Piling Extensions
 

After having the floating dock my boat is at nearly float free in
Dennis, I have been wondering about "piling extensions". Maybe cut
peices of telephone pole about 3' long and splice them to the tops of
pilings with epoxy, and sorta pressure treated inserts into grooves in
both the piling and extension. Any thoughts?

In article .com,
wrote:

After having the floating dock my boat is at nearly float free in
Dennis, I have been wondering about "piling extensions". Maybe cut
peices of telephone pole about 3' long and splice them to the tops of
pilings with epoxy, and sorta pressure treated inserts into grooves in
both the piling and extension. Any thoughts?

The improvement you suggest is nearly as expensive as driving new
pilings a lot of the time, and the result won't be as successful since
wood is still the strongest laminate. Splicing extensions into the
existing pilings and retaining their strength is not a trivial exercise.

Our marina was built to the previous ('26?) 100-year storm. The pilings
were overwhelmed last year though all boats survived in relatively good
shape. All the new pilings put in this year (a continuing exercise) are
a few feet taller then the old ones.

If "your" marina operators are smart, your finger piers' pilings will be
a few feet taller when they're replaced.

--
Jere Lull
Xan-a-Deux ('73 Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD)
Xan's Pages: http://members.dca.net/jerelull/X-Main.html
Our BVI FAQs (290+ pics) http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/