Metal Gate Installation in Mount Pleasant, SC
Custom driveway, security, and ornamental gates, forged and installed by hand for Mount Pleasant homes and businesses. Free on-site measure and a firm written quote.
Notes on ironwork, fabrication technique, and the details that separate a good gate from a great one.
July 1, 2026
Two metal gates can look identical on the day they are installed and be worlds apart three years later. One still swings shut with a fingertip; the other drags, streaks rust, and needs the hinge shimmed every spring. The difference is almost never the metal you can see. It is the fabrication you cannot. Here is what actually separates a good gate from a great one.
A gate is only as steady as the post it hangs on, and the post is only as steady as its footing. A heavy double driveway gate puts real leverage on its hinge post, and if that post is set in a shallow or narrow hole, it will lean within a season and the gate will start to drag. We set structural posts in concrete footings sized to the weight and height of the gate, deeper and wider for the heavy ones. It is the least glamorous part of the job and the one that decides everything.
On the coast, rust starts at the welds. A bare or rough weld is a magnet for salt air, and a gate that was tacked together fast will bleed rust down a driveway pillar within a year. We do our own MIG and TIG welding, grind the joints smooth, and seal them before primer. A properly ground weld disappears into the frame, both for looks and for longevity.
A gate leaf swings thousands of times a year. Hang it on an undersized or plain-barrel hinge and it wears, drops, and drags. We use ball-bearing hinges rated for the actual weight of the fabricated gate, which is why a heavy wrought iron gate can swing as easily in year ten as on day one.
If you are automating a gate, the safety hardware is not optional. A motorized gate carries enough force to injure, so it needs photo-eyes and a reversing safety edge to meet UL 325 and ASTM F2200. Building that in from the start is the whole point of an automatic gate system done right, not a feature to trim from the quote.
A brushed enamel looks fine in the shop and fails outdoors. Galvanized or aluminum stock, a zinc-rich primer, and a powder-coat finish are what let a gate shrug off Lowcountry humidity and salt. The finish is the last five percent of the job, and it protects the other ninety-five.
Thinking about a new gate for your Mount Pleasant home? Call Richiebranson at (843) 505-5231 or contact us for a free on-site measure and a firm written quote.
One shop for the whole job, from a small garden gate to an automated estate entrance, fabricated and installed by the same hands.
Single-swing, double-swing, and cantilever slide gates sized to your opening and set on structural steel posts in concrete footings.
Slide and swing operators with control boards, keypads, remotes, photo-eyes, and loop detectors, wired to line power or solar for hands-free access.
Custom-forged pickets, scrolls, and finials matched to your fencing, finished with rust-inhibiting primer and powder coat.
Perimeter and pedestrian gates integrated with keypads, card readers, and video intercom entry for homes, communities, and commercial sites.
Walk-through gates in steel, aluminum, or wrought iron, hung on self-closing hinges with sturdy latches and drop rods.
Realignment of sagging gates, hinge and latch replacement, welding of cracked frames, and refinishing of corroded ornamental iron.
Gate pricing depends on the size of the opening, the metal, and whether you want it automated. A simple steel pedestrian gate is the most economical, a custom wrought iron driveway gate sits in the middle, and a full motorized system runs higher once the operator, safety sensors, and wiring are added. The ranges below are typical for the Mount Pleasant area, and we put the firm number in writing after a free on-site measure.
| Steel Pedestrian Gate$300 to $1,200 per gate | Wrought Iron Driveway Gate$1,500 to $6,000 per job | Automated Gate System$4,000 to $12,000 per job |
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Richiebranson provides metal gate installation in Mount Pleasant, SC, from driveway and entry gates and automatic motorized gate systems to wrought iron ornamental fabrication, security and access-control gates, pedestrian and garden gates, and gate repair and restoration. We fabricate in wrought iron, mild carbon steel, galvanized steel, and aluminum, then finish the work with powder coat and a zinc-rich primer so it holds up in coastal air. Most of our gates go in along Johnnie Dodds Boulevard, Coleman Boulevard, and the neighborhoods off Rifle Range Road inside the 29464 and 29466 ZIP codes.
A gate is the first thing a visitor touches and the last thing a burglar wants to climb. That is why we treat every one as a fabricated piece rather than a catalog part. We cut and weld the frame to the real opening, set the posts in concrete footings below the frost line, and hang the leaf on ball-bearing hinges that will not sag after the first wet winter. The difference between a gate that swings true for twenty years and one that drags in a season is almost always in the fabrication, not the finish.
Richiebranson has spent decades at the welding table and on the job site, and that experience shows up in the small decisions. We know when a cantilever slide gate beats a double swing, when a driveway needs a vehicle loop detector, and how to place a photo-eye and reversing safety edge so an automated gate meets UL 325 and ASTM F2200 without a callback. MIG and TIG welding, hot-dip galvanization, and clean grinding are craft skills, and we do not hand them to a subcontractor.
We keep the process plain. We come out and measure the opening, the slope, and the way you actually use the entrance, then hand you a written quote before any steel is cut. From there we fabricate to fit and install clean, protecting your driveway and landscaping while we work. Whether you are in Old Village, I'On, Snee Farm, or a newer build out in Park West or Dunes West, you get the same forged-in-place quality and the same craftsman answering the phone at (843) 505-5231.
We fabricate and install gates throughout Mount Pleasant and the surrounding Charleston County communities, from the Old Village waterfront to the newer neighborhoods east of the Wando.
Not sure if we reach your street? Call (843) 505-5231 and we will let you know.
Ready to talk about a new gate? Call and you reach the person who will actually fabricate it, not a call center. We will measure the opening, walk you through metals, finishes, and automation, and hand you a clear written quote with no pressure. From a single garden gate to an automated estate entrance, we handle the whole job from the welding table to the final adjustment.