How to Build a Metal Gate

A metal gate is a great accessory for a yard entrance or patio with a fence. The gate will keep animals and unwanted guests out at night, without breaking up the flow of your lawn with a solid, wood door or wall. It is also easy to open and close, and metal makes it very strong. A metal gate can be built by anyone who has knowledge of metalworking and can cut and weld metal bars.

1-inch metal channel bars

Metal saw

Gas welder

Filler bar

Welding equipment

C-clamp

Vise

Metal hinges and gate hardware

Cut two lengths of 1-inch metal channel bar to the width of the gate. For the purposes of this article, the example will be 40 inches wide by 36 inches high.

Cut two more lengths of steel metal channel bar to the height of the gate, in this case, 36 inches.

Clamp one of the 40-inch lengths of metal channel bar into a vise so that it is horizontally aligned. Clamp the vise in the middle of the bar so that there is room on the ends to work with your welding equipment without the vise interfering.

Clamp the two 36-inch lengths of channel bar to the ends of the bar in the vise, using a C-clamp to hold them in place. Leave the intersection of the two bars exposed. Then create a quick tack weld along this seam using a gas welder and filler bar (#3 or #4).

Remove the C-clamps, and then complete the weld around the entire seam. Use a #3 filler bar to form the weld on both sides of the intersecting metal bars and along the bottom and top edges.

Make a mark with chalk every 4 inches along the 40-inch bar, and for every mark cut another piece of 36-inch channel bar. Weld them, one at a time, to the 40-inch bar in the same way as you did in Step 5. Move the vise around the spot you are welding to complete the entire weld.

Lay the other 40-inch metal channel bar across the vertically aligned 36-inch bars, and clamp it in place with a C-clamp on the ends. Complete the welds for each intersection of the 40-inch and 36-inch bars, using your gas welder and #3 or #4 filler bar, just as you did in Step 5.

Lay the gate into a vise so it is horizontally aligned. Then clamp one side of a metal gate hinge to the vise 8 inches from the bottom and right along the outside edge of the gate. Tack weld the corners of the hinge to the gate using a gas welder and small #3 filler bar. Then remove the vise and complete the weld. Repeat this to install another hinge on the same side; this one should be 8 inches from the top.

Weld a gate latch to the other side of the gate. Place the gate latch plate across the outside metal bar, clamp it in place with a C-clamp and then tack weld each corner to the bar. Remove the clamp and complete the weld, securing the gate latch to the gate. It is now ready to hang on your entryway post.

Practice your welds on scraps of the same channel bar that you will use for the gate to get a feel for the material first. This will give you better welds and prevent mistakes.