Free on-site gate assessment - hinges, posts, and your LiftMaster or Nice gate operator checked before anything is quoted
The assessment is free and the quote is the invoice.
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AfterFast, Reliable Gate Motor & Opener Across Keller
If your Keller driveway gate stopped opening, is grinding, or opens halfway and quits, the operator motor is usually the culprit. A typical gate motor repair in Keller runs $185-$420, and most jobs are done the same day we diagnose them. Call (817) 241-4067 and Hal Gatewood or one of his crew will be out to your side of Keller fast. We’ve been fixing gates in this area since 2001, and we know what Keller soil does to a gate over two decades.
Keller isn’t like the denser cities to the south. The gates here were mostly builder-installed, hung on ornamental steel frames with poured-concrete columns back when these subdivisions went in. That means we see the same failure patterns block after block, and we know what to look for before we even pull into your driveway. If you want a Gate Motor & Opener specialist who understands Keller specifically, you’re in the right place.
Why Gatewood Fence & Gate Is Keller’s Preferred Gate Motor & Opener Company
Hal Gatewood has been running this shop since 2001, and his name is on every invoice. That matters when you’ve been burned by a company that quoted one number over the phone and handed you a different one at the door. We publish our address, we answer our phone with a live person 24/7, and every job carries the 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If it’s not right, one call brings Hal back. No runaround.
Keller customers call us because we repair before we replace. In Hidden Lakes, we replaced a 1998 FAAC swing gate operator on a brick column that had leaned 1.5 inches out of plumb. Our tech re-bored the hinge post, re-plumbed the footing, and installed a new LiftMaster operator with a safety photocell. Six months later that gate still opens square, and the warranty is intact. That’s the difference between a company that swaps parts and one that fixes what actually failed.
We’re locally owned and owner-operated, with a published address and license number anyone can look up. We service nine major gate brands, including DoorKing, Elite, and Ghost Controls. And we don’t charge a trip fee inside the county, so there’s no penalty for getting us out to look at your gate.
Our Gate Motor & Opener Services in Keller
Motor Installation
When a Keller gate operator is beyond repair, we set a new one right. That means shimming and leveling the mount, re-checking the hinge alignment, and making sure the new operator isn’t fighting a post that shifted over 20 years of Blackland clay movement. A new motor in Keller typically runs $650-$1,400 installed, depending on gate length, weight, and whether you need swing or slide configuration. We stock parts locally so we’re not waiting a week on a freight delivery.
Motor Repair
Most operator failures in Keller are repairable. Dead capacitors, burned contactors, stripped gear teeth, failed limit switches, bad loop detectors, fried control boards. We replace the part that died, not the whole unit. A control board replacement in Keller typically runs $220-$480. A capacitor or limit switch job runs $95-$185. Hal’s rule is simple: if the motor housing isn’t cracked and the gearbox isn’t seized, he’ll quote you a repair before he quotes you a replacement. We have never talked a customer into a new operator when a $120 part fixed the gate.
Linear Motor
Linear operators are common on Keller’s slide gates, and they fail in predictable ways. The rack and pinion strips on 20-year-old ornamental steel gates are often worn to nubs, the drive chain stretches, and the motor itself overheats when it has to drag a sagging gate leaf. We stock replacement motors, chains, racks, and gears for Linear units, and we can usually rebuild one in a single visit. Figure $260-$560 for a Linear motor rebuild or swap in Keller.
Slide Motor
Slide gates on Keller quarter-acre lots don’t just slide on their own. They ride on four or more rollers, follow a track set in concrete, and get pulled by a chain or rack. When the gate slides hard, the motor draws more amps, overheats, and burns out. We check the rollers, clean the track, adjust the chain tension, and only then do we look at the motor. A slide motor replacement in Keller runs $550-$1,100. The prep work we do on the gate itself is what keeps that new motor from dying early.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Keller
We’re certified to service nine major gate brands, and Keller’s builder-installed gates run on every one of them. DoorKing operators are everywhere in the older Hidden Lakes and Marshall Ridge subdivisions. Elite and Ghost Controls show up on the newer retrofits. We stock common parts for all of them locally, so when your Elite keypad goes dead or your DoorKing loop detector stops seeing the car, we’re not waiting on a shipped part. We carry Mighty Mule components for the DIY conversions we get called to fix too, because we’ve seen enough homeowner installs in Keller to know exactly what goes wrong with them.
Common Gate Motor & Opener Problems We See in Keller Homes
- Blackland clay post heave. Keller sits on North Texas shrink-swell clay that expands after rain and contracts hard in summer drought. That movement, repeated for 15 years, pulls hinge posts out of plumb so swing gates bind and the operator motor burns itself out trying to force the leaf. No new motor fixes a leaning post. The post gets re-plumbed first.
- Control boards baked by 100°F+ summers. Keller summers sit above 100 for weeks. Those pre-2005 operator circuit boards were never built for that heat. We see dead boards, intermittent keypad failures, and flickering entry code acceptance all through July and August. A board swap usually fixes it for years.
- Ornamental steel gates sagging on original hinges. After two decades, a gate that weighs 400 pounds has been hanging on the same hinge post, and that hinge post has been moving in the clay. The gate leaf sags, you see daylight at the top, and the rack and pinion on the slide operator strips itself. We re-bore the hinge, re-plumb the post, and only then set the new gears.
- Winter freezes cracking hydraulic seals. Winter Storm Uri wasn’t a one-time event for Keller gates. Hard freezes that drop into the teens crack the hydraulic seals on swing gate operators and shatter exposed keypad housings. We order replacement seals in advance of winter now, because we’ve been through enough February emergency calls to know what’s coming.
Pricing for Gate Motor & Opener in Keller, TX
Here’s the straight answer, because you deserve one before you make a call. In Keller, a basic motor swap on a single swing gate runs $650-$900. A slide gate motor replacement runs $550-$1,100. Repair work, not replacement, is usually cheaper: a capacitor, limit switch, or gear replacement runs $95-$240, and a control board swap runs $220-$480. Hinge post re-plumbing, which Keller gates need more than most because of the clay, adds $350-$700 depending on the column and how far it has moved. The price is quoted and agreed before any work starts. Always. No trip charge inside the county, and we offer $40 off any repair over $200. Seniors and veterans get a permanent 10% discount on every job. Call (817) 241-4067 for a free estimate.
We Also Serve Cities Near Keller
We run out to Keller every day, and the same crew services Haslet, North Richland Hills, Haltom City, and Colleyville. If you’re in one of those towns and your gate motor is acting up, the trip is short and the estimate is free. The soil and the gate stock are the same north of the metro, so the fix is usually the same too.
Serving Keller, TX - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Keller area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Gate Motor & Opener in Keller
Yes, in most cases. A 1999 gate in Keller is almost certainly a builder-installed ornamental steel gate on a poured-concrete column, and what you’re describing is usually a hinge post that has drifted out of plumb from Blackland clay movement, not a dead motor. The motor runs but the gate can’t physically reach the close limit, so it reverses or errors out. We re-bore the hinge, re-plumb the post, reset the travel limits, and the gate closes square again. That repair runs $350-$700. A new operator bolted onto the same leaning post would fail the same way within a season. Call (817) 241-4067 and have us look at it before you price a whole new unit.
Yes, you need one. The UL 325 standard requiring safety photocells and contact sensors took effect in 2001, and Keller had hundreds of gates installed before then. If your gate predates that rule and has no photocell, a reversing gate or a closing gate can seriously injure a child or a dog. We retrofit a photocell and a proper edge sensor onto older Keller gates for $150-$320, and we won’t set up a new operator without them. This isn’t a upsell. It’s the law, and it’s the difference between a gate that works and a gate that’s safe.
Sometimes, but it’s rare that you’d want to. A swing gate in Keller is either hung on a brick column or a steel post, and converting it to slide means pouring a new track, setting rollers, and relocating the operator entirely. That’s $1,800-$3,200. In most Keller subdivisions, like Hidden Lakes, the smarter move is rebuilding the existing swing hinges and re-plumbing the post, then setting a stronger swing operator with current safety sensors. We’ll tell you straight if a slide conversion pencils out. Usually it doesn’t. Call (817) 241-4067 for an honest read on your gate.
Fifteen to twenty years, if the hinge post stays plumb. The weak point in Keller isn’t the motor itself. It’s the clay under the post. A well-set operator on a stable column can run 18 to 25 years with occasional capacitor and limit switch replacements. A pre-2005 unit that has baked through 20 Texas summers on a post that moved a few inches will die early, and the failure will look like an operator problem when it’s really a foundation problem. We have replaced original 1998 operators in Hidden Lakes that were on their third control board, and we have serviced 2002 units that are still going because their posts were set deep. The gate’s structure determines the operator’s life.
Heat kills the battery, and the charger board keeps cooking it. Keller’s July and August temperatures sit above 100 for weeks, and a battery backup unit installed in a black metal operator box on the west side of your driveway can hit an internal temperature of 130°F or more. That heat destroys sealed lead-acid batteries in one to two seasons. We relocate the battery enclosure to a shaded spot, upgrade to a gel battery that tolerates the heat, and test the charging circuit to make sure it’s not overcharging. Figure $120-$260 for a new battery and a heat relocation in Keller. If you’re replacing a battery every single summer, the battery isn’t the actual problem.
Call Gatewood Fence & Gate for Gate Motor & Opener Help in Keller
If your gate is acting up, make the call. You’ll get a live person, every time, day or night. Hal or one of his crew will come out, tell you what’s wrong, give you a written number, and fix it right. The 90-Day Done Right Promise is in writing on every job. Call (817) 241-4067 today for a free estimate. The name is on the shop, and the shop is down the road. That’s the oldest accountability there is.
Written by Hal Gatewood, Owner at Gatewood Fence & Gate, serving Keller since 2001.