Dock & Piling Cleaning in Lake Worth Beach, FL

Lake Worth Beach docks sit in slow, brackish water where oysters coat the pilings, and the C-51's fresh water at the north end of town doesn't stop either of them.

The lagoon shoreline from south of Peanut Island down to the Lantana bridge carries a 300-foot slow zone, which takes in every dock in Lake Worth Beach. The C-51 was dug in 1925 and connected to Lake Okeechobee, and the significant fresh water it brought into the lagoon changed what grows on a piling at the north end of town compared with the south. A dock in 33460 stands in front of a bulkhead almost by definition, since 81% of the lagoon shoreline is seawall, and the two are usually cleaned together.

With 81% of the lagoon shoreline bulkheaded, a Lake Worth Beach dock almost always stands in front of a seawall, and the two are cleaned together: pilings, lift and wall face in one visit. The C-51's fresh water at the north end of town softens the growth without stopping the shipworms, so the multi-point inspection after cleaning checks each piling for bores and soft wood Floating-dock wheels and lift hardware get cleared so the boat stops scraping.

Owners at the north end near the C-51 should say so, because the spillway's fresh water changes what the diver expects on the pilings; owners toward Lantana can expect heavier oyster. The 300-foot shoreline slow zone keeps wake off the dock, so the diver can work it at most hours. Bryant Park's ramp and courtesy docks are the city's and are not part of the visit. Lake Worth Beach's ocean side has the 1954 municipal pier and no docks at all; every dock in the city faces the lagoon.

Lake Worth Beach docks stand on the Lake Worth Lagoon, the Intracoastal Waterway and the C-51 Canal. ZIP code 33460: no pickaxes, no chisels, inspection included.

Growth hides damage, so the inspection follows the cleaning, while the diver can see the structure.

• Shipworm holes in wood and concrete pilings: enough of them and a piling snaps.
• Oyster damage on wooden pilings, which eats the wood while hiding it.
• Floating-dock wheels and hydro-hoist hydraulic lines, where barnacles cut and jam.
• Whether a wrap or a Snap Jacket sleeve would extend the piling's life.

How often docks and pilings need it. Seawalls and concrete pilings: cleaned annually. In our experience, unwrapped wooden pilings on South Florida canals often need help after 10 to 15 years; a wrap from the mud to 2 ft above high tide adds at least 20 years.

Full dock and piling cleaning guide