Custom Single Swing Gates — Handcrafted for Bay Area Homes & Estates

A single swing gate has one leaf that pivots on a single hinge post. You push it open. You pull it closed. No remote, no keypad, no motor humming in the rain.

Homeowners choose single swing for simplicity (no electrical components to fail), cost (30–40% less than an equivalent automated double swing — typically $6,500–$23,000 installed), maintenance (hinge lubrication and finish touch-ups, and that's it), reliability (a well-built single swing opens every time, power or no power), and aesthetics (clean lines, no operator arms, no control boxes, no visible machinery). It's the right choice when your opening is up to 60 inches, you have enough interior swing arc (gate width plus two feet of clearance), the grade is relatively flat, and you value craftsmanship and minimum ongoing cost. We will quote wider single swings on request, but we'll recommend a double swing for openings over 60 inches, heavy daily vehicle traffic, steep interior slopes, or properties that need access-control automation.

Our strong recommendation is single swing up to 60 inches (5 feet). At 30–36 inches a Sapele leaf weighs 25–40 lb and opens effortlessly; at 48–60 inches it's 60–80 lb and still graceful; at 72 inches it's 80–120 lb and becomes a burden every time you use it. The leaf gets heavy, hinge stress increases, pier requirements grow, and long-term reliability drops.

A double swing splits the load between two leaves and stays light to operate even at 24+ feet of total opening. Single swing also runs 30–40% less than an equivalent double swing because there's no second hinge set, no center latch hardware, no automation, and no electrical trenching. If you need automation, access control, or you're spanning a wide driveway, our double swing and automatic driveway gate services are built for that — single swing is the deliberate choice when manual operation and structural simplicity are the point.

We build with Sapele as our standard and our signature. It's the wood we reach for first, the wood we've refined our joinery around, and the wood we recommend to nearly every Bay Area homeowner. Sapele offers exceptional weather resistance at a practical price point: quartersawn Sapele barely moves seasonally (critical for a leaf that needs to swing true year after year), it's dense enough to feel substantial at roughly 40 lb per cubic foot but light enough to keep hardware costs reasonable, it takes marine-grade sealers and stains evenly without blotching, and its natural rot and insect resistance handles Bay Area fog cycles, inland heat, and coastal moisture. After two decades building gates in Atherton, Woodside, Marin, and Napa, we know exactly how Sapele behaves in every microclimate Northern California throws at it.

Typical Sapele single swing: 1.75"–2.25" thick, 50–80 lb at 60 inches, $6,500–$12,000 installed, annual hardware lubrication and finish touch-ups as needed, 25–35 year lifespan with basic care. FSC-certified responsibly sourced options available.

For homeowners who want a domestic species with traditional American character, White Oak is our recommendation — not Red Oak. The difference matters: White Oak's closed grain and high tannin make it naturally rot-resistant, while Red Oak is essentially interior-grade lumber. White Oak is heavy, strong, and dent-resistant, takes pigment beautifully (we can match existing front doors, trim, or interior millwork), and quartersawn White Oak gives the dramatic ray fleck figure that defines Craftsman and Greene & Greene aesthetics.

For single swing gates, White Oak adds heft and heritage — the leaf feels solid at 70–100 lb at 60 inches, and the grain reads as established, not trendy. Typical White Oak single swing: 2"–2.25" thick, $8,000–$14,000 installed, best for Craftsman, Prairie, Arts & Crafts homes, and traditional estates.

Not every gate should be wood. For coastal corrosion, modern aesthetics, or security requirements, we fabricate single swing gates in aluminum, steel, and wrought iron. Aluminum is light (30–50 lb at 60 inches), corrosion-proof, and modern — effortless to open, gentle on hinges, minimal pier requirements, and marine-grade anodizing or Kynar powder coat handles salt air without maintenance ($7,500–$13,000 installed).

Steel is strong, versatile, and cost-effective — fabricated for security-focused designs or mixed-material hybrids, hot-dip galvanized and powder-coated for longevity ($8,000–$15,000 installed). Wrought iron is ornamental, traditional, and heavy — hand-forged or machine-wrought details for estate character, requires robust piers and diligent recoating near the coast ($9,000–$18,000 installed). All three are fully WUI fire-zone compliant as non-combustible materials.

We get the request often. We understand the sentiment — old fence was Redwood, it feels like California. But we decline, and we want you to understand why. Modern lumberyard Redwood is mostly sapwood (the pale outer growth that rots almost as fast as pine); old-growth heartwood is gone from the market, and you cannot specify all-heartwood reliably. Both Redwood and Cedar are softwoods with a Janka hardness of 450–600 lbf versus Sapele at 1,500 lbf — a softwood gate dents from landscape equipment, scratches from dog claws, and gouges from moving furniture, looking battered within two years.

And Northern California's microclimates are brutal on softwoods: coastal fog cycles swell and check the fibers, inland UV and thermal cycling degrade them faster than hardwoods, and Bay Area mixed zones (Atherton, Woodside, Menlo Park) are the worst combination of fog and sun. We've replaced more 5-year-old Redwood gates than we can count. The maintenance trap: Redwood and Cedar require refinishing every 12–18 months in Northern California — $800–$1,500 annually — so over 15 years a 'cheaper' Redwood gate costs more than a Sapele gate and looks worse doing it. Our alternative: Sapele with a custom stain achieves the warm Redwood tone without the structural compromise.

For specific properties where standard Sapele isn't enough, we offer two premium tropical hardwoods. These are not our default — they are targeted solutions for extreme exposure or generational timelines. Ipe (Brazilian Walnut) is for full coastal sun, WUI fire zones where untreated fire resistance simplifies permitting, or 40+ year minimal-maintenance timelines: nearly twice as dense as Oak, naturally Class A fire-rated, virtually impervious to rot and insects without chemical treatment. Trade-offs: heavier leaf (80–110 lb at 60 inches), harder on tools and hardware, specialized fasteners required. Ipe runs roughly 1.5–2× the cost of Sapele — typical single swing $10,000–$16,000 installed.

Teak is the gold standard for exterior wood and has been for centuries. Plantation Teak's natural oils make it virtually impervious to water, it moves less than almost any wood on Earth, and its oils neutralize the corrosion that salt air and metal fasteners usually create. Pair with 316 stainless and you have a coastal gate that outlives the house. Teak weathers to a dignified silver-gray or maintains a honey-brown with teak oil. Teak runs 2–3× the cost of Sapele — typical single swing $12,000–$18,000 installed. We recommend it for coastal Marin or Malibu properties within sight of salt water, legacy estates, or when design demands the finest material regardless of budget.

The Classic Entry: one substantial leaf, vertical or horizontal panels, Sapele or White Oak at 1.75"–2.25" with blackened steel strap hinges and hand-forged latch — for traditional homes, courtyard entries, garden gates, side-yard access ($6,500–$12,000). The Modern Minimalist: clean lines, rhythmic slats, negative space, aluminum or Sapele with concealed hardware that reads as architecture, not ornament — for contemporary and mid-century modern homes ($7,500–$13,000).

The Craftsman: exposed joinery, cloud-lift details, hand-rubbed finish, quartersawn White Oak or Sapele with custom stain matching — for Craftsman, Prairie, Arts & Crafts homes ($9,000–$14,000). The Security Single Swing: steel or wrought iron with minimal gaps, heavy-duty hardware, robust latch — the single-leaf format is more secure than double swing because there's no center gap to exploit ($9,000–$18,000). The Courtyard & Garden: smaller scale (30–48 inches), decorative detail, Sapele or aluminum with decorative hardware — our most personal projects, gates for a garden path, a pool enclosure, a courtyard entrance ($6,500–$11,000).

Single swing gates must swing level: flat to 2% grade is ideal, 2–5% may require pier height adjustment or a bottom pivot, and over 5% usually calls for a different gate format. The hinge post carries everything — our standard pier is 18"–24" diameter × 30"–36" deep concrete with rebar cage and 4,000 PSI concrete; heavy iron and steel call for 24"–30" diameter × 36"–48" deep; hillside and soft soil get engineered piers with expanded footings; every California installation includes seismic-rated hinge mounts. For WUI (Wildland-Urban Interface) compliance, non-combustible materials (aluminum, steel, iron) satisfy Chapter 7A without treatment, while hardwood gates (Sapele, White Oak, Ipe, Teak) require ignition-resistant treatment or naturally resistant species documentation.

In Zone 0 (0–5 feet from the structure), metal is strongly recommended and increasingly required by insurance carriers in VHFHSZ areas. Single swing has fire-zone advantages: one leaf means fewer gaps and seams for ember penetration, no electrical components means no fire risk from wiring or motors, and the simpler construction makes it easier to specify ember-resistant backing or solid panels.