Ghost Controls D Series Dual Smart Ready Automatic Gate Kit with Tube Gate Brackets- DD2U for Swing Gates Up to 1000 lbs. or 12 Feet (ft.) in Length (2. DD2U Dual Kit)

Bought 11-2024. Installed 6-2025. Install was easy and straightforward, much more so than another mighty brand I installed for a friend. The control box is nicely designed and can be opened with no tools, yet is weathertight.Tip: I wired a magnetic switch inside the control box so I can operate the gate using a magnet. This is helpful if I’m in the yard without any other means to open the gate. Use a normally open switch and wire it between common and cycle on the terminal block labeled “hardwired”.

I’ve had the mighty mules and other brands and this one is by far the best and super easy install. I chose to weld brackets on due to having one but the bolt up kit would be even easier

Ok... I'll preface my review of this product by disclosing that I have a mechanical engineering degree, I fully understand actuators and linkages, and I’m very much a DIY homeowner. My installation was on a pre-existing architectural steel gate which I estimate weighs around 85lb, supported on two 3/4” solid pin drop down hinges (meaning you can lift the gate vertically to remove the entire welded swing gate). The instructions did clearly state that the vertical post needed to be at least 4” square, and mine was only 3” square steel. It was not plumb, but I believe that it was done that way intentionally so that a sprung support wheel could ride continuously upon the driveway which slopes down as you drive through the opening gate (hinge on the right, in-swing). After much thinking about how best to attach the brackets to the post I settled upon two square U-bolts that were just slightly bigger than my post. Both of them straddled the post and went through the supplied bracket and did the job neatly. I carefully adjusted the striker and disabled the gate latch to permit the new system to open (did not see the need to get the zombie lock yet). I also chose to remove the sprung support wheel as the gate was able to support my 180lb hanging on the end of the gate, the the wheel was actually more of a drag than an assist). The only thing that went wrong for me was that after I had all the brackets attached (the gate bracket was clamped tentatively with a metal c-clamp) I foolishly hit the close gate button and the actuator extended until the gate hit its stops, but then kept trying to go to full extension and bound up. After this the gate would not open, and I had to hammer a clevis pin free to release the actuator. The system then did nothing when commanded by the remote. I charged the battery thinking that it was drained, but it still failed to work. I checked the red fuse on the main board, but it looked intact. Be careful, in my case, the fuse was in fact blown! The designers thoughtfully supplied a spare 10A red fuse in a holder off to the right of the board, and after swapping out the fuse the actuator moved once again. Pay close attention to the details in the manual regarding setting the proper extension by using the button switches on the main board- don't make my mistake and use the remote. The rest of the install was straightforward, although fishing the wires through the bulkhead fittings for the solar installation was a bit of a pain. It would be better if there was an extra bulkhead fitting (one for the actuator, one for the battery box, and a third for the solar panel (or at adapter if you ordered that version). My gate “stutters” a bit while opening, but that is due to a resonance stemming from my gate being long and the actuator having to attach to a somewhat flexible beam. Closing is very smooth, though, so perhaps I can tweak the opening speed to correct this. Overall, a lovely improvement to my new home that makes me happy every time I come home and click that remote button.

I have a non-optimal / non-recommended gate... Wood panel (7.5 ft width per leaf), with a wheel on one leaf to limit sag (I've already replaced the post; long frustrating story there). Ghost Controls, like most manufacturers, wisely advises against both of these things and I'm aware that I'm probably voiding my warranty, but ultimately I still needed a solution, so I chose to take the risk. Turns out it actually works really well!With a full panel gate, the concern is that wind will catch it. I try to avoid using it when windy, but it does work. I'm more concerned with wind pushing on it while closed, so I installed the Zombie Lock to limit movement and keep things secure. Seems to work great!As for the wheel on the gate leaf, that's temporary and I expect to eliminate it very soon, but I still got it to work as it is because of a few things in my favor: 1) there's not actually much weight on the wheel (only correcting a small amount of gate sag), 2) it has a spring so there's some give, and 3) it's a larger diameter wheel so it rolls over bumps and cracks more easily. If I was missing any one of these things, I would not expect it to work. I do have the gate's force setting on maximum until I'm able to ditch the wheel.As for the opener itself, it was very easy and straight-forward to install, everything appears to be high quality, and the keypads and remotes work well. As noted on Ghost Controls' website, HomeLink compatibility is hit or miss, but I got it to work with my 2014 Corvette, although no luck with a Porsche of the same year.My gate is a push-to-open, so I bought the appropriate brackets for that, but found that I didn't need/want that on the side where I was attaching to a fence instead of a post (see picture). I braced it up really well on the back side of the fence, then used a 2x4 and the standard brackets, and was able to achieve better fitment and angles/leverage than I did with the push-to-open brackets. That's a unusual case, though... When you're able to attach to a post, the push-to-open brackets are the perfect solution.

First issue, I ordered the solar system and they sent me the non-solar one (seems to be a thing with them since there is another review mentioning this). I will say that customer service did promptly send me out a solar panel.The part I'm extremely disappointed about is the instructions. They give you a list of all the tools needed including 2 sizes of drill bits. Then later on they tell you to use a totally different size and that size isn't actually right for the bolts to even fit the holes, we had to go up 2 sizes. There are steps missing in the instructions (I could at least figure out what to do) and some of the steps are written horribly. There are also duplicated steps but again I could logically figure out when to do it. Whoever wrote their instructions should be fired immediately.I’ve only had the system installed a little while but so far I’m very pleased with the ease of programming. It works very nicely!