Do aluminum docks need to be removed in winter?

Even though aluminum boats are built to withstand freezing temperatures and are durable and sturdy all-year-round, you need to remove and store them. You only need to remove your aluminum dock in the winter ice freezes around your boat dock.

ezdocktexas.com - Prevent Damage to Your Aluminum Boat Dock in the Winter

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Prevent Damage to Your Aluminum Boat Dock. If you own a waterfront property with an aluminum boat dock and you are concerned about the damage that winter can have on your boat dock, you have come to the right place. If you allow winter to damage your boat dock, you will be looking at costly repairs. Before winter even arrives, you need to become proactive and take measures to prevent damage to your aluminum boat dock. Even though aluminum boats are built to withstand freezing temperatures and are durable and sturdy all-year-round, you need to remove and store them. You only need to remove your aluminum dock in the winter ice freezes around your boat dock.

Why Remove Your Boat if Ice Freezes Around It?

Your boat dock will not sustain any damage from ice freezing around it, but it will when it’s time for that ice to melt in the spring. When ice begins to melt and flow across the lake, your boat dock and anything near the shore such as your boat is in danger of sustaining major damage. Ice flows are more dangerous than you think. They do not only spell disaster for your boat dock, but they can also move boat lifts, boulders, and anything that is standing in their path. Anything too close to the lake means it is open season for ice flows.

What If Ice Flows Are Not an Issue in Your Region?

If you do not deal with ice flows and you’ve got an aluminum boat dock, consider installing galvanized steel tubing. If ice freezes around the pole, the galvanized steel tubing will not rupture whereas other materials would have.

What to Do If You Are Not Sure If You Should Leave Your Boat Dock Out or Not?

If you are unsure of whether you can leave your aluminum boat dock in the winter, what are neighbors for. Ask your neighbors with boat docks of their own if you can leave your boat dock out when it gets cold.

What Do the Experts Say?

According to experts, if ice freezing is an issue, boat dock owners can also take other measures to protect it from damage if they don’t want to remove it. They suggest disconnecting the hinges linking the seawalls and docks or piers for letting the complete structure to follow the water level down. Another expert suggested that dock owners use a dock bubble or some other anti-icing device to prevent ice from hardening and freezing around their aluminum boat dock. You should also check your dock cables.

What If You Want to Use Your Boat Dock in the Winter?

If it doesn’t get freezing cold in your area and you want to use your boat dock in the winter, you’ll have to maintain it. Shovel the snow off the boat dock each time your area gets snowfall. Inspect your boat dock for damage from time to time, especially after an unexpected storm hits your region. If you want more suggestions on maintaining your aluminum boat dock or need to install one, contact EZ Dock Texas at 800-654-8168 for a quote if you reside in Texas, Oklahoma, or New Mexico.

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Why do docks need to be removed in winter?

Ice flows can not only destroy a dock, but they can also move boulders, boat lifts, and basically anything else in their path.

alumi-span.com - Why You Need to Winterize and Remove Your Aluminum Boat Dock

Posted by Alumi-Span Docks on 11/29/2018

Do you have a residential boat dock at your home or vacation property?

For most inland lake docks in states like Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, or any other northern state you need to remove your dock in the winter. Piling driven commercial docks are built to withstand ice flows so they are the exception to the rule, however, most residential docks need to be removed. There are many things that can happen if a dock is left in the water for the winter, but the bottom line in most cases is that parts will be destroyed! Ice freezing around a dock does not usually cause the majority of dock damage. In the spring, ice starts to flow and move across the lake, and that’s when your dock or anything else near the shore is in real danger. Ice flows can not only destroy a dock, but they can also move boulders, boat lifts, and basically anything else in their path. It is very common in northern Michigan or similar climates to have ice pile up several feet high on the shore, and that is what generally causes damage to anything too close to the edge of the lake.

aluminum boat dock

• Ponds and backwaters where ice flows are not an issue

• If you have used galvanized steel tubing, where it is much less prone to rupturing if the ice freezes around the pole If you have doubts as to whether you can leave a dock in or not, it’s wise to ask neighbors that may have a similar situation. Many larger lakes, public and private, also have ordinances or DNR rules that prohibit leaving anything in the water due to the danger posed to snowmobile traffic in the winter.

aluminum boat dock

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