The Middle Gate between the house and garage had been installed in the spring of 2012.
Since that time it required little to no maintenance. By 2025 it was in need of re-staining, but during the preparation I discovered that the bottom rails supporting the bamboo screen had rotted. Additionally, the lower rail on the right support also rotted and needed replacing.
The bamboo screens had also become unsightly. They had been installed in 2018 and I left them in place after the rest of the garden fence screens had been replaced with cedar boards in 2022. Bamboo always looks good the first year or two after installation, but quickly fades and becomes unsightly over time. It was now time to switch it out for cedar boards.
These changes resulted in a major restoration of the gate that took almost five days to complete. First all the small cedar embellishments had to be removed, sanded, and re-stained. This did not include the cedar boards on the doors. They stayed in place.
The bottom support rail, and bottom supports for the screens had to be cut and stained, and installed. For this repair, I used steel brackets to hold the bottom rails.
This should reduce the likelihood of rot.
Then the entire gate frame had to be re-stained green.
After replacing the cedar embellishments, I had to cut and stain new screen boards.
I also added two flowerettes to the top opening to hide the exposed bolts holes.
The door boards were re-stained, but due to their age and weathering, they have retained a dark patina. Otherwise, they are in good shape.
Although the restoration took much longer than anticipated, it looks much better and I should be able to get another 10+ years of use from the gate.
