New Lake - Need a Dock

[twabscs]

Hi All,

We just closed on a new 120-acre homestead today and my first order of business is to build a nice dock for the 5-acre lake. See attached. We've been looking for a nice place with a lake for some time and we finally found one. We've had quite a drought here in NW Missouri and the lake is down about 4 ft. in this picture.

After doing some research, I've decided on a floating dock with a couple of 4x8 sections and a larger 12x12 section at the end. The goal here is to have a place to fish, launch a canoe/kayak, etc.

This old thread from TBN ( TBN Dock Thread ) describes building a floating dock by using treated lumber and the pink sheet insulation material for floatation. This sounds like a great idea but I'm worried about the "treatment" in the lumber leaching into the lake. Also, I'd be interested in any other DIY dock ideas, plans that you guys might have.

Thanks,

 

[BXMMCC]

Do a google search on Dow Floatation - you'll get lots of data.

I used the Dow floatation billets to build a floating dock. Used treated lumber for the walking surface and framing. Built it in 4 by 12 foot modules. The floatation keeps the wood out of the water. I attached the floats to the wood using plastic plumbing strap. Worked pretty good.

 

[DavidJ]

We have one on the river property. We used plastic drums for the flotation and poly rope to secure them to the deck. The lumber never gets in the water so leaching is not an issue. We framed it so that the drums would fit between the joists and then floored it with 2x lumber. You could also use 5/4 decking to do the same thing. We used drums under the walk too.

 

[crb478]

Look up www.Mercomarine.com they have metal frames and plastic wrapped floatation at fairly reasonable prices. I could have built my dock and pier with their products for a few hundred more than I did framing it with pressure treated lumber. The labor involved should be substancially less as should the overall weight. I wish I had found them before I built mine, maybe in 20 or 30 years.

 

[twabscs]

Thanks everyone for the excellent ideas, especially Merco Marine. They have a book of plans for building wooden docks plus all of the hardware that I need.

I'll post some picts in the next few weeks...

 

[twabscs]

Just to provide additional info for those looking for dock info in the future. Here is a link to an excellent (and free) manual on dock building. It is provided by DOW - Dock Manual

Free dock plans: Free Plans

 

[twabscs]

Other good sites for reference:

DockBuilders
Tiger Boat Docks

 

[have_blue]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( We have one on the river property. We used plastic drums for the flotation and poly rope to secure them to the )</font>

I'm saving up blue poly drums for mine now. The pond will be deep, so the dock will be totally floating. I am trying to figure out how to anchor it to prevent it from blowing around.

 

[JDGREEN4ME]

I do not know the conditions your dock will be exposed to so maybe this won't work for you. On one of our floating docks we used old logging chains attached to cinder blocks. Worked fine for us but there was little wave motion and no current to speak of.

 

[Deerlope]

If you do in fact build your own dock you might want to consider useing the plastic decking boards with are made from recycled plastic. The stuff never rots and there are no splinters or slivers to get into bare feet.