I have built a dock and a couple rafts with 55 gallon plastic drums. I learned some things, the hard way. You want to seal the drums in the middle of your temperature difference. For MN sealing the drums at 30 degrees works good. The first dock sections I sealed the drums at warmer temperatures and in the winter they caved in some, so I drilled a small hole in one cap above the waterline, but somehow they still can fill with water. So seal in cooler temps. You can't have too much floatation. My first dock / raft had drums has 12sf per barrel, my last has near solid drums at 6.55sf per barrel. There is no such thing as too many drums.
Was going to say you past the 16 on center requirements and you installed it in the sun, the composite swells and shrinks dramatically, you want to cut and install in the shade or not when in full sun... Composite gets extra hot 🔥 you may have to put something on the surface, im not sure how much splashing water on it will cool it, but just working in the sun with this stuff i dare you to put your knees on it 😂😂 Great build and idea though not being a know it all just addressing some points for perfecting this as you have for the most part, pool railing steps would be a nice touch making exit easy, maybe a built in shade, using 4 corner post and canvas cables and tension so it doesn't blow away and last long... 👍🏼
The drums and lids are polyethylene and PVC glue does not work on this material. Most likely the gaskets are not rated for the chemicals in the glue or primer. The major component in the PVC glue is tetrahydrofuran and will embrittle the PE. Consider filling the drums with packing peanuts (cheap and light weight) and simply tightening the bung closures tightly without any type of sealant. These closures are not UV stabilized and will deteriorate over time. Direct the bung ends toward the inside to shield sunlight.
Good info to have for the next guy or next time. ha For now, what's done is done. I appreciate you sharing! I like hearing this kind of info from people more knowledgeable than me. Time will tell how long they last under there.
Thankyou Bro, Im making a houseboat from similar materials, so this is quite helpful. May the winds of change rustle slightly through the many leaves of the mulberry bush
building at a docking area and putting it in the gulf. Ive been planning this for awhile, assembling materials now, will definitely be putting up a vid when i build/finish. yhanks Bro
Thank you Chris. This was a couple years ago. Click through the other videos on my channel if you want to see what it looks like when it's all buttoned up. It turned out awesome!
Nope! They are pinned in there pretty good given the amount of lumber/weight on them. No water intake that I am aware of. It floats at the same height today as it did 2 years ago.
I am curious after you get it all built I want to see how many people you can put on the on the deck itself without it SINKING my plan is to put a portable shed like one of those which as you see on their thing out there and have like a little shanty for icefishing I’m curious to see if it will hold the weight so if you can do some type of calculations of how much weight you got in the building self and how much we can do you can throw on it until it starts to submerge the barrels I’d really be appreciative
For rough math I would say I have 3k lbs (likely less) in materials. There are 24 barrels that can displace roughly 11k lbs when fully submerged. If you even half that and say 5,500lbs of capacity, you could easily put 12 200lb men on it without an issue. I think you would run out of space long before you would ever sink this thing.
I have a 10 acres lake and I am going to build something similar... wondering how is your deck after 3 years...? Any update on this would be really appreciated By the way excellent video and very helpful 👍👍👍
@@IndyFarmLife great, I am subscribing now... by the way in what state are you...? Im asking because you mentioned an extreme weather exposure... wondering if using any sealants help to extend its life
i wanted to make one that 13 x 13 or 15 x 15 or 20 x 20 and put plywood and fake grass of blue color i have only seen 3 video but this one it the best one so far
I know I'm late to the party, but how about replacing those fragile caps with 2" pvc ones, and then connect all of the barrels together with pvc plumbing (or rigid or flex) that and bring the system air above the water, with a manual valve attached? This would allow the volume in the system to adjust to temperature fluctuations as you open/close the valve as needed, plus, and it may sound like overkill, you can use this setup to just simply pump air at very low pressure and seal, for optimum pressure under the load of the deck. That's the plan for my floating dock, which is about half the size of this one
Hello Adam, Thank you very much for such a detailed and informative video. I am looking to build a floating dock restaurant and have been looking for videos and documents which could help me understand this process. | have almost zero knowledge when it comes to this! appreciate if you could please answer them for me. 1) How much weight can this particular dock carry? 2) How do you prevent the water from rotting the ply? 3) Can I use 2 inches square steel pipes instead of the wood for the whole frame?
I'm happy to weigh in, but as you go down this path, if you are planning a commercial property, there are probably a lot of building codes/ordinances you are going to need to follow. I'm not sure a dock built like this would suffice. 1. This dock has 24 barrels, so in could support over 10k before sinking. You have to factor in the weight of the dock itself too, but there is plenty of capacity on this dock. 2. It will probably happen eventually, but we used pressure treated lumber. Also, none of the lumber actually touches the water, so that should help. 3. Yes, you could definitely use steel.
@@IndyFarmLife Hello Adam. thank you very much for getting back to me. This is very helpful. I am going to check with the relevant people in regarding to the codes/ordinances and confirm if such dock will suffice for such activity.
Hey Adam, Great video.❤️🔥 It is very inspiring as I am in Oxford, GA, currently attempting to repair/replace two dilapidated docks on my private pond. One is 4'x12', and the other is 12'x12'. I was wondering if you considered filling the drums with a boyent close-celled insulation to keep barrels from warping from temperature variants?
Hi ADam, it looks great. Thought of doing this about 5 years ago as we have a 12 x 12 non-floating dock rotting away. I do have a bunch of those 30 gallon barrels with those white screw on caps. many of these caps are cracking due to UV light. You may want to coat all of them to protect them from the elements instead of just siliconing them tight. Many literally are cracking. Seems awful costly though doing it this way. Can I use 2 x6's for my beams and sides? Also, what do you think of using wood and then an epoxy coating ont he floor to cut costs down and so you can go with almost any color you want? Most Trex colors are dark and put off a lot of heat. Give me your thoughts bro. I have no tractor so if I do this, I will ahve to get really creative.
@@IndyFarmLife I'm an overkill kind of guy on certain things. Do you think your stability from side to side is mroe or less that it is 16 x 16 though over HOW you built it? I was thinking of building a see-through floor platform the other night using 1-inch ribbed polycarbonite that you can buy for roofing and a regular framing method. That would be awesome. We have those 50 to 80 pound grass carps in our pond thta would probably come right up to you. They eat bread and not just algae. What do you think of that idea? You would see the framing but open water underneath also. It would also reduce the weight by about 1,000 pounds or more than using trex. I know they give a 10-year yellowing warranty so I thought if it started yellowing by then, I could just go over it with Rustoleum Restore for about $30 to $50. Just my thoughts. There are companies that make some heavy duty FLAT-RIBBED polycarbonate. Also, you can cover the ply in the water to slow down yellowing during those months. Not sure where you live but I live n the snowbelt in NE, Ohio.
@@IndyFarmLife We are right in the wind tunnel from geneva, ohio to buffalo, new york. Eire, PA gets it the worst about 40 minutes east of us. Two years ago they got 6 feet in one day and it happened on my wife and I's romantic getaway to Presque Isle (14 white sand beaches) of all days. LOL. Anyhow, we usually get 8 to 10 feet of snow a year and some heavy winds because we are 7 miles south of Lake Erie so we get that lake effect. Only 30 inches of snow the last two winters but the winter lasted at least 4 weeks longer than usual. Yeah, going with the polycarb takes abut 1,000 pounds or more off the floor weight alone that you have in trex. Do you have a total weight of your deck doing it your way? That is a monster but very well built. I did a design on graph paper the other day to build a 16 x 16 with polycarb. Did you use 30 or 55 gallon barrels? I forget. I need to figure out the total cost would be. But I should be able to go with 2 x 6's due to the much lighter floor weight. There has to be a way to do it. I am showing about 14 barrels would probably work and it looks like I can probably have 75% viewing with the barrels in place. I was messing with eccentric squares (two outer squares to hold 10 of the barrels in the corners to stabilize, then an inner circle with four barrels dead center in a smaller square. Then run joists from the inner small square to the first outer square. So 3 squares and then joists from 1st square to 2nd square and then brace the 2nd square to the largest outer square. My thought on it. I think it would really work. If it ever began to yellow, you could run epoxy paint over it and it would only add about 10 pounds to the structure. You just wouldn't be able to see through it anymore or just use the yellowing polycarb for a greenhouse and put new on every so often.
@@IndyFarmLife Spiders? the bass will probably come up and eat them. Our bass crack me up. they hug the shore line and face it like the Orcas do the seals. They wait for mr. frog or insect to land and bam gone.
The composite decking is holding up very well! I have to make some gangway repairs in the coming weeks and I'll be sure to shoot an update video. No, I didn't put any ballast in the barrels. If I were making a smaller footprint of a dock I probably would, but ours is so big and heavy that it's not really needed.
Very nice of you to put this build on YT. So you used 23.5" between joist centers & therefore 22" opening for the barrels. As your wood is much drier now, do you think this was an OK spacing or would you change this? That way your decking is not resting on the barrels?
@IndyFarmLife That's where I am having trouble. Figuring put how much the cement would weigh. I have 60 Plastic 55 Gallon Barrels. I don't know how much the amount of cement that that would take would weigh.
I really need one of those floating docks. I'm out in south Florida. Do you have anyone you know in Broward County who can build something that nice and simplistic? My husband passed away and I wouldn't try it on my own. Otherwise, I'll try Angie's list.
My best advice is that if this is for commercial use that you check your local building codes and see what is acceptable. The barrels may not be. If for personal use, then pour me a cold one, I'm coming over! 50 barrels would support north of 20k lbs. That's a lot!
Yes, it is beautiful. I always keep a 5 gallon bucket on my composite dock. That way I can get it wet to cool it off. I pull my ribeye steak off of the grill at 128 degrees and let it coast to around 134 degrees. My lake authority requires that all docks remain buoyant when the floats are punctured. This means filling that cavity with closed cell foam. Does anyone have any idea on how to do that economically?
Yes, that decking can get very hot! I have heard about people filling floats with foam. I can't imagine that would be cheap. I'll be curious to hear if anyone chimes in with a good solution.
I was thinking about using this raft for a sauna raft. How long and wide is this raft? Another issue i have, is that i do not live near the ocean. Can i build the raft and sauna Home in the garage then somehow transport it to the ocean. Can the Whole building rest on the barrels? Or Will the barrels get destroyed. Sorry for studie questions. I am writing in secondary language
@@IndyFarmLife Thanks for answering, maybe the best idea here is to only fill the outer barrels as those are the most likely to strike something. But really if you only using it in your own pond your good to go. Nothing in there to damage the barrels. Have a good time enjoying your new float it looks Great. Any plans planting fish?
Hi Indy. Nice video. Thank you! I have a detail question for you please. Did you find the 2x4 laid on their side, above one end of the barrels, flexed? When you answer, consider I thinking of doing the same thing except laying the 2x4 turning the 2x4s 90 degrees and using two of them to obtain additional sub structure to screw the composite deck. Thanks!
A CASE FOR AN ALUMINUM PRE-BUILT DOCK AND MATING GANGWAY .... for sure. I know your situation is far different from most folk .... but, THE EQUIPMENT, TIME, MANPOWER AND LITTLE DIFFERENCE IN BOX-SHAPED FLOTATION TECHNOLOGY - is still BETTER AND LONGER LASTING MATERIALLY. Fun watching it come together, though, so thanks and good luck with it.
What u do to keep the barrels from collapsing is open the bung at night,and the cooler air should have more density and will pop the barrels back out and possibly keep them from caving.
at what mesurements did you install the hangers and what was the size of the 2x10 spacers between the joists? Thank you for all your help, we are build this one next month . I hope its just as good as yours =)
I have the same colour Trex on my deck. Would never use it again. Gets way too hot. My neighbour has the light grey on his deck, not as hot but still uncomfortable.
Yes, 16x16. It was pretty heavy until the PT lumber dried out. The Trex decking also weighs about 1,000 lbs. My guess in total is that it's about 2,500 lbs or so.
You would probably need a lift or some piece of equipment to pick up the dock and scoot them under. Otherwise, you have to submerge the barrel enough under water to get it in there. I don't think that would be very easy.
@@conniefrye9448 you would have to set it up so that you allow the barrel to fill with water, move it into position, and then pump out the water. you would need to replace the bungs with proper fittings
Most USA made square floats have a 15 yr warranty, CAN be left in year round even in the Midwest and get you much closer to the water and look much better.
Lumber prices have definitely increased, but so have pre-fabbed units and all the components that a contractor would use if you hired one for a custom build. Everything is still apples to apples. If I had to do it all over again I would certainly build it myself.
@@IndyFarmLife neat, how many commercial and or residential docks have they built? As a 22 year dock contractor through the entire eastern seaboard of the US, I’d say your claims are false.
![Jack Harlow - Hello Miss Johnson [Official Music Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Q86_nlRoIGw/mqdefault.jpg)
I have built a dock and a couple rafts with 55 gallon plastic drums. I learned some things, the hard way. You want to seal the drums in the middle of your temperature difference. For MN sealing the drums at 30 degrees works good. The first dock sections I sealed the drums at warmer temperatures and in the winter they caved in some, so I drilled a small hole in one cap above the waterline, but somehow they still can fill with water. So seal in cooler temps.
You can't have too much floatation. My first dock / raft had drums has 12sf per barrel, my last has near solid drums at 6.55sf per barrel. There is no such thing as too many drums.
Was going to say you past the 16 on center requirements and you installed it in the sun, the composite swells and shrinks dramatically, you want to cut and install in the shade or not when in full sun...
Composite gets extra hot 🔥 you may have to put something on the surface, im not sure how much splashing water on it will cool it, but just working in the sun with this stuff i dare you to put your knees on it 😂😂
Great build and idea though not being a know it all just addressing some points for perfecting this as you have for the most part, pool railing steps would be a nice touch making exit easy, maybe a built in shade, using 4 corner post and canvas cables and tension so it doesn't blow away and last long...
👍🏼
After 5 months of working my butt off. I finally replicated your dock (for the most part) thank you!
That's awesome Manny! Nice work. I would love to see a picture of it!
😊😊@@IndyFarmLife
you are articulate with good on-camera presence. thank you for posting this.
Nice farm pond platform. Looks great and I’m betting it’ll be huge fun for everyone.
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That’s sweet!!!!! I actually had a 24’ pontoon gave to me, I cut it to 14’ & used all the factory railings for my dock. Looks pretty decent to me
Tip: Go with light grey composite decking to keep it a little cooler.
Well he saved money on the dark stuff and has a huge floating solar cooker.
Solar cooker? Man he did a great job. Nothing there is money saved. That’s a lot of money he spent
The drums and lids are polyethylene and PVC glue does not work on this material. Most likely the gaskets are not rated for the chemicals in the glue or primer. The major component in the PVC glue is tetrahydrofuran and will embrittle the PE. Consider filling the drums with packing peanuts (cheap and light weight) and simply tightening the bung closures tightly without any type of sealant. These closures are not UV stabilized and will deteriorate over time. Direct the bung ends toward the inside to shield sunlight.
Good info to have for the next guy or next time. ha For now, what's done is done. I appreciate you sharing! I like hearing this kind of info from people more knowledgeable than me. Time will tell how long they last under there.
@IndyFarmLife would these float if encased in cement / concrete?
Thankyou Bro, Im making a houseboat from similar materials, so this is quite helpful. May the winds of change rustle slightly through the many leaves of the mulberry bush
From one Adam to another, you are welcome! Good luck with the build! You doing so on a lake/pond? Would love to see it when finished.
building at a docking area and putting it in the gulf. Ive been planning this for awhile, assembling materials now, will definitely be putting up a vid when i build/finish. yhanks Bro
Nice work. Have a fun summer with the fam!
Great job! You answered many questions that I had.
Very nice. Add a trolling motor lol.
Enjoy
Haha I was thinking maybe a Johnson 150..... :)
Should have the kids out there helping to work on it.
If only they all weren't under the age of 5 ha
Absolutely Magnificent 💯👍👍👍
Thank you! Cheers!
That’s awesome. Everyone needs one of those in their pond.
Hey man great video but you need to put tape on the top of the 2×12s to stop the rain hitting the floor joist
Not a bad idea. What kind of tape were you thinking that wouldn't break down? Zip tape?
Real nice job.
Thank you Chris. This was a couple years ago. Click through the other videos on my channel if you want to see what it looks like when it's all buttoned up. It turned out awesome!
Ty for sharing it. Have you had any problem with the barrels ? Leaks or trying to escape as they’re not secured from bottom
Nope! They are pinned in there pretty good given the amount of lumber/weight on them. No water intake that I am aware of. It floats at the same height today as it did 2 years ago.
@@IndyFarmLife yours is really nice size. Stout. I’m going to try
Thanks! Good luck. It will be time well spent.
Could you build a tiny house on this without it sinking under the weight? Awesome video, btw👍
I am curious after you get it all built I want to see how many people you can put on the on the deck itself without it SINKING my plan is to put a portable shed like one of those which as you see on their thing out there and have like a little shanty for icefishing I’m curious to see if it will hold the weight so if you can do some type of calculations of how much weight you got in the building self and how much we can do you can throw on it until it starts to submerge the barrels I’d really be appreciative
For rough math I would say I have 3k lbs (likely less) in materials. There are 24 barrels that can displace roughly 11k lbs when fully submerged. If you even half that and say 5,500lbs of capacity, you could easily put 12 200lb men on it without an issue. I think you would run out of space long before you would ever sink this thing.
@@IndyFarmLife awesome 😎 thanks for your imput
Looks great, but I’m not sold on the trecks??? They really get hot, you can’t stand on them?
I have a 10 acres lake and I am going to build something similar... wondering how is your deck after 3 years...?
Any update on this would be really appreciated
By the way excellent video and very helpful 👍👍👍
Thank you! It's holding up really well. No major issues. Perhaps I'll film an update video sometime soon.
@@IndyFarmLife great, I am subscribing now... by the way in what state are you...? Im asking because you mentioned an extreme weather exposure... wondering if using any sealants help to extend its life
Great job, did you strap the gallons or you just squeezed them in with out any straps.
Good nice idea 🎉
Can't wait to see this project completed!
i wanted to make one that 13 x 13 or 15 x 15 or 20 x 20 and put plywood and fake grass of blue color i have only seen 3 video but this one it the best one so far
Thanks Joe! That's a good idea about the grass. Check out some of my later videos with it finished. It turned out awesome!
That's why you seal your drums on a cool or cold night probably going to shrink more in the water.
Yea, we were hastily moving forward. No harm done thus far though.
@@IndyFarmLife Some have sugested sealing the drums when cool, if you did that, would they not explode when they got hot?
I know I'm late to the party, but how about replacing those fragile caps with 2" pvc ones, and then connect all of the barrels together with pvc plumbing (or rigid or flex) that and bring the system air above the water, with a manual valve attached? This would allow the volume in the system to adjust to temperature fluctuations as you open/close the valve as needed, plus, and it may sound like overkill, you can use this setup to just simply pump air at very low pressure and seal, for optimum pressure under the load of the deck. That's the plan for my floating dock, which is about half the size of this one
That's quite the plan! Would be pretty cool if you could make it happen. 24 barrels. That's a lot of connections.
Use pvc decking - timbertech/azek harvest slate gray - 40 to 50 degrees cooler then the red Chinese decking he used
Yea, I should have. Just went with what was available without ordering.
The way I did mine. However, i used the lightest grey i could find (Timbertech)...much cooler to the touch in hot summer sun.
Looks good!
Hello Adam, Thank you very much for such a detailed and informative video.
I am looking to build a floating dock restaurant and have been looking for videos and documents which could help me understand this process. | have almost zero knowledge when it comes to this! appreciate if you could please answer them for me.
1) How much weight can this particular dock carry?
2) How do you prevent the water from rotting the ply?
3) Can I use 2 inches square steel pipes instead of the wood for the whole frame?
I'm happy to weigh in, but as you go down this path, if you are planning a commercial property, there are probably a lot of building codes/ordinances you are going to need to follow. I'm not sure a dock built like this would suffice.
1. This dock has 24 barrels, so in could support over 10k before sinking. You have to factor in the weight of the dock itself too, but there is plenty of capacity on this dock.
2. It will probably happen eventually, but we used pressure treated lumber. Also, none of the lumber actually touches the water, so that should help.
3. Yes, you could definitely use steel.
@@IndyFarmLife Hello Adam. thank you very much for getting back to me. This is very helpful.
I am going to check with the relevant people in regarding to the codes/ordinances and confirm if such dock will suffice for such activity.
Hey Adam,
Great video.❤️🔥 It is very inspiring as I am in Oxford, GA, currently attempting to repair/replace two dilapidated docks on my private pond. One is 4'x12', and the other is 12'x12'. I was wondering if you considered filling the drums with a boyent close-celled insulation to keep barrels from warping from temperature variants?
It did cross my mind, but my goal was to keep cost down as well. So far they have seemed to hold up just fine.
What was total cost for this build if you don't mind me asking
Hi ADam, it looks great. Thought of doing this about 5 years ago as we have a 12 x 12 non-floating dock rotting away.
I do have a bunch of those 30 gallon barrels with those white screw on caps. many of these caps are cracking due to UV light. You may want to coat all of them to protect them from the elements instead of just siliconing them tight. Many literally are cracking.
Seems awful costly though doing it this way. Can I use 2 x6's for my beams and sides?
Also, what do you think of using wood and then an epoxy coating ont he floor to cut costs down and so you can go with almost any color you want?
Most Trex colors are dark and put off a lot of heat.
Give me your thoughts bro. I have no tractor so if I do this, I will ahve to get really creative.
@@IndyFarmLife I'm an overkill kind of guy on certain things. Do you think your stability from side to side is mroe or less that it is 16 x 16 though over HOW you built it?
I was thinking of building a see-through floor platform the other night using 1-inch ribbed polycarbonite that you can buy for roofing and a regular framing method. That would be awesome. We have those 50 to 80 pound grass carps in our pond thta would probably come right up to you. They eat bread and not just algae.
What do you think of that idea? You would see the framing but open water underneath also. It would also reduce the weight by about 1,000 pounds or more than using trex. I know they give a 10-year yellowing warranty so I thought if it started yellowing by then, I could just go over it with Rustoleum Restore for about $30 to $50. Just my thoughts. There are companies that make some heavy duty FLAT-RIBBED polycarbonate. Also, you can cover the ply in the water to slow down yellowing during those months. Not sure where you live but I live n the snowbelt in NE, Ohio.
@@IndyFarmLife
We are right in the wind tunnel from geneva, ohio to buffalo, new york. Eire, PA gets it the worst about 40 minutes east of us. Two years ago they got 6 feet in one day and it happened on my wife and I's romantic getaway to Presque Isle (14 white sand beaches) of all days. LOL. Anyhow, we usually get 8 to 10 feet of snow a year and some heavy winds because we are 7 miles south of Lake Erie so we get that lake effect. Only 30 inches of snow the last two winters but the winter lasted at least 4 weeks longer than usual.
Yeah, going with the polycarb takes abut 1,000 pounds or more off the floor weight alone that you have in trex. Do you have a total weight of your deck doing it your way? That is a monster but very well built.
I did a design on graph paper the other day to build a 16 x 16 with polycarb. Did you use 30 or 55 gallon barrels? I forget.
I need to figure out the total cost would be. But I should be able to go with 2 x 6's due to the much lighter floor weight. There has to be a way to do it. I am showing about 14 barrels would probably work and it looks like I can probably have 75% viewing with the barrels in place. I was messing with eccentric squares (two outer squares to hold 10 of the barrels in the corners to stabilize, then an inner circle with four barrels dead center in a smaller square. Then run joists from the inner small square to the first outer square. So 3 squares and then joists from 1st square to 2nd square and then brace the 2nd square to the largest outer square. My thought on it. I think it would really work. If it ever began to yellow, you could run epoxy paint over it and it would only add about 10 pounds to the structure. You just wouldn't be able to see through it anymore or just use the yellowing polycarb for a greenhouse and put new on every so often.
@@IndyFarmLife Spiders? the bass will probably come up and eat them. Our bass crack me up. they hug the shore line and face it like the Orcas do the seals. They wait for mr. frog or insect to land and bam gone.
It's been 2 years...
1. How's the composite decking holding up to full sun?
2. Did you put any ballast in the float barrels...?
The composite decking is holding up very well! I have to make some gangway repairs in the coming weeks and I'll be sure to shoot an update video. No, I didn't put any ballast in the barrels. If I were making a smaller footprint of a dock I probably would, but ours is so big and heavy that it's not really needed.
Very nice of you to put this build on YT. So you used 23.5" between joist centers & therefore 22" opening for the barrels. As your wood is much drier now, do you think this was an OK spacing or would you change this? That way your decking is not resting on the barrels?
@IndyFarmLife would these float if encased in cement / concrete?
You would have to do the math. If the concrete (per barrel) weighs more than 450lbs, then no.
@IndyFarmLife That's where I am having trouble. Figuring put how much the cement would weigh.
I have 60 Plastic 55 Gallon Barrels.
I don't know how much the amount of cement that that would take would weigh.
Why did you not put barrels in all of the available spots? It would give you some added stability.
We used 24, which is almost 11k lbs of buoyancy. I think we had slots for 2 more but I opted to use those 2 for my gangway. I only bought 26 total.
I really need one of those floating docks. I'm out in south Florida. Do you have anyone you know in Broward County who can build something that nice and simplistic? My husband passed away and I wouldn't try it on my own. Otherwise, I'll try Angie's list.
Hi Debbie, sorry I don't. It may be worth finding a handy man and showing him this. Perhaps they can replicate it.
Thanks the response. Appreciate it.
Deb Thompson
Really cool guys!!! Now just need some fish 🐠
Good day Indy farm, i want to use this building process but join two this size to create a floating bar. So i would use 50 barrels, any advice ?
My best advice is that if this is for commercial use that you check your local building codes and see what is acceptable. The barrels may not be. If for personal use, then pour me a cold one, I'm coming over! 50 barrels would support north of 20k lbs. That's a lot!
Very Good!
Yes, it is beautiful. I always keep a 5 gallon bucket on my composite dock. That way I can get it wet to cool it off. I pull my ribeye steak off of the grill at 128 degrees and let it coast to around 134 degrees. My lake authority requires that all docks remain buoyant when the floats are punctured. This means filling that cavity with closed cell foam. Does anyone have any idea on how to do that economically?
Yes, that decking can get very hot! I have heard about people filling floats with foam. I can't imagine that would be cheap. I'll be curious to hear if anyone chimes in with a good solution.
Yeah, get a can of spray foam and smear some on the bungs, the idiots that cume up with that sh:t won't know the difference.
Lowes sells a DIY spray foam kit.
Them cartel boys...lol
Hahaha 😆
Great job!
If you miter the deck it will take a juge amount of the movement out of the platform, big difference
what do you mean miter the deck? Curious.
I was thinking about using this raft for a sauna raft. How long and wide is this raft? Another issue i have, is that i do not live near the ocean. Can i build the raft and sauna Home in the garage then somehow transport it to the ocean. Can the Whole building rest on the barrels? Or Will the barrels get destroyed. Sorry for studie questions. I am writing in secondary language
How much weight does each barrel float?
Roughly 417lbs per barrel at full submersion
Nice video! What is the size of the deck in meters?
@@IndyFarmLife thank you very much bro
Fantastique
Sir Please can you make video of permanent floting house..
Yes. A lot of us would so much like to see it. Thank you for the first one. I do hope you were masked I when you were sanding.
Spray expandable foam inside each barrel they will be light and never sink or fill with water if punctured. Long lasting never have to worry again.
@@IndyFarmLife Thanks for answering, maybe the best idea here is to only fill the outer barrels as those are the most likely to strike something. But really if you only using it in your own pond your good to go. Nothing in there to damage the barrels. Have a good time enjoying your new float it looks Great. Any plans planting fish?
How much do you have in materials
Hi Indy. Nice video. Thank you! I have a detail question for you please. Did you find the 2x4 laid on their side, above one end of the barrels, flexed? When you answer, consider I thinking of doing the same thing except laying the 2x4 turning the 2x4s 90 degrees and using two of them to obtain additional sub structure to screw the composite deck. Thanks!
A CASE FOR AN ALUMINUM PRE-BUILT DOCK AND MATING GANGWAY .... for sure. I know your situation is far different from most folk .... but, THE EQUIPMENT, TIME, MANPOWER AND LITTLE DIFFERENCE IN BOX-SHAPED FLOTATION TECHNOLOGY - is still BETTER AND LONGER LASTING MATERIALLY. Fun watching it come together, though, so thanks and good luck with it.
Looks great!! we are looking to build one for our jetskis and future boat. What was your total investment? If you dont mind me asking.
@@IndyFarmLife Thank you for all your help!! ill send a pic of finished product
Thanks.
Build a light frame and put a light shade sail roof on it so it’s in the shade and not so hot?? 😃👍🏼
Looks very professional & durable, good job!!! How big was your finishing dock?
@@IndyFarmLife
I have 12 barrels. Is it enough for 16 x16?
If not what space they will be good for?
How many for 16 x 16?
10 x 10?
What u do to keep the barrels from collapsing is open the bung at night,and the cooler air should have more density and will pop the barrels back out and possibly keep them from caving.
hot air expands, "Cool" air more dense and therefore contracts..
Open the bings at night ? Really ?
Watch out for them cartel boys 😂
Hahaha. They all have red F150's
Heck you could build a polycarbonate sauna on top of that.
Soo cool bro..
How much weight will each one hold?
Each barrel will displace roughly 450lbs at full submersion.
at what mesurements did you install the hangers and what was the size of the 2x10 spacers between the joists? Thank you for all your help, we are build this one next month . I hope its just as good as yours =)
@@IndyFarmLife Thanx a bunch!
@@geotechie2391 lol
The jetty and the floor of our houseboat are all made of asbestos, ot works really well
how is it lasting so far man really thought bout using foam to use less
It's been awesome! It could use a little more stain and a good powerwash, but otherwise great!
@@IndyFarmLife how many barrels did you use do you use all 20
I think 24 under the dock
Its the dock a bit tipsey or is it real stable?
I have the same colour Trex on my deck. Would never use it again. Gets way too hot. My neighbour has the light grey on his deck, not as hot but still uncomfortable.
Yea, it definitely gets hot. Our Canopy helps a lot though. It's nice in the fall time.
How are the barrels secured?
how much load can it handle
About 10k lbs, but that includes the weight of the wood.
What is the dimensions of your deck? I have to build a 16ft x 16ft floating deck and was wondering for comparison how heavy it will be to yours
Nevermind, caught its a 16 x 16. Thanks!
Yes, 16x16. It was pretty heavy until the PT lumber dried out. The Trex decking also weighs about 1,000 lbs. My guess in total is that it's about 2,500 lbs or so.
YEEEEAAAAAH MAANNN NICE JOB..... LOADS OF FUN DIVING OF THAT DECK INTO THE MEGA POND WHEN ITS FINNISHED KEEP UP THE EXCELENT WORK
@Indy farm life
I’d like to get more information on the pontoon anyway we can DM?
Sorry for all the questions, im tryiong to reverse engnere the dock, how may barrels did ou end up using, seems more than 20
@@IndyFarmLife thank u
@@IndyFarmLife Finished mine 2 weeks ago , Thank you Worked out great its a Tank. I have blueprints if anyone is intrested
Sure! Love to see them
Add a 60hp motor and a canopy
haha I now have a canopy. Holding out for the Johnson 150 though! :)
How much it cost
whats the size?
16' x 16'
Was 20 barrels the exact #.?.
How many barrels would you think for a 25x25.?.
I used 24 barrels for a 16x16 dock. You would probably want to sit down and do the math for a 25x25. Or just use the ratio I did on ours
It is nice out u a big rung on the wood
Sienpre pienso en gue un dia tengo mi casa flotante
Is there a tool to put barrels under the dock when it is in the dock
I meant if the dock was already in the water.
You would probably need a lift or some piece of equipment to pick up the dock and scoot them under. Otherwise, you have to submerge the barrel enough under water to get it in there. I don't think that would be very easy.
@@conniefrye9448 you would have to set it up so that you allow the barrel to fill with water, move it into position, and then pump out the water. you would need to replace the bungs with proper fittings
Hola! Quiero algo así pero hacerlo tipo casa, tengo una duda con el baño cómo sería?
I want to make one for my camp.. but its a 25 minute boat ride and i dont know how i could get it out there
@@IndyFarmLife its all marsh and no hard land, and full of gators
@@IndyFarmLife air boats are to easy to flip. Our inboard mud boats work fine
Most USA made square floats have a 15 yr warranty, CAN be left in year round even in the Midwest and get you much closer to the water and look much better.
@@IndyFarmLife Not to mention they've been known to crack in frozen water. The round barrels seem to lift. Well done on this float!!
How much did it cost to build?
If the boards get hot why not build a shaded spot for your kids
I've got you/us covered ha. Check out this other video of mine.
ruclips.net/video/SCaLHkJtbCk/видео.html
Paint it white,Drop the temperature
how to go about the weight calculation?
Looking to build a floating sauna. Good info
@@IndyFarmLife wood fire for sure 👍 🔥
25 x 55 x 8 = 11000 lb
Yup! Lots of displacement!
Your barrels may collapse in cold weather.
I used Woodglut instructions for this and I already did it :)
Nice! I hope you enjoy yours as much as we do ours!
Nice raft !
Silicone with anti mold additive is bad for fish .
0
wood cost so much now. these diy are just not viable
Lumber prices have definitely increased, but so have pre-fabbed units and all the components that a contractor would use if you hired one for a custom build. Everything is still apples to apples. If I had to do it all over again I would certainly build it myself.
absolute no truth when he said they are more durable... bunch of BS
@@IndyFarmLife neat, how many commercial and or residential docks have they built? As a 22 year dock contractor through the entire eastern seaboard of the US, I’d say your claims are false.
Why do Americans talk too much?
how much load can it handle