Iron built to the opening, not to the nearest stock size
Ornamental iron is where the shop earns its keep. Pickets, rails, and gate frames get cut and welded to your opening, which is why an iron gate from a fence company looks different from an iron gate that arrived on a pallet. Straight top, arched, raked to follow a hill, spear or flat pickets, powder coated in whatever color the house wants.
Pool enclosures that pass
California sets the rules for a pool barrier and they are specific: at least 60 inches tall, no gap that passes a 4-inch sphere, no horizontal rail on the outside that turns the fence into a ladder, and a self-closing self-latching gate that swings away from the pool with the latch out of a child's reach.
Ornamental iron is the usual answer because it meets all of it and you can still see the pool from the house. We build to 4-inch picket spacing as a matter of course and set the gate hardware so it passes inspection the first time.
Driveway gates
A driveway gate is a structure, not a fence panel. The leaf is heavy, it swings on a post that has to carry it in cantilever, and it moves thousands of times. So the hinge post gets sized and set for the load, the frame gets welded and gusseted at the corners, and on anything automated the wiring and the loops get planned before the concrete goes in.
Swing or slide depends on the driveway. A slope, a short apron, or a gate that has to open toward the road usually means a slide gate. We will tell you which one your driveway can actually take.
- Single and double swing gates, welded frames, arched or straight tops
- Rolling and cantilever slide gates where there is no swing room
- Automation with safety loops, photo eyes, keypads, and remotes
- Matching pedestrian gate and fence panels so the entry reads as one thing
Finish, and why powder coat
Bare iron in the valley rusts. Paint on iron chalks and chips at every weld. Powder coat is applied dry, cured in an oven, and bonds as a shell, which is why it is the standard for fence and gate work and why it still looks right ten summers later. Satin black is the common pick; bronze, dark brown, and matched colors are all available.
Rail, security, and the rest of the shop work
The same fabrication that makes a gate makes everything else people ask an iron shop for: stair and balcony rail, window guards, security doors, dumpster enclosures, and panels for a courtyard.
How it is built
| Pickets | 5/8" or 3/4" square tube, 4" on center for pool code |
|---|---|
| Rails | 1" or 1-1/2" channel, welded, ground, primed |
| Posts | 2" to 4" square, sized to height and gate load |
| Tops | Flat, spear point, arched, raked to grade |
| Finish | Powder coat: satin black, bronze, brown, or matched |
| Gates | Welded frame, ball bearing hinges, drop rod on doubles |
Everything is measured on site before it is cut. An opening that is 11 feet 4 inches gets an 11 foot 4 inch gate.
What ornamental iron runs, installed
| Fence, 4 to 6 feet, powder coated | $45 to $110 per linear foot |
|---|---|
| Pool enclosure to code, with gate | Quoted from the layout |
| Single swing driveway gate, 10 to 14 feet | $3,000 to $8,000 |
| Double swing or slide gate, 16 to 20 feet | $5,500 to $14,000 |
| Gate operator and safety hardware | $2,500 to $6,500 added |
These are typical installed ranges for this part of Northern California, published so you can budget. They are not a quote. What a run actually costs is decided by the site: access, grade, what has to come out first, and how many corners and gates are in it.
Questions we get
Not literally. True wrought iron has not been produced commercially in decades. What everyone calls wrought iron today is mild steel tube and bar, welded and coated, which is stronger and far more stable than the original. We use the term the way customers do and build in steel.
Powder coated steel resists it well, and the coating is what does the work. Where it does eventually show is at a weld that got nicked or a picket that got hit by a mower. Those touch up. Sprinklers hitting the base of a fence every night are the fastest way to age one, so aim them somewhere else.
Longer than a fence, because it is fabricated before it is installed. Measure, shop time, coating, then install. We will give you a real date at the quote rather than a hopeful one.
Usually yes, on picket size, spacing, top style, and color. Bring us a photo with a tape measure in it and we will tell you before you commit.
Get an estimate: ornamental iron
Roughly how many feet, what is there now, how many gates, and which town. Photos help. Someone will call back to walk the line and put a real number on it.