A gate that won't close properly: the usual causes

Where to start looking

Before touching anything, open and close the gate slowly and watch where it drags or binds. A gate that scrapes along the bottom on the latch side usually means the hinges have dropped. One that won't swing past a certain point, or fouls the post itself, more often points to the post having moved rather than the gate.

Check the gap between the gate and the latch post with the gate closed. If the gap has grown wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, or vice versa, that's a sagging diagonal, which is a hinge or frame problem rather than a post problem. If the whole gate sits lower than it did, evenly, suspect the hinge post or its footing.

It helps to know roughly how old the gate is and what it's made of. Wooden gates and metal-framed gates fail in different ways, and a five-year-old gate behaves differently to one that's been there since the fence was put up twenty years ago.

Loose hinges: the most common cause, and the easiest to fix

Hinges take the full weight of the gate every time it swings, and the screws or bolts holding them to the post gradually work loose, especially in softwood posts that flex slightly with the seasons. This is by far the most common reason a gate sags, and it's usually the first thing worth ruling out.

Grip the gate at the latch end and lift gently. If you feel movement or hear a knock at the hinges, that's your answer. Loose hinges are also the reason a gate that used to close with a light push now needs to be lifted and shoved to get the latch to catch.

The fix is often just re-tightening or replacing the screws, sometimes with longer ones or with a stud that passes through the post. It takes a few minutes and no special tools, which makes it worth trying before assuming anything more serious is wrong.

A sunk post or a foundation that's moved

If the hinges themselves are tight but the whole gate leans or has dropped as a unit, the post is the more likely culprit. Posts set in soil rather than concrete can settle over time, particularly after a wet fill and thaw in spring, when the ground around the base loosens and refreezes unevenly.

Push the hinge post firmly side to side at the top. Any movement at the base, or a visible tilt compared with the rest of the fence line, means the post has shifted rather than the gate itself failing. This is a different problem from a hinge fix and usually needs the post reset or the footing rebuilt.

This guide covers gate mechanics specifically; if the post itself is leaning independently of the gate, that's worth treating as its own job. Either way, it falls under fence repair, which we quote by the hour or as a fixed price once we've seen photos or the site.

Warped wood versus a bent metal frame

Timber gates absorb moisture unevenly, and a gate that sits in shade on one side or gets more rain exposure can twist along its length even when the hinges and post are sound. You'll usually see it as a gate that closes fine at the top but stands proud at the bottom, or the other way round, without any looseness at the hinges.

Metal-framed gates don't warp, but they do bend, usually from a knock, a car reversing into it, or heavy snow load resting on top over winter. A bent frame shows up as a gate that's visibly out of square, sometimes with a kink you can see by sighting along the top rail.

Warped timber can sometimes be planed slightly at the sticking edge, though this is a temporary fix if the moisture problem that caused it isn't addressed. A bent metal frame generally needs to be straightened or the panel replaced, which is metal fitting work rather than carpentry.

What you can try yourself before calling for help

A surprising number of sticking gates are fixed with a screwdriver, a spirit level, and twenty minutes. Start with the hinges, since that's the most common cause and the cheapest to rule out.

If tightening the hinges doesn't solve it, or the post itself is the problem, that's usually where it's worth having someone look, since resetting a post or straightening a metal frame needs equipment most people don't keep in the shed.

• Tighten every hinge screw; if the hole is stripped, move to a slightly larger screw or a coach bolt through the post
• Check the latch alignment separately from the hinges — sometimes only the latch plate needs repositioning
• Lift and shift the gate gently to feel for play at the hinges versus at the post base
• Look along the top rail from one end to check whether a metal frame is genuinely bent or just misaligned
• Note whether the sag is even (post problem) or diagonal (hinge or frame problem) before describing it to anyone you call