DIY PVC Pipe Gate with Snap-On Hinge

text by Vicki     Sign up here to join our weekly email newsletter! ​

The beautiful spring weather and the CDC advice to stay home has us working in Steph's yard to make some much needed improvements. 

With the addition of Mac the greyhound a year ago, Steph has needed a more permanent solution to fencing her backyard, which included the need for a backyard gate.

For the gate, we decided to use PVC pipe since there is already a PVC privacy screen on the other side of her house and it would mirror that look. Take a look at how we put it together. (We'll tell you about the fencing in an upcoming post.)

​Take a few minutes to check out the video. This one includes an epilogue.

Materials/ Tools:

• Formufit 1 in. Furniture Grade PVC Sch. 40 Internal Coupling in Purple (10-Pack) (Home Depot)
• 
  
• (4) Formufit 1 in. x 5 ft. White Furniture Grade Schedule 40 PVC Pipe (2-Pack) (Home Depot)
• 
  
• (3) Formufit 1 in. Furniture Grade PVC Slip Sling Tee in White (4-Pack) (Home Depot)
• 
  
• Formufit 1 in. Furniture Grade PVC 90-Degree Elbow in White (4-Pack) (Amazon)
• 
  
• Formufit 1 in. Furniture Grade PVC External Flat End Cap in White (10-Pack) (Home Depot)
• 
  
• Husky 1-1/4 in. Ratcheting PVC Cutter (Home Depot)
• 
  
• Gorilla 9oz Heavy Duty Construction Adhesive (Home Depot)
• 
  
• RYOBI 18-Volt ONE+ Power Caulk and Adhesive Gun (Home Depot)
• 
  
• Everbilt 3 in. Stainless Steel Hook and Eye (Home Depot)
• 
  
• Aluminum Snap-On Hinge for PVC Doors Vents or Gates (1 Inch) (Amazon)
• 
  
• Roto Earth 24” Auger Drill Bit (Amazon)
• 
  
• Bosch Daredevil 1 in. x 17 in. Tube Auger Bit (Home Depot)
• 
  
• Post Hole Digger (Home Depot)
• 
  
• Rapid Set 60 lb. Concrete Mix (Home Depot)
• 
  
• 8 ft. Landscape Timber (Home Depot)
• 
  

These are the supplies were using. That PVC is furniture grade which is UV resistant and does not have any writing or dirt on them! All are parts fit the 1 inch pipe. The hinges are specific for using with PVC. These were essential in the building of this project.

This is the BEFORE of the side yard. That partition is what was in front of Steph's garbage can prior to the placement of the PVC screen. It was just stuck in the ground and blew over with the slightest wind! It wasn't a good solution.

We marked and measure all the PVC and Steph cut it with a Husky ratcheting PVC cutter. This could be done on a miter saw though.

We assembled the gate using decorative purple connectors for a little color and design.

Once we got it all together, we tested the spacing of the bars to see if Mac could get through. She could not so we proceeded. In the video you can see what we did next. Once we got it into place we decided it needed a bit more decoration, so......

...we cut up dozens of slices of PVC of various sizes and created decorative panels on each side. We have been pleased with how the construction adhesive on the PVC screen has held up so we decided to use it on this project as well.

Glueing the circle was a bit easier when one of us operated the caulk gun and the other added the glue. And, yes, this process is as tedious as it looks!

Since the PVC circle are not the same furniture grade PVC as the frame, we sprayed the panels to help protect against UV rays which can cause PVC to yellow and become brittle in the sun.

To attach the panels inside the frames, I marked with little scarps of post-it notes where the circles touched the frame. That way, I could put the construction adhesive exactly where it needed to be.

With the gate finished, it was time to move into the yard to dig a few holes.

The hinge side of the gate got a PVC post along with a wood garden post. The wood post was a last minute addition as we needed more structural support. Everything was secured into place with Rapid Set concrete which sets up in about an hour.

You can see here the wood post and PVC were attached with L brackets.

And there's the reason Steph needed a gate! She's safe behind it but Mac can still look out and see the world.

We have no idea how this will hold up over time, but it's sure fun to look at and already very functional!

Please note: This is not a sponsored post.

FYI: We are not professionals, and we don't claim to be. This is what we found worked for our project. Yours may need a little different approach. Safety first!

FYI: Affiliate links are being used on this page. Purchasing via these links help support MDP!

---

Related Projects

PVC Pipe Privacy Screen

PVC Artwork

Lamp Turned Coat Rack