Winter maintenance of a gate motor
How to prepare your gate and drive for winter conditions?
You bought a gate motor – it is often quite a big expense. Nobody wants to throw money down the drain, so paying for the drive you certainly expect its long and trouble-free operation.
Unfortunately, the conditions in which the drive has to open the gate are very different and sometimes it has to exert itself really hard. Especially the winter period does not spoil us. And you’ll probably admit that having to leave a warm car in winter to open the gate when the automation has just refused to obey is not one of the most pleasant activities.
So what can we do as users of such systems to minimize the risk of such situations occurring? Put differently:
How to care for the drive in winter so that it serves as long as possible without failure?
I will try to answer this question in this article, so I cordially invite you to read on.
Table of Contents
The gate – start with it
We are talking about automation, but the role of the gate itself, which the automation operates, cannot be omitted. Of course, I assume that the gate is made of decent materials, is solid and solidly embedded in the ground (decent foundations, etc.). For the automation to work without failure, it is necessary to take care of the condition of the gate itself. Therefore, remember to inspect the gate at least twice a year – and certainly before winter.
Rust is for the „neighbor’s” Passat, not for your gate!
Is there no corrosion visible on the gate? If so, deal with it as soon as possible! A gate can be very expensive. And although the manufacturer probably took care of adequate protection against corrosion (e.g. the gate is galvanized or properly powder-coated), at the operational stage it may happen that something hits the gate – a small stone that shot out from under the wheel of a passing car is often enough – and damages the anti-corrosion coating. And this, in turn, can cause the gate to be „eaten by rust” over time. Also check the hinges, because especially in places where there is friction (on the pin), corrosion can appear at an accelerated pace.
He who does not lubricate does not ride – lubricate hinges and rollers.
The right amount and type of grease on the hinges and in the rollers will not only make the gate move easily and thus the automation will not have to unnecessarily struggle with it. This will also protect these elements from corrosion. Therefore, it is sometimes worth lubricating! ? But beware! If you lubricate the gear racks in a sliding gate, you won’t get far. The gear racks must work „dry”. Lubricating them will create a sticky coating on them, to which all kinds of dirt will immediately stick. Including sand, which between the teeth of the rack and the drive wheel of the automation will act like sandpaper and significantly accelerate system wear.
A gate is not a plow – clear snow when it falls.
Light, frozen, fluffy snow will not be a huge obstacle if there is really very little of it on the driveway. But even such fluff can cause a mess when too much of it accumulates. And heavy, wet, packed snow can be completely deadly. And think about what will happen if the temperature jumps above zero for a moment, just to freeze again at night, and the snow will become an even more packed, hard and very heavy crust. Therefore, take the time to clear snow from the area by the gate before you click the button on the remote to open it.
We say a firm „NO” to leaves and other dirt!
Before winter there is always autumn, and in autumn leaves fall from trees. And they can collect by the gate. You’d rather rake them up quickly, because they look ugly, you can slip and fall. But it’s easy to miss a few leaves somewhere at the back of the sliding gate, which could have settled on the guide rail, or the wind could have pushed them into the lower semi-open profile of the gate near the rollers. One leaf does not make an autumn, but if there are more of them and they start to rot, they can cause some damage. Anything that rots can accelerate the corrosion of the metal used to construct the gate, therefore – believe me, please – you don’t want leaves or leftover mowed grass stuck to the gate!
Take care of your automation
And finally, what tigers like best – the gate automation.
For the automation to serve as long as possible, in addition to taking care of the gate, you also need to look at it yourself sometimes. Of course, I again assume that you (or an installation company) correctly chose the drive for your gate and it has an adequate power reserve in relation to the needs. What should you pay attention to when preparing automation for winter?
Your automation is not a pig – it doesn’t like to wallow in the mud.
If you see that a lot of dirt has accumulated on it, wash it. But not with a pressure washer! You would certainly kill it that way. A somewhat soft brush or cloth and half a bucket of water is enough. Do not pour water on the automation directly from the bucket or from the garden hose. It would most likely survive it, but do you really want to risk flooding the electronics? Clean the casing and external moving parts of the mechanism from accumulated dirt with a brush or cloth and wipe dry or let it dry if the sun is shining and there is no frost.
Your automation is not a polar bear – ice and snow don’t turn it on.
In a sliding gate this is not so deadly, but in telescopic actuators it can cause a mess. A thick layer of ice on the piston can effectively immobilize the actuator. Therefore, take a look at the actuators before starting them. Especially if there was freezing rain at night, or there was a thaw the day before, and it froze at night. And if you see that snow or ice is lying on the actuator, remove it from there first.
Did you lubricate the gate? Lubricate the automation too!
Some types of drives are maintenance-free, but others require regular lubrication. This applies especially to sliding gate drives in the so-called „oil bath”. Such a design has its pros. But there is also one huge minus, about which manufacturers and sellers generally keep quiet: the oil with which the gear is flooded can imperceptibly disappear through minor leaks. In winter, the phenomenon may intensify due to the fact that at low temperatures seals like to harden and lose tightness. In piston actuators, it may be necessary to top up the lubricant on the drive screw. Always look into the manual that you received together with the automation. Be sure to check whether the manufacturer does not recommend any specific activities in this area.
Take care of the condition of tires!
In other words, simply check the condition of the seals and maintain them accordingly. If the transmission works submerged, I described above why this is important. But even piston actuators have seals at the junction of the piston and the end of the outer cylinder. Their task is simply not to let dirt inside the mechanism. In winter they will harden, they may crumble. Therefore, for example, it is worth using a car seal maintenance agent to improve flexibility and prevent the seals from freezing to the metal piston. If you have electronics enclosed in some hermetic box, also look at the condition of the cover gasket. After all, you don’t want moisture to damage the controller.
The automation is not a mouse house – secure cable glands.
In winter, everything that lives pushes towards warmth. You probably heat your hut with some stove, but such a poor mouse has to cope differently. If only it manages to find a way to the warm interior of an automation heated by electronics, it will eagerly use this opportunity. And since an outdoor toilet in winter is rather fun for masochists, it will take care of its physiology inside the automation. Besides, not only mice do this. All sorts of bugs can get inside the drive, causing havoc in the electronics there. Therefore, always seal well any holes in the casing through which wires are brought inside.
Take care of the „eyesight” of your automation – clean photocells.
Perhaps you have already found out how important a role photocells play in gate automation, when, deep in thought, you started driving your car into a closing gate. But if you allowed a situation where photocells would become „blind” due to dirt accumulated on their casings, the consequences could be very costly. In winter it is easier for such a problem, because snow and ice accumulate on everything. Therefore, ensure that the photocells are always able to notice an obstacle and regularly clean their casings from snow and ice and other dirt.
Cables and wires…
Wherever something moves and bends, something can break down. Especially on swing gates with telescopic actuators, which must rotate together with the gate. The actuator is powered by a cable (two- or more-core), and the cable must bend in various places, most often at the entrance to the actuator. In winter, the wire insulation material hardens slightly and can become brittle. Therefore, check the condition of the power cords. If necessary, replace them so that cracked insulation does not lead to any short circuits and damage to equipment.
More power!
In winter, automations have a harder time. The gate is harder to move on rollers or hinges, the lubricant thickens, all motion resistance increases, electronics do not like frosts… You could mention a few more things, but it’s a waste of time – you certainly already know what’s going on. Because you don’t want to leave a warm car to open the gate yourself, turn on the „Turbo” mode in your automation for the winter period. This will boil down mainly to raising the overload settings slightly in the controller. And this is so that the automation is able to overcome the increased motion resistance of itself, as well as the gate it serves (of course, for the summer period they can be lowered back). If you have an automation driven by a single-phase 230V motor, it is almost certainly equipped with a capacitor. Check if it has not lost its capacity to the point that at low temperatures the motor has a hard time starting. And if necessary – replace it with a new one. But not for some used one (unless you are sure that the used one is 100% functional).
Summary
As you care, so you have! This saying is true in many areas. Gate automation is almost like a car: it makes life easier and is very much needed. And you will not fully know about it until you install it yourself. But just like a car that is not cared for enough, an improperly maintained automation can make life very miserable. Therefore, always before winter find a moment to look at the things I have written about in this text, and your satisfied automation will certainly repay you with long and trouble-free operation.
