Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Another one of those learn from my mistakes deals!

Here's an eight foot pier section framed in without the deck boards on top yet. Notice the floation in the center (from Menards). Since the floatation is supposed to hold 600 lbs. I thought one of these centered in the middle was sufficient. WRONG!

Oh, the floatation is enough, but to say this thing is tipsy is an understatement. As I walked to the end of the pier to slide the metal posts in the brackets, I almost took a swim! I could have used a boat and driven them in, which would have stabilized the whole thing, but the pond needs to be seinable so I don't want a permanent pier.

So just wanted to pass this on! Two Menards floats for one eight foot pier are needed!

Cecil,
did you try fastening the bottom of the frame to the top of the float? Floats work alot better when the frame sits on them and they dont sit lower than 40% below the water line. Still, two floats would be recommended. I bet that was fun to watch! Also how much does a menards float cost?

No I didn't. Didn't think I needed too.

No one was around to watch and laugh. As usual I was a one man show. The wife doesn't go outside much.

I hope no one heard me. I can really cuss at times.

I just yesterday saw the dang things at Menards, but didn't catch a price. If Cecil doesn't remember, I'll try to buzz over at lunch and take another look.

Wish they'd had the dang things when I built MY dock...but nooooo, I hadda use barrels.

Guys sorry I forgot to answer that. They are $89.00 a piece and measure 48" by 36" by 9" inches. The manufactuer is "Playstar" in Janesville, Wisconsin. What's nice about them is there are flanges molded in for bolt attachment to the pier and even recesses in the center line were you could run bolts vertically though the them without the risk of a leak.

Matt,

They are a seasonal item too. Don't try to find them in the off season.

Are they hollow or foam-filled, Cecil?

Sounds to me like it would be worth the cost of a Webcam to set up 24 surveillance around Cecil's pond.

LOL!!!

Cecil, You need to do some research on your computer before, not after, you buy the parts and start screwing stuff together. A Google search, "how to build a floating dock" is a good start.

Unless you just enjoy spending your money and baring yourself on the forum with your mistakes, a little research on a common project such as this will save you in more ways than one.

Luckily, all your stuff is still usable, you didn't end up in the drink, and your wife wasn't out there to see it happen!

Theo,

No they are hollow.

Now Dwight that's a little harsh isn't it?

I did do the research, found plans, and even tried to find some of the blue billet foam from DOW, but no one for at least 200 miles sells the stuff. And I wasn't crazy about all the lumber that was used with DOW's plans either. The two by 10's or 12's they suggest under the floats would have made this little eight foot pier weigh a ton.

Just thought I could get away with using just one float vs. two to save money, which wasn't the case. There is only two feet of no floatation on each end of the pier, which didn't seem to be enough to create all the instability. I figured if anyone else was thinking of trying it I would save them the trouble.
Tomorrow I will fasten the two floats and slide posts into brackets at the end to stablize it and all will be fine.

No money lost and I don't worry to much about my image. We're all family here and I know I'm not stupid as I'm two points shy of qualifying for Mensa. Bill Cody says I run into problems because I'm always covering new territory or trying something a little different.

Cecil, what keeps the floats from sinking if they get a hole in them? Are there divided cells inside the float? Do they have some sort of vent valve to allow air to exchange when they heat and cool?

Ryan,

The floats are really tough and the plastic is pretty thick so I don't see how they would get a hole in them by just sitting in the water or pulling the pier in. Although one of the ones I purchased was damaged, and I took it back and got another one. But you'd really have to abuse them to damage them. It looked like it was damaged by a forklift.

Yes, I think cells may be divided but I'd have to take a closer look. Not sure about the heat and cool thing, but I would think being in the water, the water would keep temps from flucuating too much. I may pull the pier in the winter. Like I said they are really sturdy so I can't see heating and cooling doing much to them.

No different than my black and blue barrels. You rarely see much in the way of expansion/contraction, other than in the dog days (August) or once the pond is frozen. You see some changes then, but they are pretty gradual. You're right...the water keeps them pretty stable.

HDPE is pretty tough stuff, and UV stable.

Cecil, I figured you probably did some research and decided to wing -it some.

Mostly, I hadn't given you any grief for awhile and felt the time was right!