Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations I've got a little dock problem

Well, I guess iv'e kind of backed myself into a corner. I'm building a little shade for my dock, and i wanted to cantilever the shade over my pond about 5 feet. I think I'll use some bamboo fencing for the shade once i get the beams up.Which brings me to the problem. Those beams are heavy ,especially with the 2/4 joists attached. I just couldn't picture myself crawling out onto those beams to attach the 2/4's. I have a comealong, but there is not enough room,if i attach it to the top of the post,to winch it up high enough. I can get my son-in-law to help me, but I'm concerned that even with that help, we could'nt lift it up. I wonder if there is some kind of simple pulley system i could use in conjuction with my comealong to do this?

With multi-purpose screws, screw a 2X4 on the front or back side of the furthest out upright on each side and secure your come-along(s) to the top of those. When you done lifting, un-screw the 2X4's and you are done! Ya think?
Think of it as an verticle, or "upright yard-arm."

I think i follow you. You mean attach one 2x4 vertically to each 4x4 post? In effect temporalily raising the height of the post to give the comealong's room to work... Yea, i think that might work. I do have 2 comelongs. thanks DC

I think I'd be inclined to go for a water proof top for fishing in the rain. Nice dock!

Yepp. You got it! If the over-all weight of the porch is too much for only one 2X4 yardarm on each side, you could use a total of 4 verticle yard-arms, one on the front, one on the back-side of each upright, clamping the 2 top ends together with a a 6" long eye-bolt ending up with something to hang the comealong on. With 2 comealongs, and LOTS of patience and safety, you should be fine. It would be ideal if you had someone there to help run one side, lifting together without any twisting of your structure being lifted. And you are welcome!

Set up a good heavy duty step ladder, like a Little Giant, on the dock a few feet higher than the finished elevation. Lay a 4x4 under the joists and attach 1 end of the comealong to it and the other to the ladder. A chain hoist might be a little better suited for this.

Another idea is to attach some long lever arms to the joists, extending upwards and toward the bank. Tie on a rope and pull down, levering the whole structure up.

Whatever you do be safe. 1 trip to the emergency room will cost you more than a crane rental.

I just had another idea. You may contact a local grain bin dealer and ask them to borrow a grain bin jack. They're basically a tripod with a winch. They come in different heights so make sure you get one tall enough.

Howard,

I think you are doing it backwards.

Unbolt the end that is already fastened. Determine where level is and mark it on your post. Then attach that end first. It should look exactly oposite of the picture you posted.

The overhang will be way in the air and the other end will be on the dock. then it will be a simple matter of lifting that end up and fastening it to the post.

If it was me, I'd remove your existing beams and install the overhang one first. Then all you have to do it make sure it's level with each other. Cut the beam so it meets halfway on the post and install it. You can use brackets to make it stronger if that's a concern, but having your beams all level will give you a much cleaner look. Then it should be pretty simple to put the already installed beams back up.

How far are those 2x4's apart? I've found that at 8 feet, they will sag over time. You might want to reconsider them and put use 2x6's instead. I'd also space them two feet apart at the minimum if you plan to put bamboo over them. The bamboo will sag really fast and two feet still might be too far apart.

Eddie

Not to get off topic, howard, but how are our smallies doing?

lots of good ideas here.I plan on putting the 2x4's about 20 in. apart. The distance between the 2 beams is about 7 feet, so hopefully the 2x4's won't sag.The beams are split on either side of the post, so that gives me 4 different spots to attach the 2x4's to the beams.That should discourage sagging, i think. I was leary of having the beams meet level at the center of the post. It just doesn't look like there is enough 4x4 to safely attach both ends of the beams. Maybe I'll take another look at that. I do think it would look better level. I'll update when i finally finish up.

Sunil..those smallies are doing great, i think. I don't see them too often, except when one crashes the shallows occassionally. I think i have so much bait in my pond right now, they aren't having to work very hard

Decided I'd dare to look stupid (yet again).

I can't tell if it would work this way Howard, and I wouldn't want to back up if I were you, but if it were me I'd be putting it up in pieces, starting one beam at a time, instead of trying to lift four beams plus some purlins.

One fact I'm sure of, after buying a new king-size mattress last week - don't try to get it up there with a front end loader.

Theo,
Hey , i dare to look stupid all the time..not so bad once you get used to it I would have prefered to put them up one beam at a time, but then you have to visualize my old fat body crawling out onto the beams over my pond to put up the 2x4 joist!! Not a pretty picture

I wonder if i could stand on something in my boat and remain upright?

Eddie,
I'm not sure how you would attach the 2x4's on the overhang with that end up in the air? Maybe,just a good ladder. When i get home i will see how that might work.

Howard,

I understand your concern about not having enough material on a 4x4 to but joint the two beams. I'm guessing 2x8's????

You can do a couple of things here. Attach 2x4's to the tops of both sides of your 4x4 posts to make it three inches wider. Either lag them on or carriage bolt them together. This will give you allot more surface area to attach the 2x6 beams. To make this look attractive, cut the bottoms at 45 degrees so it looks like the 4x4 post gets wider at the top. You can do this with two on each side if you like, or even get creative and make some sort of pattern.

The other option is to buy some metal T brackets, or large plating. Attache it to the post first, then to your 2x6 beams.

Eddie

Howard:

My old, fat body sympathizes with you. (Let's not subject PB members to a visual comparison!)

After watching my Dad (60+ and 50 lbs overweight at the time) jump 5 foot gaps from the top of one 6"x6" post to the next 20 feet up in the air, I have respect for what old, fat bodies can accomplish when determined and/or foolish. (That was the first time a ever REALLY yelled at him and made it stick.)

Once the beams (2 each side) were up, I'd put planking across them temporarily to work on, moving it out a 2"x4" at a time. Form nailing it in place, if needed, for stability or sanity.

How deep is the water past the end of the dock?

Good luck and be careful.

I like your original idea. Crawling around over-head is NOT on my party list either. .

Howard, I wouldn't want to subject my old fat body to standing on a boat and doing anything.

the more i think about, and with all the rain were getting, i have lots of time to think about it(about 5 inches the last 2 days ).I think i want to first try Eddie's idea of attaching the beams to the outside posts, instead of the inside post. I can get a tremendous weight cancellation of the beams with the fulcrum point close to the middle of the beam,as opposed to lifting the entire beam and joists. .I fudged my overhang to about 40% of the beam length. I think i can attach the overhang joists with the beams hanging vertically from the posts,then have the inside part of the beams available as a lever to pull down and attach to the middle posts. I'll give it a try and report back, if it ever quits raining! I have never seen it rain this much in this part of texas.Feels like we ought to be in the pacific northwest