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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Before
AfterTrusted Gate Repair for Van Nuys Homeowners
A gate that drags on the concrete, swings past the latch, or just stops opening isn’t something you put on a list for next month. It’s the difference between a driveway that closes and a driveway that doesn’t. Hal Gatewood has been repairing gates in Van Nuys and the surrounding Valley since 2001, and the name on the invoice is the same name on the shop. Call (951) 749-5734 and a live person picks up, day or night. We show up when we say we will, we fix the gate where it sits, and every repair carries our 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. No voicemail maze, no price that changes at the door. Just a gate that opens and closes the way it should.
What Our Gate Repair Service Includes
Electric Gate Repair
Electric gates fail in predictable ways: a motor that hums but doesn’t move, a gate that stops mid-travel, a keypad that works only when it feels like it. In Van Nuys, we see a lot of heat-weakened capacitors and sun-baked circuit boards, especially on gates that face west through the afternoon. We diagnose the actual fault, replace only what’s failed, and test the full cycle plus the safety sensors before we leave. If the motor is worth saving, we save it. If it isn’t, we tell you straight and show you why.
Automatic Gate Repair
Automatic gate systems are only as good as their weakest component: the arm, the receiver, the limit switch, the ground loop, or the wiring between them. We work on the whole system, not just the motor. On a recent Van Nuys job, the problem wasn’t the opener at all; it was a corroded splice someone had buried without a junction box back in 2014. We found it in twenty minutes, cut it out, and the gate has opened clean every day since. That’s the difference between guessing and testing.
Hinge & Post Repair
A gate sags in the hinge post, not in the middle; and that’s where we start. When the post leans or the hinge barrels wear oval, no amount of adjusting the latch fixes it for long. We weld cracked hinge brackets on site, pull and re-set posts that have shifted in Van Nuys’s expansive clay, and upgrade hinges to greasable heavy-wall barrels when the old ones are done. Fix the panel without the post and you’ll fix it twice. We fix it once.
Gate Realignment
A gate that scraped the ground last spring and binds against the post this summer has a structural problem, not a paint problem. Gate realignment means finding why the frame moved: a hinge loosened, a weld cracked, a post leaned, or the original install just wasn’t square. We cut and re-weld where the metal has moved, not just shim the hinges and call it good. Most realignment jobs in Van Nuys run two to four hours, and the gate closes smooth when we’re done.
Lock Repair
A gate lock that jams is worse than a gate lock that’s missing; it gives you the false sense that the property is secure. We repair and replace mechanical locks, electric strikes, maglocks, and the wiring that feeds them. On older Van Nuys homes, we often find the original lock was never rated for outdoor exposure, so we swap it for a stainless mechanism that won’t seize when the Santa Ana winds blow dust into every crevice. If the gate has an opener, we make sure the lock and the opener aren’t fighting each other.
Weld & Rust Repair
Weld and rust repair is where we earn our keep. A gate with a cracked weld at the top corner and a bloom of rust at the bottom rail isn’t scrap. It’s a Saturday job. We grind out the bad metal, weld in new stock, flake off the scale, and treat the surface so the rust doesn’t come back through the paint in six months. Hal has been welding since 2001, and he’d rather repair a ten-foot steel gate than replace it for twelve hundred dollars it doesn’t need to cost. That’s the repair-first approach in one sentence.
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.
Brands We Service for Gate Repair
We service Linear openers about as often as any other brand in Van Nuys, and we keep the common failure parts on the truck: control boards, limit switches, and receiver modules. Linear systems are workhorses, but they get fussy with corroded connections, and we’ve got the meters and the patience to find the bad one instead of replacing the whole board on a guess.
Viking and Ghost Controls show up a lot on newer installs and on solar gate kits. We’re certified to service both, and we’ve learned which failures are genuine component faults and which are install issues hiding in the trench. DoorKing is the other one we see on commercial-grade residential gates, and we know those systems well enough that the fix usually happens in one visit. Whether your gate runs a Linear, Viking, Ghost Controls, or DoorKing opener, or something too faded to read, we can get it working again.
Signs You Need Gate Repair Right Now
- The gate sags or scrapes the ground. When you see bare metal on the concrete or a diagonal gap at the latch post, the structure has shifted. Left alone, the hinges oval out and the motor burns itself trying to move a gate that’s binding.
- The opener hums but the gate doesn’t move. That hum is usually a capacitor or a jammed gearbox. Running it repeatedly while it’s seized turns a hundred-dollar repair into a nine-hundred-dollar replacement.
- The gate reverses mid-cycle. When an automatic gate stops and backs up for no reason, the safety sensors or the force settings are off. That’s a liability in a driveway where kids and dogs play. Get it corrected before someone gets pinned.
- The hinges groan or the post is leaning. A gate post that’s shifted a half inch will lean a full inch by winter. The repair is smaller and cheaper when the lean is new. Wait and the concrete work gets involved.
- The lock sticks or won’t latch. A gate that won’t lock is an invitation. A gate that locks but won’t unlock is a nightmare at six in the morning. Either way, it’s a mechanical issue with a known fix, not a mystery.
Our Gate Repair Process - Step by Step
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You call and a person answers. No phone tree, no call center. You’ll talk to someone who knows gates, ask your questions, and if it sounds urgent, we’ll get someone out the same day in Van Nuys. The phone number is (951) 749-5734.
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We show up and test, not guess. We check the hinges, the post, the frame, the opener, the sensors, and the wiring. We use a multimeter on the electrical, a level and a square on the structure, and a straight edge on the panel. You’ll see what we see.
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You get a written price before any work starts. No estimate that might change at the door. The number we give you is the number on the invoice, unless you ask us to do something extra while we’re there. And if you have a written estimate from another company, we’ll give you a free second opinion on it.
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We do the repair on site. We weld in the driveway, we pull the post in the yard, and we replace the board at the opener. The gate stays on your property. You don’t lose a gate for a week while it rides around in someone’s truck.
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We test the full cycle and stand behind it. Open, close, reverse, lock, unlock, sensor trip. If it’s not right, we’re not done. Every repair carries the 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing, and one call brings Hal right back.
How Much Does Gate Repair Cost in Van Nuys?
What drives the price is access, material thickness, and whether the post is anchored in concrete or buried in dirt. The further the damage has spread, the more metal and labor it takes. The way to avoid overpaying is to fix the problem when it’s small, and to get a price that’s quoted before the work starts. We’ll come out, look at the gate, and give you a written number while we’re standing there. No trip charge inside the county, and $40 off any repair over $200. The estimate is free, the price is the price, and the second opinion on any competitor’s written quote is also free.
Gate Repair Near Van Nuys - Our Service Area
Van Nuys is home base, but we run repairs through Sherman Oaks, Encino, Tarzana, North Hollywood, Reseda, and the rest of the San Fernando Valley every week. From the shop, we can be in Granada Hills or Northridge in about twenty minutes, and down in West Hollywood or Santa Monica before lunch. If you’re searching for Gate Repair in Los Angeles more broadly, we cover that too, and we have a dedicated page for Gate Repair in Santa Monica. Same-day service in Van Nuys is standard when we get the call before early afternoon.
Serving Van Nuys, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Van Nuys area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
Frequently Asked Questions - Gate Repair in Van Nuys
What is gate repair?
Gate repair is the process of fixing a gate that won’t open, close, latch, or stand straight. It covers everything from steel fabrication and hinge replacement to opener board swaps and sensor alignment, and it’s done on site, not in a shop across town.
How long does a gate repair take?
Most repairs in Van Nuys take between one and four hours. A simple hinge swap or lock replacement can be done in under an hour, while a full realignment with welding or a post re-set might run half a day. We’ll give you the time estimate when we give you the price, and we’ll stick to both.
How much does gate repair cost in Van Nuys?
Gate repair in Van Nuys typically costs between $185 and $900, depending on the failure. A straightforward realignment or lock swap lands on the low end, while opener board replacement or structural welding pushes toward the high end. Every job gets a written price before work starts, and the price doesn’t change at the door.
Do you service DoorKing or Viking openers?
Yes. We’re certified to service DoorKing, Viking, Linear, and Ghost Controls systems, among others. We keep common OEM parts on the truck for these brands and fix what’s failed rather than replacing the whole unit.
Do you offer emergency gate repair in Van Nuys?
We do. A live person answers the phone 24/7, and if your gate is stuck open, stuck closed, or won’t secure the property, we’ll get someone out the same day in Van Nuys. Call (951) 749-5734 and tell us what the gate is doing. We’ll take it from there.
Is the work guaranteed?
Every gate repair carries our 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If it’s not done right, we make it right. One call brings Hal back, no runaround, no fine print. The name on the shop is the name on the invoice, and that’s the oldest accountability there is.
What should I do to prepare for a gate repair visit?
Clear the area around the gate so we can swing it through its full arc, and make sure the opener has power if it’s electric. If you have a key or a code for the lock, have it handy. Beyond that, you don’t need to do anything. We bring the tools, the parts, and the welder.
Schedule Your Gate Repair Service in Van Nuys Today
Call (951) 749-5734 and get a real person on the line who can talk gates, answer your questions, and schedule a time that works for you. The estimate is free, the price is set before any work starts, and the 90-Day Done Right Promise is on every job in writing. Hal Gatewood has been fixing gates in Van Nuys since 2001, and he’d rather repair your gate than replace it. Call today, and the gate will close right tonight.
Written by Hal Gatewood, Owner at Gatewood Fence & Gate, serving Van Nuys since 2001.