A security gate is a steel barrier fitted in front of a door or opening so you can leave the inner door open for air and light while the gate stays locked. Gates are made as hinged, folding, expanding or sliding units, and prices swing widely with the steel and the lock. Send us the opening sizes and where you are, and gate manufacturers and installers near you quote you directly. Quotes are free and you choose who to use.
Which gate suits which opening
The opening decides the gate more than your taste does. A hinged gate of vertical bars suits a normal front or kitchen door with room to swing. Where there is no swing room, think about folding or sliding. The usual choices:
- Hinged bar gates: round or square bars between two rails. See slamlock security gates.
- Expanding gates: lightweight crossed links that concertina to one side. See expanding security gates.
- Sliding gates: run on a top or bottom track across wide glass doors.
- Door-width gates: designed to look neat at an entrance, covered in front door security gates.
Steel, bars and welds
Ask what the gate is actually made of. A sound house gate has a frame of 25 x 25 mm square tube or heavier, round bars of 12 to 16 mm spaced about 100 mm apart, and a mid-rail so the bars cannot be spread. Look for continuous welds at every joint. Thin 20 mm tube with tack welds looks the same on a quote but flexes in a few years. Hinges should be welded barrel hinges with pins that cannot be lifted out from outside.
Powder coat over a galvanised or zinc-primed frame lasts far longer than paint, especially in a coastal suburb.
Escape routes and the lock
A gate that keeps people out must never trap the family in. Every gate on a bedroom or main exit should open from the inside without a key, or you should keep a key on a hook out of reach of the gate itself. A deadbolt that needs a key on both sides is fine on a back door that is never your only way out. Tell the installer if young children, elderly relatives or a rental tenant will use the gate daily. See security door locks for the options.
What the price depends on
A gate is priced by area, steel weight, lock and finish, then by fitting. Ready-made gates from a hardware chain are cheaper for standard sizes, but openings are often a few millimetres off, which leaves gaps. Made-to-measure gates cost more and fit tight. Removing an old gate, drilling into face brick and making good the plaster all add to the total, so ask each supplier to itemise. Also ask how long the guarantee runs on welds, paint and the lock, and who returns if the gate drops on its hinges.
What to include in your request
- Width and height of each opening in mm, smallest of three measurements
- Gate type: hinged, folding, expanding or sliding
- Which way it must open and which side it hinges
- Lock type and how many keys you need
- Wall material and whether an old gate must come out
Security Gates for different properties
- Houses: hinged bar gates on the front, kitchen and patio doors, with a lock you can open from inside
- Townhouses and complexes: a gate in the approved colour over the patio or front door, fixed to the reveal
- Flats and apartments: a single gate over the front door that fits the passage without blocking neighbours
- Farms and smallholdings: heavy gates over the farmhouse doors and the stores, built from thick tube
- Shops and restaurants: a lockable gate over the shopfront and a folding unit for the delivery door
- Offices and practices: a tidy entrance gate for after hours and a stronger gate on a stock room
- Factories and warehouses: wide, heavy gates on loading doors, stores and tool cribs
- Schools, clinics and churches: bulk gates for classrooms and clinics that must keep escape routes clear
Frequently asked questions
How much do security gates cost?
Can a security gate be fitted to a sliding door?
How long does a made-to-measure gate take?
Do I need permission to fit a gate in a complex?
Security Gates by province and city
- Johannesburg
- Pretoria
- Centurion
- Midrand
- Sandton
- Randburg
- Roodepoort
- Krugersdorp
- Randfontein
- Germiston
- Boksburg
- Benoni
- Kempton Park
- Alberton
- Vanderbijlpark
- Vereeniging
- Durban
- Pinetown
- Pietermaritzburg
- Richards Bay
- Newcastle
- Ladysmith
- Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
- East London
- Kariega (Uitenhage)
- Mthatha
- Cape Town
- Bellville
- Paarl
- Stellenbosch
- George
- Worcester
- eMalahleni (Witbank)
- Middelburg
- Secunda
- Mbombela (Nelspruit)
- Rustenburg
- Brits
- Klerksdorp
- Potchefstroom
- Mahikeng
- Polokwane
- Tzaneen
- Kimberley
- Upington
- Bloemfontein
- Welkom
- Sasolburg