Looking for dock ideas? Attaching floating dock to fixed pilings.

[C-Ya]

So here is my situation.

I use a 30’ x 4’ floating dock to separate my floating boatlift from my fixed dock. I call it a transition dock. This keeps the controller or head unit to boatlift from beating into pilings during tide changes. It also makes it very easy to get into boat.

I attach the dock to 3 pilings set 10’ apart. I use ropes/lines with floating roller balls that let the dock go up and down the pilings. I have 5 total lines. 1 line around each piling. Then a forward and reverse spring line that controls the lateral movement, going from center of dock to outer pilings.

It works well, but the ropes wear out or loosen cleats.

I want to attach the floating dock to the pilings using a sliding system, such as Tide Slides or Slidemoors. However, I can’t help but wonder if there is a similar product that is used in some other trade, other than marine trade. That is cheaper?

The 3 sliding brackets are $1200 apiece. This just seems ridiculous for a metal Chanel that has a sliding bracket. As a boat owner I am used to taking it in the ass…… been to West Marine lately? But I cannot help but wonder if the inmates have any ideas on a inexpensive way to affix dock to pilings without ropes or spending $3600 to do so?

I am currently getting ready to build brand new 30’ x 4’ floating dock out of composite to match my brand new fixed dock. The new floating dock has already ballooned to 7k, without the fixed brackets. I just want to stop the bleeding!

Any ideas that aren’t $1200 per piling?

Can one of you fabricating geniuses make something for me?

 

[Mandelon]

TideSlide Mooring Systems +1 989 695 2646 www.TideSlide.com

Pics would help...

 

[Icky]

Pictures?

 

[C-Ya]

Give me a few minutes and I will shoot pictures and video.

 

[Mandelon]

Please include high school girls this time.

 

[Mandelon]

This is from the Tide Slide website. So is your dock going up and down the pilings or just the boat?

 

[C-Ya]

First…… I am replacing the free dock you see in video. I know it looks ghetto.

 

[C-Ya]

This is the look I am looking for.

 

[Racer56]

So here is my situation.

I use a 30’ x 4’ floating dock to separate my floating boatlift from my fixed dock. I call it a transition dock. This keeps the controller or head unit to boatlift from beating into pilings during tide changes. It also makes it very easy to get into boat.

I attach the dock to 3 pilings set 10’ apart. I use ropes/lines with floating roller balls that let the dock go up and down the pilings. I have 5 total lines. 1 line around each piling. Then a forward and reverse spring line that controls the lateral movement, going from center of dock to outer pilings.

It works well, but the ropes wear out or loosen cleats.

I want to attach the floating dock to the pilings using a sliding system, such as Tide Slides or Slidemoors. However, I can’t help but wonder if there is a similar product that is used in some other trade, other than marine trade. That is cheaper?

The 3 sliding brackets are $1200 apiece. This just seems ridiculous for a metal Chanel that has a sliding bracket. As a boat owner I am used to taking it in the ass…… been to West Marine lately? But I cannot help but wonder if the inmates have any ideas on a inexpensive way to affix dock to pilings without ropes or spending $3600 to do so?

I am currently getting ready to build brand new 30’ x 4’ floating dock out of composite to match my brand new fixed dock. The new floating dock has already ballooned to 7k, without the fixed brackets. I just want to stop the bleeding!

Any ideas that aren’t $1200 per piling?

Can one of you fabricating geniuses make something for me?

In the Tideslide store the brackets are a lot cheaper than 1,200.00 each.

 

[Mandelon]

Could you source the materials and pay a shop to weld up your own version of the Tide Slide design? It looks like plate and tube with some marine board stock to act as sliders.

 

[Wheeler]

check with muscle docks .com they might have what you need

 

[Icky]

Can you do something like this? I sure someone else might have a better source. I just Googled "dock roller" to find what I was looking for. https://lunmarboatlifts.com/collections/other-items/products/lunmar-dock-roller

 

[Icky]

check with muscle docks .com they might have what you need

This company?

Square Pile Guide (Rubber) - Boat Dock Hardware

Internal square pile guide with rubber rollers. Available size options range from 14" and 18" heights - Made in USA - American Muscle Docks - Wellsburg, WV

americanmuscledocks.com

 

[C-Ya]

Can you do something like this? I sure someone else might have a better source. I just Googled "dock roller" to find what I was looking for. https://lunmarboatlifts.com/collections/other-items/products/lunmar-dock-roller

View attachment 1119251 View attachment 1119252

I am really liking this option.

I am going to search out this possibility. I really like it’s simplicity. Four rollers.

 

[C-Ya]

This company?

Square Pile Guide (Rubber) - Boat Dock Hardware

Internal square pile guide with rubber rollers. Available size options range from 14" and 18" heights - Made in USA - American Muscle Docks - Wellsburg, WV

americanmuscledocks.com

Thank you!!

 

[badluck]

This is our setup

 

[badluck]

Another pic

 

[badluck]

It’s been flawless for about 30 yrs. Lake fluctuates 1-2’ per day.

 

[Maw]

It’s been flawless for about 30 yrs. Lake fluctuates 1-2’ per day.

This is basically what we have here in the Harbour. Two such arrangements on 14" (or so) diameter concrete pilings, this for a 50' dock on a reasonably traveled channel. 48' sportfisher and a 22' Duffy tied to the dock. Seven years after they were transferred to the new dock, no idea on how old they actually are. Simple galvanized flat stock construction. Probably 6-8' of tidal travel on a "good" day.

 

[C-Ya]

Thank you Badluck, Maw, Icky, and others!

Icky sent me down the Pile Guide wormhole. Once I had that search term, I found all sorts of stuff.

Can you guys critique the following Idea?

First…… I found this product.

As you can see, it comes in several sizes. Which gives me 2 options.

Sizing it directly to my 10” or 12” wood pilings (new with mud wraps) or getting a size larger and adding my floating balls around the U of the brackets? I have approx 54 of the balls. They are 1” diameter holes. You can see balls in my video.

I think by adding the balls, it will help keep the Mud Wraps from becoming perforated, since the brackets “U portion“ will travel more smoothly up and down piling. I am in a heavy traffic location. Even though I am in a No Wake Zone, it is ridiculous how many people ignore the signs. Every now and then, a large flybridge yacht will go by on plane…….. that’s when I snap lines. Which is why I am going to fix it for good.

I am not 100% sold on bracket above. The U is only attached by bolts that are smaller than I would prefer. But at least there is 2 bolts per side, instead of just 1.

Thanks for the input! Please Critique

 

[C-Ya]

In the Tideslide store the brackets are a lot cheaper than 1,200.00 each.

The Slidemoors are $1200 apiece. Great product. Probably the best for my circumstance, but trying for alternatives..

I like Tide Slides. I can get all 3 for $1200. I have not ruled them out.

 

[Willie B]

… this is really taxing my memory as I have not lived aboard since 1986… But when they built our new docks in the LA Harbor at colonial yacht Anchorage… I want to say the pilings were telephone poles… But I’m not 100% sure about that… The telephone poles were wrapped in a like 1/8 of an inch some sort of plastic material… I guess the pilings would’ve been telephone poles because the plastic material was attached with galvanized roofing nails… I can’t remember whether the docs were notched and the pilings were in board of the edge of the dock… Or whether the pilings were on the outside of the dock… Which ever way there was flat steel bolted to the dock… And it went around the pilings… The object being when the tide went up the entire dock would lift it up and go down sometimes up to possibly four or 5 feet… I could be wrong about the tide… Whatever the situation of the construction …actually it was very effective never a failure… Another thing to consider from my situation is my Marina was not exposed to back-and-forth boat traffic I was pretty much in a water Cul-de-sac…

 

[badluck]

Make sure it’s quiet. My neighbors dock drives me nuts as it squeaks all dang day and night. Ours is dead silent. I’ve seen others that use a steel pile and have a plastic sleeve with fairly tight tolerance.