Every automatic gate opener we install comes with the same core scope: the gate checked for an opener, the motor, the controls, the safety sensors, and testing. Here is what is covered, and what we will flag before we start if your gate or lot needs something different.
An opener will not fix a gate that drags or a post that leans — it will break the opener. We check the gate's swing, the posts, and the hinges before any motor goes on, and we say plainly if the gate has to be rebuilt first.
A swing opener needs clear space for the gate to open; a slide opener needs a clear run beside the drive. We measure the lot and talk through which fits, because the wrong type is the most common opener mistake.
Remotes for the cars, a keypad at the post, and a way in for visitors. We set up the controls, test every remote, and walk you through the keypad before we leave.
Safety sensors watch the gate's path, and the opener reverses if it meets an obstruction. A moving gate without working sensors is a hazard, and we do not install one that way.
We check the Denver rules for your address — 4 feet in front of the primary facade, 6 feet behind it, zoning permit over 4 feet — and help with HOA submittals. Colorado has no statewide fence licence, and electrical work on an opener needs the relevant trade licence where the law requires it.
We run the gate through its full cycle — open, close, stop, reverse — test every remote and the keypad, and walk you through the controls before we leave.
Automatic gate opener installation Denver CO is the process of fitting a motor to a driveway gate that is already built to take one, wiring the controls, and setting up the safety sensors. The gate has to swing or slide freely by hand first — an opener is not a fix for a dragging gate. The motor is then mounted, the remotes and keypad are programmed, the sensors are aligned, and the full cycle is tested: open, close, stop, and reverse on obstruction.
Most Denver homeowners want an opener for one reason: not getting out of the car in the rain, the snow, or the dark to open a driveway gate. The choice that matters is swing against slide. A swing opener is simpler and cheaper, but it needs the full arc of the gate clear. A slide opener needs a straight run beside the drive for the gate to slide into, and it handles a sloped drive better, because a swing gate fights gravity on a slope.
Every job follows the same four steps, whether it is a single swing gate in Congress Park or a double slide gate in University Hills. You will know what happens each day.
Call
Call (720) 697-2456, Monday through Sunday, 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM. We will talk through the gate opener installation, the yard, and the lot, and set a time to measure.
Check & plan
We check the gate's swing and posts, measure the drive and the clearances, and confirm the swing-or-slide choice, the power picture, and the permit rules for your address.
Install
The motor is mounted, the controls are wired, the sensors are aligned, and the gate is run through its full cycle. We keep the site tidy as we go.
Walk-through
Before we leave, we walk the finished gate opener with you, check every gate and latch, and clear the site.
Post hole digger and auger
Used where a gate post has to be reset deeper before an opener goes on. An opener will not fix a leaning post — the post has to be right first.
String line and level
The string line keeps the gate posts in line with the fence, and the level keeps them plumb. An opener on a post out of plumb strains the motor on every cycle.
Multimeter and wiring tools
Used to check the power supply and wire the motor, the keypad, and the sensors. Electrical work on an opener needs the relevant trade licence where the law requires it.
Level and square for gates
The gate is checked square before the opener goes on. A gate built out of square drags, and a dragging gate burns out a motor.
Sensor alignment tools
Safety sensors have to be aligned to watch the gate's path. A misaligned sensor is a sensor that does not see the obstruction.
Remote programmer and keypad
Used to program the remotes and the keypad, and to set the open and close limits so the gate stops where it should.
Gate first, opener second
The gate has to swing or slide freely by hand before any motor goes on. An opener fitted to a dragging gate will strain the motor and fail early — so the gate is fixed or rebuilt first.
Swing or slide, chosen for the lot
A swing opener needs the gate's full arc clear; a slide opener needs a straight run beside the drive. We measure the lot and choose the type that fits, rather than forcing one type onto every drive.
Safety sensors on every install
Safety sensors watch the gate's path, and the opener reverses if it meets an obstruction. A moving gate without working sensors is a hazard, and we do not install one that way.
Power planned before the motor
An opener needs power at the gate, and the power picture — where it comes from, how it is protected, and what happens in an outage — is planned before the motor is ordered, not after.
01
What we do:We check the gate's swing and posts, talk through a swing or slide opener with remotes and a keypad, and install it. The gate is tested through its full cycle before we leave.
→ A driveway that opens from the car, and closes behind you, in any weather.
02
What we do:We measure the slope and talk through a slide opener, which handles a sloped drive better than a swing gate. The slide run beside the drive is measured and cleared before the opener is ordered.
→ A gate that opens and closes on a slope without fighting gravity on every cycle.
03
What we do:We talk through remotes for the household, a keypad for visitors, and a way in for deliveries. The opener is set up with the access picture the property actually needs, not a generic one.
→ A gate that lets the right people in and keeps the rest out, without a guard at the post.
04
What we do:We check the gate first — a failed opener is often a gate that has started to drag — then the motor, the sensors, and the controls. The failed part is replaced, and the gate is tested through its full cycle.
→ A gate that works again, with the cause of the failure fixed, not just the symptom.
Denver's opener jobs are driven by weather and by slope. Nobody wants to get out of the car in a January snowstorm to open a driveway gate, and plenty of Denver drives slope enough that a swing gate fights gravity on every cycle. The safety picture matters more than the convenience: a moving gate is heavy, it has to reverse on obstruction, and its sensors have to work. Colorado has no statewide fence licence, and electrical work on an opener needs the relevant trade licence where the law requires it — we say so plainly rather than implying the fence crew does it all.
Cherry Creek North is the residential pocket behind the shopping district: early-1900s Craftsman and bungalow streets with small lots of 5,000 to 10,000 square feet and heavy scrape-and-rebuild. On these streets, an automatic gate opener is the usual call.
Master-planned community on the former Stapleton airport, built mostly 2002 to 2019. The Master Community Association and sub-associations review fence designs before the city permit — two approvals, in that order. An automatic gate opener is the usual call on these streets.
Brick ranches from the 1950s to early 1970s on generous lots, with the High Line Canal running through the middle. Large corner lots are common, and I-25 bounds the east edge. These streets usually call for an automatic gate opener.
Brick homes from 1900 to 1940 around a 165-acre park. Park-facing fronts stay low and open; the solid 6-foot fence belongs at the rear. Local installers flag the heavy clay here and set posts deeper than the Denver norm. On these streets, an automatic gate opener is the usual call.
Settled on high ground west of the South Platte and annexed by Denver in 1896 (some histories say 1890). The Potter Highlands Historic District covers about 276 acres and 571 contributing buildings — check per address before planning a fence. An automatic gate opener is the usual call on these streets.
Freeze-thaw cycles that heave shallow posts
Denver's freeze-thaw ground lifts shallow posts within a winter or two. Frost depth is commonly cited at about 36 inches in the metro, and posts set shallower than that are the usual cause of a leaning fence. For a gate opener installation, that means posts set deep in concrete — shallow footings are the first thing we check.
Sloped and stepped lots
Most central Denver lots are flat, but hillside and split-level lots need stepped or racked panels and deeper footings on the grade change. On a gate opener installation job on a hillside lot, stepped or racked panels and deeper footings handle the grade change.
Chinook wind that loads solid fences
Chinook gusts on the Front Range can top 80 mph on the I-25 corridor. A solid 6-foot privacy run catches the full wind load, which is why posts, footings, and rail fastening matter more than the pickets. A gate opener installation has to be planned for Chinook gusts — posts, footings, and fastening carry the load.
Denver permit and sight-triangle rules
Denver caps fences at 4 feet in front of the primary street-facing facade and 6 feet behind it, and any fence over 4 feet needs a zoning permit. Corner lots have sight-triangle limits near intersections, and fences sit at least 6 inches back from the public sidewalk. For a gate opener installation, we check the height and the sight triangle for your address before we quote.
Most opener calls start with a problem, not a wish list. Here are the four we hear most often, and how we handle each one.
Problem
An opener fitted to a dragging gate strains the motor on every cycle, and the motor fails early. The cause is the gate, not the motor.
Our Fix
We check the gate's swing and posts first, fix the gate, and then replace the motor. An opener on a gate that swings freely by hand lasts far longer than one fitted to a dragging gate.
Problem
A misaligned or dirty sensor does not watch the gate's path, and the gate will not reverse when it should. A moving gate without working sensors is a hazard.
Our Fix
We align and clean the sensors, test the reverse on obstruction, and show you how to check them. A sensor test takes a minute and should be done every month.
Problem
A swing gate on a slope fights gravity on every cycle, and the opener strains to hold it. The fix is usually the gate type, not a bigger motor.
Our Fix
We measure the slope and the slide run, and talk through a slide opener that handles the slope better. Forcing a swing opener onto a steep drive is how motors fail.
Problem
A remote that stops working is usually a battery, a range problem, or a control board issue — and each one has a different fix.
Our Fix
We check the batteries, the range, and the control board, and replace the failed part. The gate is tested through its full cycle before we leave.
An opener is convenience with a safety picture attached. Here is what you actually get when we install yours — and what we will not skip.
Open from the car, in any weather
A swing or slide opener opens the driveway gate from the car, with remotes and a keypad. No getting out in the rain, the snow, or the dark.
Gate first, opener second
The gate has to swing or slide freely by hand before any motor goes on. An opener fitted to a dragging gate will strain the motor and fail early — so the gate is fixed or rebuilt first.
Safety sensors on every install
Safety sensors watch the gate's path, and the opener reverses if it meets an obstruction. A moving gate without working sensors is a hazard, and we do not install one that way.
What an automatic gate costs in the Denver market
Third-party market guides published in October and November 2026 put a walk gate at $328 to $633 and a double drive gate at $1,330 to $3,100 as add-ons to a fence job. Opener pricing itself is not in the published Denver market guides. Sources: NumeralQ, Oct 2026. Those are market ranges, not Payless Fence Company prices. Call (720) 697-2456 with your fence length and material and we will talk through a quote for your yard.
Google ★★★★★4.9 out of 5
Rated 4.9 out of 5 from 27 Google reviews. Read the reviews on our Google Business Profile, or call (720) 697-2456 to talk about your fence.
Automatic openers in Denver have to survive freeze-thaw ground, snow at the gate line, and sloped drives — and the safety picture has to be right. We install swing and slide openers on gates that are built to take them, with safety sensors on every install, and we tell you plainly when the gate has to be rebuilt before the opener goes on.
Payless Fence Company is rated 4.9 out of 5 from 27 Google reviews. Individual review text stays on Google; the aggregate is what we publish here. Call (720) 697-2456 to talk about your gate opener.
★★★★★
4.9 out of 5
Based on 27 Google reviews for Payless Fence Company. We do not publish customer quotes on this page; read the reviews on Google, then call us to talk about your fence.
Call (720) 697-2456Real answers to the questions we hear most often on gate opener installation jobs, from local homeowners and property managers.
Manual walk and driveway gates, braced and hung to swing clean. Pairs with an automatic opener on the same lot.
View Gate InstallationCedar and pressure-treated pine fences built for Denver clay, frost, and hail. Often built on the same lot as a gate opener.
View Wood Fence InstallationOrnamental iron and steel fencing for entries, courtyards, and period homes. A common companion to a gate opener.
View Wrought Iron Fence InstallationPerimeter, security, and HOA fencing for businesses and properties. Pairs with an automatic opener on the same lot.
View Commercial FencingPost, rail, picket, and gate repairs, including storm and freeze-thaw damage. Often built on the same lot as a gate opener.
View Fence RepairFull-height 6-foot privacy runs for backyards, alleys, and patios. A common companion to a gate opener.
View Privacy Fence InstallationCall (720) 697-2456 to talk about an automatic gate opener. We answer Monday through Sunday, 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Have the gate type, the drive slope, and your neighborhood ready, and we can talk through the next steps on the call.
Phone
(720) 697-2456Address
Payless Fence Company LLC, Denver, CO 80201, US
Hours
Mon–Sun 7:00 AM–8:00 PM
