Originally posted by jims place:
We need some pics.
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We're still lookin' for alot of rain; the water level is 30" short of normal pool. The bottoms of all the support ledgers (the lowest horizontal framing members) is 6" above normal pool. The approach dock is 4' wide x 30' long.
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Because of the gentle slope and the conveniently adjacent concrete launch (no, it's not a 12' wide sidewalk), I don't really expect to ward off trespassers. In the final analysis, the gate becomes more of a message and safety/legal requirement.
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I considered a pre-fab galv chain link fence section that is 5' wide. I thought I might sink a galv pole in concrete at grade, just off the side of the dock and hang the gate on it. The swinging side of the gate would rest on a fitting at the opposite edge of the dock, suitable for a padlock. I hate the look...just hate it, but it's convenient, lightweight, cheap, and quick. I already have a PT wooden alternative plan in mind that would function similarly. I just have to mind-engineer it a bit to keep it light in weight. Something like a 1-by frame with a green plastic lattice insert. I have a bunch of the 1/8" SS cable left from my pond decoy marker project. Combined with a SS turnbuckle, it would provide the diagonal support and adjustment required to keep the gate square. Heck, the lattice might do it alone.
I think the bigger decision is where to locate it on the dock. In pic #2, the orange flags locate the shoreline at normal pool (btw Ewest, I am planning on another 9 tons of SMB spawning rock to be dumped and spread right into that little triangle...good idea or bad?). Between the concrete launch on one side of the dock and the potential of a rock bottom at the other side, I gotta think the smart money puts the gate at least 1/2 way up the dock towards the deck. Now, the safety/legal question. God forbid something catastrophic would occur...but should it happen, is the location of the gate gonna have an effect? I mean, if the gate is located much closer to the deck, that leaves maybe 20' of the dock open to easy access from the shore. A portion of that 20' WILL have water around it when the pond is full. Granted, the depth will be very shallow, but we've all heard the
can drown in a teaspoon of water story.
In my mind, I have to accept the constants and negotiate the variables. One constant is that no matter where I put a gate, if someone wants to go around it they will. Knowing only this makes me want to locate the gate directly above the shoreline at normal pool, thus mitigating some of the potentially catastrophic variables. Finally, and this for the legal minds, what location will provide the best defense (I hate asking that question...but gotta).
