We get called out fairly often to fix or replace gate automation that someone else installed, sometimes cheaply, sometimes in a hurry. The same handful of mistakes show up repeatedly. Here they are, in roughly the order we encounter them.
1. Buying a Motor Rated Below the Gate's Actual Weight
The single most common issue. A gate motor's weight rating is not a suggestion, it is the point at which the gearbox and motor windings are engineered to operate reliably over thousands of cycles. Pushing a 400kg-rated unit on a 600kg gate might work fine for the first few weeks, then fail within a year as internal components wear out under a load they were never designed for.
2. Skipping Photocell Safety Beams to Save Money
Safety photocells, an infrared beam pair that stops and reverses the gate if something is in its path, are a genuine safety feature, not an optional add-on. A gate closing on a child, a pet, or a parked vehicle without a photocell to detect the obstruction is a real risk, and one that a KES 6,200 CAME photocell pair is cheap insurance against.
3. No Battery Backup
Covered elsewhere on this blog in more detail, but worth repeating in a mistakes list: a gate motor with no backup power simply stops working during Kenya Power outages, which happen often enough that this is not a remote edge case. A Centurion 12V 7.2Ah battery pack costs under KES 10,000 and eliminates the problem entirely.
4. Ignoring the Gate Structure Itself
Automation adds repeated mechanical stress to a gate frame that may have been built for occasional manual opening, not dozens of motor-driven cycles a day. A gate that already sags on its hinges, has a bent frame, or was never properly levelled will fail faster once automated, and the motor often takes the blame when the real problem is upstream of it.
5. Using Non-Cloned, Unmatched Remotes
Rolling code remotes need to be properly programmed into the receiver, not just generically "compatible." We occasionally find installations with mismatched frequencies or remotes that were never fully synced, leading to intermittent range problems that get blamed on the motor or the weather when the real cause is a poorly programmed transmitter.
6. Zero Maintenance After Installation
A gate motor is outdoor mechanical equipment. Chains stretch, gearbox oil needs occasional topping up, dusty photocell lenses stop triggering reliably, and backup batteries lose capacity over a few years even if never deeply discharged. An installation that runs for five years with zero inspection is far more likely to fail suddenly than one given a basic annual check.
- โขSize the motor to the gate's actual weight, not the cheapest available unit.
- โขAlways install photocell safety beams.
- โขAlways install battery backup, no exceptions.
- โขHave the gate structure inspected before automation, not just the motor choice.
- โขInsist remotes are properly cloned and range-tested on-site, not just handed over.
- โขSchedule an annual check, particularly of chain tension, battery health, and photocell alignment.
Automated Gates service page Full supply and install checklist including photocells and backup batteries as standard.
See completed gate automation installations Real swing and sliding gate projects across Nairobi and beyond.