I've re-installed a new down wood fence between my yard the neighbors with the usual 8' 4×4 PT posts, PT rails, and cedar panels. The fence runs along the side of the house and it starts at the end of a driveway slab. The start of the fence in a 8' 4×4 PT post sunk in 18" of concrete and 6" of packed dirt. Opposite this post is the side of the garage.
Previous owner had installed a PT 4×4 on the side of the garage, lagged into a stud on the garage siding. The gate that was installed was in disrepair, so I am installing a new one and split that gate in half, so there's one 4' wide panel and a 3' wide panel to fill a 7' space.
My concern is that installing a gate that is hinged on end post of the new fence will cause that post to lean in toward the side of the garage and causing the gate to sag and look bad.
Are there any bracing techniques that I can use to help prevent this leaning? I thought I had previously read about nailing a 2×4 to the backside of the 4×4 and then using longer lag bolts to attach the hinges by going all the way through the 4×4 and the 2×4. Maybe including a metal plate on the backside?
I'm not sure that driving a wedge at ground level will do much because the soil is packed in there, it's only hand-packed and only been that way for 2 months or so since installing that new post.
I don't have another post behind it in order to cable off to that to provide pull tension away from the garage.
I hope I'm missing something obvious…Are there some other ideas?
Thanks in advance.
Best Answer
First off I don't think you're likely to have trouble with a properly set 4x4 post and a 4' wide gate. The 4x4 should be stiff enough, and if the embedment is solid, it shouldn't lean with the weight of the gate.
One thing you can do is to make sure the gate is supported on the latch side when it's closed, so the post is only taking the weight of the gate while it's open. This could be something as simple as a heel on the latch post that catches the bottom of the gate.
If your neighbor's fence is sturdy - not sure if that's the case, there's some rot at the bottom of the boards - and the neighbor will allow, you could bolt through the posts so they bear the weight together.