The following is a tutorial on installation of our most popular model, the YG-101 Swing Gate opener.  Expect to see installation tutorials for other models as they become available.  Note this tutorial is not a substitute for the manual, read the manual completely before beginning installation.

This tutorial is divided into the following sections.

1.  Necessary Tools and Equipment

2.  Installation Method

3.  Site Preparation

4.  Mechanical Installation

5.  Wiring the Motors and Control Box

6.  Setup and Tuning

7.  Maintenance and Troubleshooting

1.  Necessary Tools and Equipment

Installing a gate opener is not an easy job, and is best performed by a professional, however if you are a serious do-it-yourselfer, this could be a job for you.  You will need some tools before we get started.  You will need standard and phillips screw drivers, an electric drill, wire cutters and a wire stripper, a socket set, and access to a welder.  If the bracket parts shipped do not fit your gate because of the dimensions of your gate, you may also need equipment to cut and grind metal parts.  In some rare cases you may have to fabricate brackets for your application.  

2.  Installation Method

There are basically two ways to install the YG-101, "push to open", and "pull to open".  The name says it all, either the motors extend pushing the gate open, or they retract pulling the gate open.  We need to decide first which type of installation this is.  The difference between "push to open" and "pull to open" is that the gate is mounted on a different side of the mounting post.  for "pull to open", the gate is mounted inside the posts, while for "push to open", the motor is mounted inside the posts, and the gate is mounted on the post face 90 degrees from it.  The illustrations below should help clear things up.

Figure 1

Figure 2

In the illustrations above, the blue lines represent the gate, and the grey objects are the gate motors.  Taking a look at the enlarged section may help too.  If at anytime this seems unclear you can email  [email protected] for help or see our FAQ page here on the website. 

3.  Site Preparation

           Before we begin, this tutorial will assume that the gate is mounted to the mounting posts and swinging freely, there should be little resistance in the swing of the gate.  Since both motors must be powered, a set of wires from the control box to both motors will be required.  Therefore it is necessary to dig a shallow trench across the driveway.  If the driveway is paved this will require a masonry saw and chisel.  The YG-101 is powered by 110V/60Hz AC power, therefore if you have not already done so, wire a waterproof outlet near the gate following proper safety standards for your area.  If you are not experienced with this type of wiring or if your area requires it, hire a professional electrician to perform this as well as wire in the YG-101 in step 6.  Once the gate is mounted adequately, electrical power is available, and a trench for the control motors is dug, we are ready to proceed to step 4

4.  Mechanical Installation

            Now that the gate is installed, and power is available, lets install the motors.  First weld part b1 to part b2 as shown:

Figure 3

Then mount the assembly b1-b2 on your post according the figure 1 or figure 2 depending on whether yours is a push to open or pull to open configuration.  Verify that the bracket is mounted level and square with the post.  Make sure that both gate motors are unlocked by turning the keys supplied.  Mount each of the gate opener motors to the bracket b1-b2 as shown below. 

Figure 4  

To install the rear part of the gate opener, insert shoulder screw and spacer, then tighten with the nut.

Next open the gate to its maximum position 90 degrees, and weld bracket b3 onto your gate.  Alternatively you can drill a hole in bracket b3 and bolt it to your gate.  This area really depends on what gate you are using and how you want to attach it.  Some gate may even include the bracket hole to mount to and bracket b3 will not be necessary.

Figure 5

To install the front part, fit the hole in the front part with the hole in the supporting plate b3, and push the axle pin into the holes (using your hands or a hammer), and finally fit the retainer clip.  See Fig.6.

Figure 6

With the gate motors in their UNLOCKED condition, you should be able to freely move the gate from the open to the closed position.  If the motion is not as desired, you may have to rework the position of one or both brackets to obtain the desired motion.  Do not proceed, until the gate can move from the open to the closed position with the gate motors attached.

5.  Wiring the Motors

OK, now we have the gate installed, power available, and the gate opener motors mounted to the gate.  We need to next run wires from the gate opener motors to the location that you plan to mount the control box.  We suggest you mount the control box inside your property out of direct sunlight and in a safe location.  The control box should also be in an area where you can easily access it for the tuning procedure in section 7.

Obtain a quantity of normal lamp cord gauge 18-3 available at your local Lowe's or Home Depot.  WARNING, use only 18-3 or better wire to cable your gate motors.  Run the wire from the motors to the control box.  It is recommended that you run the wire in a PVC or other electrical conduit to protect it from cuts or gouges.  You can also run the electrical cable from the control box to the 110V outlet in this manner.  See the photo below for an example.

Mount the control box by removing the cover with a phillips screw driver and screwing through the mounting holes into a mounting surface like a post or fence.  Make sure it is a sturdy and appropriate surface.  You can leave the cover off for now while we wire the motors.

Wiring

Screw off the two stainless tapping screws, then remove the cover and wiring as shown in Fig. 6.  WARNING: Follow the wiring diagram precisely.  Failure to do so could cause damage to the gate opener controller.  

You will wire from motor 1, U,V,W contacts to block 18, contacts U,V,W and from motor 2 U,V,W to block 16 U,V,W.  See table and circuit diagram below.  It does not matter which motor you decide to be motor 1 and which you designate motor 2.  It is a good idea to use one color wire for U, one for V and one for W.  For instance if you wire contains black, white, and green then you might use U=Black, V=White, and W=Green.  Just remember to wire them correctly because mis-wiring could cause DAMAGE to the gate controller.

IMPORTANT SAFTEY INFORMATION

Installing the YG101 Gate Opener requires wiring of standard AC 110V electrical lines.  This should only be performed by a trained technician.  In some areas, it may be required that a licensed electrician perform these steps.  Mis-wiring could cause personal injury or DEATH.  To prevent the risk of electrocution, be sure to turn off all power to the YG101 until installation is complete.

 Once the gate openers are wired to the controller box, we are ready to wire the control box to your electrical outlet.  Using the 18-3 gauge electrical wire, wire a standard grounded plug (available at Lowe's or Home Depot) to your Gatekeeper control box using standard electricians wiring practices.  Wire the opposite end of this cable to the E, N, L contacts of the YG-101 control box.  Connect L to the power or black line, N to the neutral or white line, and E to the ground line.  At this point, we should be ready to fire it up, plug in the control box, and turn the locks to the lock position on both gate motors.  If the lock will not turn, then do not force it, this could cause the key to break.  If the lock will not turn, then it is because the motor is under load, perhaps the attachment between the motor and the gate is misaligned and putting it under load, remove the load then lock the gate motor.

6.  Setup and Tuning

Now that everything is setup, lets allow the gate to learn its remote controls:

Press the red learn button on the control board, the LED will turn on.  It will turn off when you press any button on the transmitter.  Press the same button and the LED will flash with a 2Hz frequency.  If the learning process fails for any reason, the LED will turn off after flashing for 1 second.  If you need to erase the codes, press and hold the red button on the control board until the LED stops flashing.  After once second, it will flash again, this indicates that the remote controls have been erased.

The gate should be opening and closing with the push of a button now, push once to open, once to close and pressing the button while it is moving will cause it to stop.  

Now it is very important that you tune the safety reverse function on your gate opener.  

You must use a screw driver to rotate the Force Adj. knob.  Rotating clockwise will increase the resistance needed to trip the safety reverse function.  Rotating counter-clockwise will decrease the resistance.  If the gate does not move when activated, the resistance setting may be too little.  If the gate does not stop when an obstruction is placed in its path, then the setting may be too high.  Start with just above the minimum value, and tune it to use the minimum setting for which the gate will function.  

WARNING:  Do not attempt to tune the gate by placing your hand, arm or other body part in the path of the gate, serious injury could result.  Also placing a heavy immovable object in the path to test with could cause damage to the gate opener motors.  Instead, place a light object in the path, preferably something like a chair or trash can which will be pushed out of the way if the setting is still too high without causing damage to the gate motors.  Note, this auto reverse function should be regularly inspected and adjusted if necessary.  Now that the tuning is complete you can replace the cover.  

Congratulations, your new gate opener is installed!

7.  Maintenance and Troubleshooting

Note: If the gate running direction is not correct, please change wires .V1 and

 Check the screw lubricant and add 1# grease regularly.

  Keep opener clean at all times.

If you are still having trouble, email [email protected] for help.

Thanks

The Gatekeeper Team.