Barrier for deck opening | GTAMotorcycle.com

Barrier for deck opening

J

jc100

Well-known member
I have a deck opening I need a barrier to keep the dogs on the deck when the garden is muddy etc. The opening is about 90 inches. There’s vines growing on one side of the opening and a gazebo on the other that would make sliding home made doors/gates very difficult to install. I was looking at retractable barriers, kind of like baby gates/barriers, but the only one I have seen that looks good and are made well comes from the US and I’d need two of them to connect in the middle. Which is doable as the site sells the connectors so people do this all the time. Only issue is, this set up is pushing close to $400 CDN after taxes shipping and exchange. There’s retractable barriers on Amazon for $60 a piece but again, I’d need 2 and the reviews all say they need two hands to use each one as there’s a child lock on the retractable mechanism and many reviews are not favourable for the actual product aside from that. I thought about buying the amazon ones and breaking the childproof lock part of the mechanism but I might just be chucking good money away.

Before I shell out the cash for the US made barriers does anyone have a similar experience or ideas for a cheaper (good looking) solution? I’m currently using two old wooden baby gates and a piece of old stair railing and it looks a bit ghetto and takes up a lot of space.
 
I made this for the dog/kids.

muiihe.jpg


As javafan said, you are probably looking at two to have something manageable.

Strongly consider a leg or some other support in the center of the two gates. If someone leans or tries to sit on a 4' wide gate, it likely won't end well.
 
Last edited:
JavaFan said:
could you use deck railing material?
and make a dual gate arrangement?
anything solid on the outsides of the opening to attach hinges to?

http://[img]https://i.imgur.com/ZUI7DHk.jpg[/img]
Click to expand...

Thought about that too. yes there’s solid posts at the end of each railing set before the opening but the gates would have to open outwards towards the steps going down. They would be like that most of the time and it would look a bit weird because of the slope of the stair railings. I couldn’t fold them back against the side railings/deck fence because of the gazebo and vines. If I could do that it would be cheaper and preferable.

I also thought about using roller blinds on their side...but quickly discounted that as a bad idea. The US made barriers are made out of pet proof mesh and designed for one handed use and for this exact scenario. Unfortunately I just can’t find a Canadian dealer or similar product here.
 
I did get a carpenter in last year for a quote but his idea was “move the gazebo and cut the vine down”.
 
slider?

[video=youtube;fXvQLlIOwpk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXvQLlIOwpk[/video]
 
JavaFan said:
slider?

[video=youtube;fXvQLlIOwpk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXvQLlIOwpk[/video]
Click to expand...

Where it would slide to retract there’s a 10 year old grape vine happily growing on one side that has grown in and out of the rail posts and really tight clearance between a gazebo and the deck railing on the other. The vines are just starting to produce good bunches of grapes too. The gazebo can’t really be moved for more clearance either.
 
I was hoping I’d missed a Canadian product that would be cheaper than this US made one but I’ve looked everywhere.
 
Actually, Javafan may be on to something if you don't want a swinging gate. What about a 4' fixed section to accomodate a 4' slider?
 
I like the wide unobstructed deck opening but I feel it’s going to cost me. I could install a fixed section to narrow it but then I’d lose that. A centre post would do the same and I’d definitely need a centre post for two gates this size I think. If the Canadian dollar was at par it wouldn’t be so bad.

Those baby gates are what I currently have and they don’t do very well outside. They warp and start to look a bit messy, plus I need more than 2 for the opening hence the bit of stair railing. Wife and I decided to “de trailer park” the deck and make it look a bit nicer this year.
 
jc100 said:
I like the wide unobstructed deck opening but I feel it’s going to cost me. I could install a fixed section to narrow it but then I’d lose that. A centre post would do the same and I’d definitely need a centre post for two gates this size I think. If the Canadian dollar was at par it wouldn’t be so bad.

Those baby gates are what I currently have and they don’t do very well outside. They warp and start to look a bit messy, plus I need more than 2 for the opening hence the bit of stair railing. Wife and I decided to “de trailer park” the deck and make it look a bit nicer this year.
Click to expand...

No center post required for two swing gates with the right latch setup in the middle. I would lean towards something like below.

farm-gate-latches-20.jpg
 
JavaFan said:
could you use deck railing material?
and make a dual gate arrangement?
anything solid on the outsides of the opening to attach hinges to?

you'd end up with 2 gates almost 4 ft wide each, but it's doable

http://[img]https://i.imgur.com/ZUI7DHk.jpg[/img]
Click to expand...

How about making those 'bifold'. Same width but hinges in the middle of each so they fold when opened.

Just a suggestion.
 
hdsomeday said:
How about making those 'bifold'. Same width but hinges in the middle of each so they fold when opened.

Just a suggestion.
Click to expand...

An 8' cantilever is a lot for hinges. It may be possible, but I suspect you would need a foot or wheel at the middle of the gate and a nice clear and level track for it to follow.

There is another option that may work. Make a single gate 90" wide and have it operate like a tailgate. I'm not sure what the actual design looks like as it would need to be easy to walk on and not look dumb when up.
 
What about a pair of gates at the bottom of the stairs? Swing them back 270* against the stairs when they're not used. Will the dogs jump it?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom