Does anyone know a thing about channel dredging?

Pinellas and Hillsborough counties both own navigable waterways (intercoastal waterways as well as canals and tributaries that feed the Gulf). Both entities require permits for any dock construction/rebuilds plus any dredging work within tidally influenced waterbodies.

 

interesting... I was told something totally different by the Corp office. Id love to see what they allocate for a budget as they claim to evaluate for environmental impact. Ill poke around and see what kind of inspectors do the work.

 

Place is in Bay county. Nice long dock that is close to the last channel marker at the end of the bayou. Would be perfect for two boats if it was just a little deeper. Going to make some calls tomorrow.

 

Better known as "Redneck Riviera (Panama City)."

 

African Queen. Great movie.

 

Aside from the (probably very) significant cost of dredging a channel from 1-2' down to 6', you'd also have to take into consideration how much wider you'd need to make it to keep your nice new channel from filling back in. How much current is there, that could have a significant impact on how long your new channel would remain usable.

 

My permits alone are 3k for my dock/lift.

Welcome to big gubbermint

 

Checked the place again today. At a low tide it was about 3 Feet at the dock. I need at least 4'6", I think partnering up with neighbors can save me some money as mentioned. Going to call around tomorrow.

 

My fiance's parents dealt with timing the tides for 15+ years because their neighbors did not want to go in on dredging the canal. He ended up moving their boat to the nearest marina as it was less of a PITA. The tide would get so low that there would be a land mass between the Gulf and their canal.

 

Do you know anyone with a jet drive boat? I have heard that you can move a fair bit of mud and muck if you happen to avoid the marked channel out of Chesapeake Bay when navigating to Lynnhaven Inlet at slack tide. For example. I mean, the buoys are well marked, but it was hot, I was tired, I mean the operator was tired, etc.

 

The short answer is that if you do it legally you wont get much change out of what someone suggested earlier 20k plus, anything marine is eyewateringly expensive. Its not really a DIY option in a built up area due to legalities, but if you were to do it there are ways that you might like to try such as working your boat (preferably a jet as mentioned) from the channel to the dock. You would be shocked at how effective this is but Id say the nosey neighbors might have something to say at a 454 at 7k pumping out a 40 foot roostertail of mud and crap.

 

I have some experience with this on inland rivers. It's very expensive and it is AMAZING how fast it will silt back in. The marina I was in for a few years needed to be dredged every year. If I were you, I would talk to a contractor to get a bid (someone who knows the permitting process), but I would also want to know how often it is going to need to be done. You may have to survey some neighbors who have been there a long time to get that info.

I do have a twin engine jet boat and I have heard of people using something like that to clear out a channel. The downside is the mud is hard on the pumps. It's also likely illegal.

 

Sounds like the place better have a cheap asking price, or I'd pass.

 

Id be more concerned with the seawalls if its that far into the water. Try pricing that.

 

@Alex_V I looked up the bid tab we received 9 years ago and the winning contractor had $33k in mobilization of equipment and was $15.85 per cubic yard in dredging. They contractors provided the prices per cubic yard because the amount of soil to be dredged varied per canal since we were trying to hit a specific depth. A total of 6 canals with total linear footage of 8825ft and around 13k cubic yards of soil was estimated to be dredged out.

This was 9 years ago when contractors were pining for work. Expect numbers to be higher now.

 

^^ This, I've had a boat on a small private tidal river marina, the tri-annual dredging costs were hundreds of thousands, in fact most of the marina fees were for the dredging. The gear is big and there is plenty of it that has to be mobilised for any job no matter how small; tugs, barges, excavators, trucks etc. The mud needs to be tested, safely transported and dumped on land or if at sea usually miles out depending. Talk to a the locals and see what they do, it can get complicated because dredging in one place can alter flows in another so usually there is are pretty strict controls on what you can do. I think unless you are ok with the status quo or have a lot of money then consider something else, also if you do go ahead check that there are no conditions that go with the property that require you to perform or contribute to any waterway maintenance.

 

Damn. I think you guys have talked me out of this particular location.

 

You could ask the Corp or old timers in the area how deep it was when it was 1st built and when it was 1st built. As well as if it has been dredged before and when.

 

Or you could get a boat with a shallow draft.

 

Land Lubber.