Design and Build Your Own Boat Dock

Whether your dock is a total wreck or it’s just not your style, there are several resources to help you design and build your own boat dock, from parts, to complete building plans, CAD Pro can help you design your own boat dock.

It’s important to that you decide what type of dock you will need before you design and build your own boat dock. The image below shows the various dock types you can build; such as an L-Dock, T-Dock, U-Dock or Y-Dock.

Design and Build Your Own Boat Dock

Different Boat Dock Types and Shapes

How to Design and Build Your Own Boat Dock

Boat docks range from very simple structures that may cost a couple thousand bucks to extremely complex systems that cost several thousand. So, if you decide to design and build your own boat dock, you need to consider the type of shoreline and lake bottom you’re faced with, and your budget.

CAD Pro helps you plan and complete any type of boat dock designs and plans with intuitive drafting and design tools and symbols that anyone can use with professional results.

Share your boat dock design plans with clients or contractors using Dropbox®, Google Drive™, OneDrive®, and SharePoint®. Export files to Microsoft Word®, Excel®, and PowerPoint® with a single click.

Design and Build Your Own Boat Dock with Interactive Features
Quickly view and print professionally designed boat dock plans while adding these interactive design features listed below.

CAD Pro is the only boat dock design software that allows you to:
 Record your ideas and incorporate voice instructions into your plans.
 Add pop-up text memos to your boat dock plans to support areas in detail.
 Add pop-up photos and transform boat dock plans into designs you can visualize.

Key Decisions and Features for Boat Dock Design Plans
You don’t need to be an experienced professional to look like one. CAD Pro includes textures for flooring, countertops, and more. You can also add pop-up photos for a real-world view of your boat dock design ideas.

When you design and build your own boat dock these basic dock types will help you decide what shape of boat dock you will need to build.

Important – Be sure to consider what type of dock is best for your situation before you start to design and build your own boat dock.

Floating docks are anchored to your shoreline and the lake bottom and supported by pontoons or flotation units. It may be the most versatile type of dock because it’s easy to buy, install and configure, and it will rise and fall with the lake level. If your lake will freeze in winter, a floating dock is typically easy to remove and store, which avoids potential ice damage. The drawback to a floating dock is its relative lack of stability. Many people can be intimidated by walking on floating docks, because they move with every wave and footstep. They’re not tippy, but the feeling of stability that a post or crib dock offers is just not there.

Post docks use stanchions, or leg-support assemblies, placed about every 10 feet along the dock to support it. The “feet” of the leg supports sit directly on the lake bottom, making the dock semi-permanent. Post docks are very popular, and they offer stability and a sense of permanence that floating docks just don’t have. They can be surprisingly easy to install and remove, especially units made from aluminum or a combination of aluminum and plastic or wood decking material. Many can be removed and installed (after the initial setup, of course) in a matter of hours, making them ideal for freezing climates where ice damage to the dock’s legs is a possibility. Rolling docks that have wheels can make this even easier if you design and build your own boat dock.

Crib docks are typically designed and installed by professionals, and they are the most permanent and expensive type of docks. The “crib” part refers to the support structures that hold the dock to the lake bottom. Each “crib” looks like a crate. The cribs are typically built from large treated timbers, then placed every 10 feet or so on the lake bottom and filled with large rocks. The cribs provide a permanent anchor for the dock’s upper structure and walkways. For a complex dock with multiple piers, levels and even overhead structures (like a boathouse or a deck), a crib dock usually offers the best strength and integrity. Crib docks are generally not available in kit form; they are custom-built structures designed and built on site (if state and local regulations allow), and they’re definitely not designed to be moved or removed from the water.

DIY-Friendly Dock Types
Since crib docks are best left to local experts, consider a floating or post dock if you want to design and build your own boat dock. To see a small sampling of the literally dozens of suppliers for dock parts, kits, plans, accessories and complete assemblies, check out DIY Kit Dock Suppliers.

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Boat Dock Design Plans