A cantilever slide gate hangs from rollers on its own posts and never touches the ground, with the panel built about 50% longer than the opening to act as a counterweight. It's the standard automated gate for Manitoba driveways, yards and compounds because there's no ground track to freeze, heave or fill with gravel. The trade-off is space: you need roughly 1.5 times the opening width of clear fence line for the gate to slide into.
Cantilever slide gates are the most common type of automated gate we install on commercial and industrial properties — and for good reason.
How They Work
Unlike a traditional slide gate that rolls along a ground track, a cantilever gate is suspended from a post-mounted roller assembly. The gate "floats" above the ground, sliding open and closed without ever touching the surface.
This is achieved by making the gate structure approximately 50% longer than the opening it covers. The extra length acts as a counterbalance, keeping the gate stable as it moves.
Why Cantilever Gates Dominate in Manitoba
No ground track to maintain. This is the big one. In Manitoba's freeze-thaw climate, ground tracks heave, fill with ice, and collect debris. A cantilever gate eliminates that problem entirely.
Works on uneven terrain. If your ground surface isn't perfectly flat — gravel yards, sloped driveways, rough industrial pads — a cantilever gate clears it all.
Low maintenance. With fewer moving parts in contact with the ground, there's less to wear out, clean, or repair.
Heavy-duty capable. Cantilever gates can be built to span openings of 40+ feet and handle crash-rated security requirements.
When to Choose a Cantilever Gate
- Commercial and industrial properties
- Sites with gravel, uneven, or sloped surfaces
- High-traffic entrances where ground track maintenance would be disruptive
- High-security perimeters requiring crash-rated gates
- Any Manitoba installation where freeze-thaw is a concern (which is all of them)
When a Cantilever Might Not Be Ideal
The main trade-off is space. Because the gate needs that extra counterbalance length, you need roughly 1.5x the opening width in clear space along the fence line. If space is extremely tight, a different gate type may be necessary.