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AfterLinear Keypad & Intercom Repair: The Fort Worth Owner’s Guide
Linear keypad and intercom repair in Fort Worth typically runs $185 to $420 installed, and we carry the common Linear parts on the truck so most jobs are done same day. The price depends on whether we’re replacing a keypad face, a full intercom module, or chasing a wiring fault between the keypad and the board. Most folks call us after the keypad works fine in the morning, then won’t open the gate by afternoon, or the intercom buzzes but no voice comes through, or the whole unit lights up and does absolutely nothing. Sometimes it’s the part itself. Sometimes it’s the Texas sun cooking a wire connection until it gives up.
We repair Linear keypads and intercoms on gates all over Fort Worth, from Benbrook to Saginaw to the older neighborhoods off Camp Bowie where these systems have been in the ground for fifteen years. Because here’s the thing about Linear equipment: it’s generally well built, but the keypads and intercoms are the parts that live outside in the weather, and Fort Worth weather doesn’t do favors for circuit boards and membrane switches. One good hail season, a few hundred freeze-thaw cycles, and a keypad that worked fine since 2012 just stops talking to the gate operator.
Which Linear Models This Applies To
Linear made a lot of keypads and intercoms over the years, and they’re not all interchangeable. The most common ones we see in Fort Worth driveways are the AM-KP, the AK-11, the AE-100, and the older AP-5 keypads, plus the AE-500 and AE-2000 telephone entry systems on the intercom side. If you’ve got a Linear MegaCode receiver paired with any of those, that’s the setup we work on most weeks.
The quickest way to identify what you have is to look at the back of the keypad or the board inside the intercom box. There’s usually a white label with a model number printed small, something like “AM-KP” or “AE-1000.” If the label’s gone, which happens a lot on older Fort Worth installs, grab a picture of the keypad face and the wire terminals, and text it to us at (817) 241-4067. We can usually tell you what it is from the button layout and the number of wires coming out the back.
One thing to know about Linear parts: the OEM units are solid, but they’ve gotten harder to source as the company changed hands over the years. A quality aftermarket Linear-compatible keypad usually runs 30 to 40 percent less than OEM and in our experience holds up just as well in Fort Worth heat, as long as it’s the right frequency and protocol. We’ll tell you honestly which one makes sense for your gate. Gatewood Fence & Gate is an independent service company and not affiliated with Linear, so we’re not married to pushing one part over another. We’re married to fixing your gate.
Signs Your Linear Keypad & Intercom Is Failing
- Keypad works sometimes, then not at all. This is usually a membrane switch wearing out from UV exposure and heat cycling. Fort Worth summers bake the flexible circuit inside until the button contacts stop connecting reliably. You’ll notice it first with one button, then a row, then the whole pad.
- You enter the code and hear a click, but the gate doesn’t move. The keypad is fine. The problem is between the keypad output and the operator’s open command, usually a relay going bad or a connection that’s corroded inside the junction box. We fix the connection, not just throw a new keypad at it.
- The intercom rings the house but there’s no voice either direction. In our experience with the AE-500 and AE-2000 series, this is normally a failed audio module or a blown surge protector on the phone line input. A close lightning strike in Tarrant County will do that. The intercom still dials, but the audio circuit is fried.
- Keypad backlight stays on or never comes on. A backlight that never shuts off usually means the keypad’s logic chip is confused, and a backlight that never turns on usually means no power is reaching the pad. Both are diagnosable in about ten minutes with a meter.
- Callers at the gate get a busy signal or dead air. That’s the intercom not seizing the phone line or the cellular dialer failing to connect. On Linear entry systems this can be the main board, the line connection, or a dead backup battery dragging the whole panel down.
Replacement Cost & What’s Included
For Fort Worth homeowners, here’s the honest breakdown. A basic Linear-compatible keypad replacement, part and labor, runs $185 to $275. A full keypad plus receiver job goes $240 to $340. Intercom repair or replacement on a Linear AE series runs $280 to $420, more if we’re replacing the main board and re-terminating the phone or cellular line. What drives the range is whether we can just swap the part to existing wiring, or whether we’re chasing a sun-baked splice or a rodent-chewed wire somewhere between the keypad and the operator.
Every price we quote is the price you pay, agreed before we touch anything. No trip charge inside the county, and $40 off any repair over $200. The part is warranted, and the whole job carries our 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If it acts up again within 90 days, one phone call brings us back, no runaround. That’s how Hal Gatewood has run this shop since 2001.
DIY or Call Us?
There are two things you can safely check before calling. First, make sure the keypad and intercom have power. A tripped GFCI outlet or a flipped breaker on the gate circuit looks exactly like a dead keypad. Second, try the code from a different distance and angle. Some older Linear keypads get picky about the angle of your finger on the membrane. If neither of those does it, we’d rather you call.
Here’s the honest reason: keypads and intercoms are low-voltage, so they won’t hurt you like a gate motor capacitor will, but the wiring on most Fort Worth gate installs runs through the same conduit as line voltage, and the connections at the operator board are easy to short. We’ve fixed a lot of “simple” keypad swaps where somebody crossed two wires at the board and turned a $200 keypad job into a $600 board replacement. That’s not scolding anyone; it’s just the truth of what we see. If you want to watch while we do it, you’re welcome to. If you want to learn how, Hal will show you. But let us get it right the first time. Call (817) 241-4067 and we’ll have someone out that day.
FAQs
In Fort Worth, a Linear keypad typically lasts 5 to 8 years before the sun and the freeze-thaw cycles start breaking down the membrane buttons and the plastic face. An intercom module usually goes 8 to 12 years, unless lightning hits nearby. If you’re on the south side of Fort Worth with full afternoon sun and no shade over the pad, expect the shorter end of that range. A $40 sun shield or a small awning over the keypad adds years, and we’ll gladly install one while we’re there. Call (817) 241-4067 and we’ll get it done.
Sometimes, yes. If the issue is a corroded connection, a loose wire, or a relay on the board, we repair that on-site in Fort Worth the same day and you pay for labor and a small part, not a whole new keypad. If the membrane switch itself is shot or the board is water-damaged, repair makes no sense because the replacement part costs more than a new keypad. We’ll show you the failed part and our price before doing anything. That’s the deal at Gatewood Fence & Gate. Call (817) 241-4067 for a straight answer.
Most Linear keypad replacements in Fort Worth take 45 minutes to an hour from the time we pull up, including reprogramming your codes and testing the whole loop from keypad to gate operator. An intercom job runs one to two hours if we’re swapping a module or a board and re-terminating the phone line. You don’t have to be home the whole time, but you’ll need to be there when we test the intercom and set your access codes. Call (817) 241-4067 and we’ll give you a time window we’ll actually keep.
We stock the common Linear and Linear-compatible keypads, receivers, audio modules, and relays on every truck we send out in Fort Worth, so most keypad jobs are done in one trip. For the older Linear models that are hard to source, we’ll be upfront that we need to order the part, and we’ll tell you exactly when it’s in and exactly when we’ll install it. We also stock parts for LiftMaster, Mighty Mule, and Ghost Controls, so if you’ve got a mixed-brand setup, we can usually handle it without a second trip. Call (817) 241-4067 and tell us what model you’ve got; we’ll tell you if we have the part today.
We’ll Fix It Right, or We’ll Make It Right
Hal Gatewood grew up on the south side of Fort Worth and has been repairing gates around Tarrant County since 2001. He started this company after spending years fixing fences and watching one too many “gate specialists” swap a part that didn’t need swapping and leave a wiring mess behind. That’s not how we do things. We repair what can be repaired, replace what truly needs replacing, and every job gets our 90-Day Done Right Promise in writing. Give me a call, that’s my real number, and I’ll pick up.
Written by Hal Gatewood, Owner, Gatewood Fence & Gate at Gatewood Fence & Gate, serving Fort Worth and nearby areas.