We needed a floating boat dock and fishing pier at the pond and around the Captain’s junkyard we located twenty old storage drums, or barrels if you like. Each had two holes in the top and the majority actually had both stoppers. Fourteen feet square seemed adequate for our dock. It’s a standard length for 2” x 12” and 2” x 8” pressure-treated lumber as well as 4” x 6” pressure-treated deck boards, making for almost no waste. Each barrel has 400 lbs of bouyancy, so 8,000 lbs spread over 14 feet should be more than enough to support whatever we put on it.

We laid out four 2x12s in a level square and used stainless steel screws to attach them together, putting a 4×4 square block at each corner for added strength. Four barrels fit within the fourteen feet when placed end-to-end and five barrels fit across fourteen feet when placed side-by-side leaving enough room between each so each barrel fit tightly inside its own little cubby without being able to pass all the way through. Inside, 2x8s strengthened the members between the barrels. A sturdy foundation was key to this project so after attaching all the internal pieces together we further strengthened two sides with thirty-six 8×5 stainless steel brackets one-quarter inch thick and attached them with heavy stainless bolts. We even coated the tops of the interior boards with E-2000 antifouling marine paint to keep down any rot that might be caused by water getting between the deck boards and the foundation. This thing will last forever.

We found the missing plugs for the barrels on Amazon and screwed them in tightly, using 3M company’s 5200 white marine adhesive sealant. The structure was lifted on jacks and the barrels were placed in their cubbies from underneath. We were a bit worried that the sides of the barrels might eventually have abrasion rubbing against the wood so we stapled construction-grade webbed strapping around the underside of the barrels to hold them tightly against the wood.

It took thirty-one deck boards to cover the top. Before they were screwed down we stained them top, bottom and sides with two coats of Sherwin-Williams dock stain in a custom olive-green blend over a bluish-gray. It pretty much matches the color of the water in the early morning and late afternoon.

How To Build a Floating Boat Dock

Back in the junkyard we found a steel boarding ramp and some custom steel rings welded to a flat base. Those are bolted to three sides of the dock and a piece of steel drill stem fits through the ring and anchors the dock in the soft, deep mud at the bottom of the pond. A bunch of steel cleats will tie up the boats and some stainless rod holders salvaged from a junked boat will hold a fishing rod while you sit and have a drink.

Tables and chairs will be added and a much needed dock box.