Marine Inspections

Nearly every bad outcome we are called to on a waterfront property comes down to the same thing: somebody made a decision about a structure based on what they could see from the top of it.

The elements that determine whether a seawall, bulkhead or dock has five years left or twenty-five are, almost without exception, underwater, underground, or inside the structure.

What we inspect

Existing walls — seawall and bulkhead inspection

• Line and plumb along the full length, which reveals rotation and movement
• Cap condition, including sounding for debonded areas that look sound from above
• Joint condition and evidence of water and soil movement
• Extent of voids behind the wall
• Tieback and anchor condition
• Pile and embedment condition at and below the waterline
• Toe scour
• Drainage behind the wall

Docks and marine structures

• Piles above water, in the tidal zone, and below the waterline
• Framing, connections and hardware — where marine structures usually fail first
• Decking
• Line and level of the structure
• The shore-end tie-in to the wall

Boat lifts

• Cable condition — a safety item, covered on boat lifts
• Pulleys, sheaves, motor and drive
• Mounting hardware and the structure carrying the lift

Proposed work sites

Assessment of a site before design — conditions, constraints, access and what the site will support. This frequently saves money by establishing early that a proposal is or is not viable.

When an inspection pays for itself

Before buying waterfront property. The structures are a significant part of what you are buying and a general home inspection does not cover them properly.

After a storm. The serious storm damage — toe scour, voids behind the wall from overtopping — is invisible from the top. Storm damage.

Before you collect repair bids. Knowing what is actually wrong turns a collection of varying opinions into comparable prices for a defined scope.

When symptoms appear. Depressions in the lawn, a cap that is no longer straight, water weeping through joints, a dock that has developed a sag.

For capital planning. Facility owners and managers needing condition assessment across marine assets — see commercial and municipal.

Periodically. Soil loss and chloride attack both compound. Catching either early changes the cost by a large multiple.

What you get

A written assessment of condition, what is driving any problems found, and what the structure needs — separated into now and can wait, because that distinction is where the money is.

Where the honest answer is that nothing needs doing, that is what the assessment says.

What we will not do

We will not write a scope designed to sell you work. The point of an inspection is to find out what is true. An assessment that always concludes with an expensive recommendation is worthless to you, and would be worthless to us as a way of staying in business here since 2009.

Call (904) 327-3931 or request an inspection.