Dock and Seawall demo/rebuild

Concrete Helmet

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Alright we finally started the lakefront rehab at our house this week. Both the dock and seawall have been in need of serious upgrading for the last several years as they were probably both between 20-30 years old.
I did not get any pictures of the dock before starting and probably wouldn't have wanted anyone to see the mess it had become anyway, boards were literally falling into the water :lol: Here are the last of the remains.
upload_2017-3-22_19-48-44.png
As you can see from the picture some time long ago when the dock was put in someone decided to cut out a section of the seawall to go through.....Not a huge problem if the water stayed on the lower side but when the water is high it passes through the opening under the dock and exposed the back of the wall to washout. This compounded with the hydrostatic pressure from rain soaked soil and irrigation rundown have lead to major erosion and run out behind the wall and has caused a good portion of the brick veneer to peel off the wall itself.
upload_2017-3-22_19-57-58.png
The wall itself if constructed from concrete block layed over the concrete footer and is 175 feet long from one side of the lakefront to the other.. I'm not sure why but whoever built it didn't bother to fill the voids in the concrete blocks.
upload_2017-3-22_20-6-30.png
The wall itself minus the veneer is actually in almost perfectly upright position(no rotation). However there are some major chunks 3 about the size of a football, where the CB has cracked leaving big holes.
upload_2017-3-22_20-18-43.png
What I'm wondering is if I backfilled the back to stabilize it if it would be possible to use boards mounted on front to fill the concrete block voids as well as any cracks and to give the wall a new look with smooth concrete covering the brick?
Any opinions on this or anyone have any experience with seawalls or pour forming concrete walls please feel free to respond.
 

Theologator

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That's a big job. I don't have any experience with that kind of work, but I'd want to make sure the bricks were really solidly in place before pouring over/around them. Or else maybe rebar/mesh the heck out of it. I'd worry about that veneer peeling off over time.

Might they have used sand as mortar to allow the moisture a way out rather than trying to totally contain it? Wonder if you could/should create a few drainage points.

Beautiful lake - looks spring fed. How is the water level? Are you on the sand ridge in Central Florida? I'm from Lakeland & most of my life the lakes had been dropping due to phosphate mining & development. Recently a number have come back thanks to closing of some drainage cut by the Army Corps of Engineers years ago.

Anyway - I hope it goes well. Looking forward to finished pics.
 

Concrete Helmet

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That's a big job. I don't have any experience with that kind of work, but I'd want to make sure the bricks were really solidly in place before pouring over/around them. Or else maybe rebar/mesh the heck out of it. I'd worry about that veneer peeling off over time.

Might they have used sand as mortar to allow the moisture a way out rather than trying to totally contain it? Wonder if you could/should create a few drainage points.

Beautiful lake - looks spring fed. How is the water level? Are you on the sand ridge in Central Florida? I'm from Lakeland & most of my life the lakes had been dropping due to phosphate mining & development. Recently a number have come back thanks to closing of some drainage cut by the Army Corps of Engineers years ago.

Anyway - I hope it goes well. Looking forward to finished pics.
Thank you. We are on South Lake Conway and they are very clear spring fed lakes in the chain.
Most walls of this type are built with a drain field installed in back of and below the footer and are back filled with drainage grade soil the packed with top soil for sodding. The more modern designs have vents installed through the bulkhead or wall itself to relieve the hydrostatic pressure build up from behind the wall. This wall does not contain any sort of vents but I've been told they can be installed which would provide a longer term solution to that problem.

We have had an estimate from a legitimate licensed seawall builder to rebuild the wall a while back. What he proposed and what is becoming an accepted practice in the industry and supported by environmental agencies is to place interlocking vinyl sheets to form a bulk head in front of the existing wall, forming a concrete cap, excavate the back of the wall, landside, to put in new tiebacks and rebuilding the drain field.......sounds easy enough if you want to spend nearly$60K.......We're not sure we want to be here long enough to justify that expense as well as another $25K to build a new dock.We also have been planning to spend approximately $150K-$200K to remodel some of the interior of the house and cottage that is located on our property since it was built in the early 90's and needs a bit of a refresh.

We enjoy being on the lake but quite frankly we mostly prefer to enjoy the view from our pool area and occasionally my son and I might go down to the lake and fish for 15-20 minutes in the evening once every so often. None of us are really interested in skiing or other lake activities I've owned 8 boats over the years but mostly because I was an avid saltwater fisherman....Now I just call my charter Captain buddy a couple times a year when I want to go. In other words I really would prefer a lower cost alternative of rebuilding/refinishing the structure that is still there. It looks really bad on the lower side of the property and our neighbor recently had a concrete wall built so it really makes our standout as old and rundown.
I am not very good or inclined at tackling construction type issues but the few people who even respond to come out and look at it never seem to have a complete solution. They either recommend building another wall in front of it, or they just want to back fill/ stabilize the soil but don't have any ideas for refinishing the face and repairing the hole and cracks....Most just never return my calls or show when they say they will....So I'm open to any ideas...
 

LagoonGator68

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Pressure wash it, seal it, repair minimally, no dock needed....let the next buyer spend to his heart's content....jmo

Haul out that dock trash though...
 

Concrete Helmet

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Pressure wash it, seal it, repair minimally, no dock needed....let the next buyer spend to his heart's content....jmo

Haul out that dock trash though...
Thanks Goon. The dock trash is out and in a dumpster waiting to be picked up....Finding a simple solution just isn't that easy when you're not mechanically/ construction inclined. I suppose we could just backfill and have a mason redo the missing veneer, which would be OK with me but we do plan on staying here for at least 5-10 more years and once I do something I like to be done with it ...as in like never mess with it again....
 

URGatorBait

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Thanks Goon. The dock trash is out and in a dumpster waiting to be picked up....Finding a simple solution just isn't that easy when you're not mechanically/ construction inclined. I suppose we could just backfill and have a mason redo the missing veneer, which would be OK with me but we do plan on staying here for at least 5-10 more years and once I do something I like to be done with it ...as in like never mess with it again....
5-10 more years?

Damn I might be outta here before you :dance:
 

LagoonGator68

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I'm in soooo far over my head it's not even funny.....I'm about to show my wife the mess I made this afternoon and beg her to break out the $60 grand for a new one....:lol: Wish me luck...here goes nothing


15-20 minutes of fishing every now and then doesn't seem to warrant other than minimum repair and preventive sealing.
 

bradgator2

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Crete, you are a man, pull yourself together. I agree with Goon. You can work a pressure washer. You can paint on sealer. You can move some dirt around. Quit being a pussy or hire an illegal Mexican to do it.
 

Concrete Helmet

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So here's a few pictures of todays work which consisted of a 2 hour Home Depot stop then peeling some of the veneer off the lowest section of the wall. At first I was all like
upload_2017-3-24_16-5-12.png
upload_2017-3-24_16-7-35.png
Some of the problem spots....
upload_2017-3-24_16-9-8.png
upload_2017-3-24_16-10-5.png
Then I found this PVC pipe sticking out where the dock used to be....Who in hell would just leave a 140 ft long piece of PVC in the lake?
upload_2017-3-24_16-13-11.png
And after a bout 2 hours of this BS and having a 5-6 foot long snake come out of a void in the wall I was more in tune with this....
upload_2017-3-24_16-21-7.png
 

URGatorBait

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Crete, you are a man, pull yourself together. I agree with Goon. You can work a pressure washer. You can paint on sealer. You can move some dirt around. Quit being a pussy or hire an illegal Mexican to do it.
For real...aint like we don't have them here :lol:
 

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