I just came across these great instructions for a 16 x 16 floating dock. Exactly what I had been looking for - perhaps others on this forum can use them.

http://www.canadianfishing.com/dock/index.htm dock plans

Thanks for the info, I checked out the floats from the float company and probably will end up purchasing some.

If anyone is interested in building this dock...after screening 4 different machine shops, Hootens in Emory, Texas has manufactured the corner brackets as specified for only $45 each. This is less than half any of the others and these guys are very good at what they do.

Thanks for the link!

I've been wanting to look into a floating dock for awhile now. The one in that link seems to be a sturdy and affordable alternative to trying to put in a permanent pier.

I'll have to bookmark that page for when the 'ol pocketbook sees better days.

Impressively simple engineering. If/When I get to it, This is my doc. Except as it "never" hard freezes ponds here in Texas, I think that I can go with Simpson Strongties.

I have an Amishman that would probably make them for $10.00.

I agree, those look pretty flimsy for $45.

Not sure that we are talking about the same thing here...Hootens is making the corner brackets as specked out on the website for $45 each. I priced the sheet steel and the steel alone is nearly that. These brackets are 32" x 20" 3/16th thick steel bent in the middle to a 90% angle and then 8 holes drilled in them and a 2" x 20" piece of pipe welded to the corner. These things are extremely stout. If you shop I think you will find this to be a great deal.

Captain,
Just some facts for calculations and consideration

• A pc of hot rolled CQ .187" x 20" x 32" weighs 34#
• the actual mill cost of a prime product would be about .35 per pound
• ...so, figure about .60/lb cost at your fab shop; this calcs to about $20 material cost without any profit to the fab shop.
• I don't have a quick handle on the pipe cost, but it's gotta be at least $5 cost at your fab shop

So, say $25 material cost at your fab shop; then add their profit on material, plus the labor and cost of welding. I say $45 each is a real fair price for a good product. Now, granted, this might all be constructed from mill seconds, but even then I don't see the avg material cost being much less than $15. The price of steel has shot up thru the roof in the last 3 years, and it's just started taking another huge hike.
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If you're a guy like me that relies on others to fabricate the metal and do the welding, your option sounds like a green light. I would make sure that the fab shop is going to supply a corrosion free product that can be easily cleaned, prep'd, and painted. If they tell you it might have some rust on it, that would tell me 2 things: not prime, and tuff to prepare for paint or epoxy.
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(edit); oh yeah, and another thing....
Steel has a grain, much like lumber. The grain is continuous and parallel to the rolling direction. In other words, if the steel coil (the form it comes off the rolling mill) is 300 feet long, rolled up in a coil....the grain is 300 feet long, running continuously. (for clarity, a 20' long 2 x 4 has a grain that is 20' long). The grain direction is pretty important during any forming. Whenever possible, metallurgists will develop parts with bends by placing the bend across the grain . Like wood, placing a bend parallel to the grain will increase the likelihood of a weakened form and sometimes actually snap it open. This is often mitigated by increasing the forming radius. Also, and now I'm getting anal-technical from a spring steel background, grinding off the sharp corner burr (that is created by the shear) at the area of the form will help it to pull through without fracturing.

Captain,

Are you building the floating dock? I assume that you are since you had the brackets fabricated. I'd love to see pictures of it as you put it together, and even more importantly, how it floats when you're done building it.

I did a google search and also an ebay search for "dock floats" and came up with http://www.kadcousa.com They have similar brackets for $19 that mount to the side of the dock, not the corners. They also have 24"x48"x12" foam filled, hard plastic floats for $78 each. The best price I saw on ebay was $115 each with free shipping for the same floats.

Thanks,
Eddie

I stand corrected. Those are bigger than I thought.

You can also find everything you need for a floating dock at dock builders

Eddie, yes - I am building the dock exactly as in the link attached above. I was going to cut it down to 12' x 16' but decided for the small difference in price I'll keep it 16' x 16'. This kind of thing always ends up looking smaller after you get it built anyway! While the corner brackets need to be made rather than purchased pre-fabricated, what I liked about this plan is because of the stout corners with the 2 foot depth of the bracket - you don't need to pound the posts into the bottom of the lake. The weight of the pipe is enough. This will allow me to re-locate the dock easily if the water gets too low or high.

I picked the brackets up on Saturday and they are perfect. Brettski, they are black and smooth with no rust on them anywhere. Nice neat bolt holes and good welds. I also bought 4 - 8' pipes for them - they were $12 a piece.

My calculations have the total price coming in right at $1,000. That is not counting the fixed 6' x 16' dock that I built from the steepest part of the dam into the water or the plank walkway that will access the floating dock. I am buying Extruded Polystyrene foam form Dallas Foam in Keller. Same dimensions as the Dow brand and same density as in the plans - but much cheaper. It will cost $275 for the foam for this dock. IT will last 10-15 years and then may begin to water log. If on a public waterway I don't believe you could use these anymore. I may have them coated.

I am taking pictures of everything and will post them. Next weekend we are hosting 40 boyscouts and about 20 dads for our annual camping trip. The dads don't realize they are going to help me finish this thing and lift the behemoth into the water!

On another note - we had 3 inches of rain this week and the lake level went up 4 1/2 inches. (wish it would get more runoff - but it is what it is) It is the deepest it has been since built.

Well done; good things come to good folk.

Captain1,

I can feel the excitement! I look forward to the pictures!

I probably should have read the specs. I usually guesstimate fabbed steel pieces at around $1 per pound plus a $1 per hole or bend. $45 sounds pretty reasonable, especially compared to the price in Chapleau. I've been to Chapleau and I'm amazed that they even have electricity up there so their price is probably justified as well. I think I'd consider spending a couple of more bucks and get the whole thing hot dipped...it's pretty hard to get paint in all those tight areas.

Ryan,
Give us the specs, names, manufacturers, of whatever you can offer about the epoxy products that you guys are using on the bridges now.

Captain,

We've been emailing each other for so long that I forgot your screen name and that this was you!!!!!!

Good for you on the Scouts. I'm an Eagle Scout and had an awesome time in the Boy Scouts.

Eddie

Most of the States we work in are requiring an OZEU system. For the most part we've been using Sherwin Williams products because they're so easily accessible. The system consists of an Organic Zinc Epoxy primer (SW Zinc Clad 200), a High solids epoxy intermediate coat (SW HD Epoxy), and a urethane top coat (SW High Solids Polyurethane). It is designed to go over an SSPC near-white blast cleaned surface, basically no rust, mill scale, and other contaminates and the surface has to be profiled fairly rough at 2 mils. Basically, the idea is the zinc provides a sacrificial layer of metal, the epoxy protects the zinc, then the urethane protects the epoxy from UV deterioration. A more user friendly less expensive system used in some states uses the zinc primer followed by an acrylic aka waterborne finish coat (SW DTM Acrylic). Both of these systems have fairly tight temperature and relative humidity requirements. They require spray or brush application.

Wasser makes a moisure cure system that is very user friendly, with little temperature and humidity restrictions and surface prep requirements not much more than removing the rust. It costs more and can be a little tougher to find. MC-Miozinc primer, MC-Miomastic intermediate, and MC-Ferrox top coat.

The systems meet the specs for most offshore rigs, and bridges. All the manufacturers have the product Data sheets on their websites.

I think getting small parts hot dipped and sprayed with a coat of Krylon would be less expensive and a lot easier.

If you don't mind the rust color, using a weathering steel such as A-588 would also be a cost effective option.

I too reviewed the Canadian floating dock plans & they were the best/economical ones I could find. my concern is the use of the styrofoam billets. Would anyone have an idea how the dock plan could incorporate the use of the black floats that are now commonly used? Is there a way to cover or paint over the styrofoam to prevent it from breaking up over time?

Dave,

I trust styrofoam more than air flotation, which can eventually leak. I don't think breaking up is an issue, but direct sunlight could cause brittleness. If I remember right, spar varnish is compatible with styrofoam. I know for sure that 2 part epoxy is compatible, and I know for sure that 2 part polyester resin in NOT compatible. Always test on a small area before brushing or spraying a large area.

Don't muskrats love to chew on styrofoam?

I have the dock completed and will post pictures soon. Everything worked out great! The only issue is that I need a couple 12 foot pipes instead of the 8 foot that I bought - the water is deeper than I thought at that point of the lake. We could not be more pleased with the outcome.

I painted the corner brackets with Sherwin Williams Macropoxy 646. It is a faster drying epoxy. I had only 3 days drying time - but they recommend longer than that for best results.

Also - anyone in the Dallas area - check Cragslist and search for styrofoam or dock floatation. I noticed several enclosed float systems, including a guy in Tyler Texas that had brand new enclosed flotation for less than half price. There is also a lot of styrofoam.

If anyone is planning on building one of these docks I have a couple suggestions to make it even easier. An important suggestion is to undersize the styrofoam if you are ordering it. We had to cut about 3 inches off the end of 2 pieces and it makes a real mess!

Captain,

Were you able to pull this off for the $1000 you thought you could do it for? I can't wait to see the pics.

A bit over that. I ended up building a 6 x 12 fixed platform and ramp that added quite a bit. The 16 x 16 dock itself ran approximately $1,150.