Extended power outages are hard on gate motor batteries - here's how to avoid getting caught out.
Published 22 July 2026
Most residential gate motors are designed to keep working during a power outage, using a backup battery that's topped up whenever mains power is available. Under normal conditions - occasional short outages - this works well. Extended or frequent load shedding is a different story, and it's worth understanding how it affects your gate before you're caught out.
A backup battery sized for occasional short outages may simply not have enough capacity for repeated, extended periods without mains power. Every outage draws the battery down, and if the gaps between outages aren't long enough for a full recharge, the battery gradually runs down further each cycle - even though it may have seemed fine a few weeks earlier.
A gate that used to open and close normally during outages but has started slowing down, stalling partway, or failing to respond only during load shedding (while working fine on mains power) is a strong sign the backup battery is nearing the end of its useful life.
Most gate motor backup batteries have a realistic lifespan of two to four years, depending on usage and charging conditions. Frequent deep discharges from extended load shedding can shorten this considerably. If your battery is more than a few years old and your area sees regular outages, proactive replacement is often cheaper than dealing with a gate that fails at an inconvenient moment.
Know where your gate's manual release mechanism is and how to use it safely, in case the battery does fail during an outage. If you're noticing early signs of battery strain, don't wait for a complete failure - a battery replacement is a straightforward, inexpensive job compared to being stuck unable to open or close your gate.
For properties in areas with particularly frequent or extended outages, upgrading to a higher-capacity battery, or adding a small solar trickle-charger to keep the battery topped up during the day, can meaningfully improve reliability without needing to replace the entire motor system.