Gate Systems: Open Wide Gateways in Your Electric Fence in Seconds

Gate Systems: Electrified Gateways for Your Pasture

Gate systems connect the gateway directly to your electric fence. Instead of a heavy metal gate, tape, rope or rods close the opening while carrying current, so for your animals they are just as much a boundary as the rest of the fence. This is ideal for wide entrances, for temporary grazing and anywhere you do not want to set a solid gate post with a heavy gate. The gateway opens in seconds and closes just as quickly.

Retract, Block or Hook In

With a FlexiGate, several tapes or ropes run in a cassette fixed to the post. You pull them across the opening and hook them in, and when you open the gate they wind themselves back up. A drive-through gate blocks the entrance with live rods and still lets you pass quickly. An electric gate kit brings several rows of conductors with gate handles as a ready made set. Which system suits you depends on how wide the opening is and how often you use it each day.

Carrying Current Safely Across the Gate

To keep the fence beyond the gate live even when the gateway is open, lay an underground cable beneath the opening. The gate system itself takes its current from the connection on the fence side it is fixed to. Make sure open tapes do not lie on the ground, or the fence will lose voltage. On paths that other people use, a warning sign at the gate clearly shows that the gateway is electrified. That way walkers and visitors know what to expect.

Frequently asked questions

Which is better, a metal gate or an electric gate system?
Metal gates are ideal for permanent entrances with a lot of traffic. A gate system is lighter, bridges wide openings and is faster to move when you graze in strips.

Does a gate system work for sheep too?
Yes, as long as the conductors run low enough and close enough together. For sheep and goats a system with several rows works better than one with a single tape.

Can horses break through an electric gate?
Horses usually respect a well charged gate just as much as the fence itself. What matters is that the conductors are easy to see and that you check the voltage at the gate regularly with a fence tester.