times a day for 30 years eventually cracks the footing and leans the whole post. The panel is usually fine. We repour the footing, reset the anchors, and let the gate hang true. Often the same day.
Yes. Under California building code, which Los Angeles and North Hollywood follow, automatic gate operators must have entrapment protection such as photo-eyes or contact edges. That’s state law, and it’s there for a reason: a closing gate can injure a child or a pet before you reach the button. We check every safety edge and photo-eye on every repair, and we’ll flag one that’s failed. For a code-compliant repair or a free estimate, call (951) 749-5734.
Written by Hal Gatewood, Owner at Gatewood Fence & Gate, serving North Hollywood since 2001.