Boardwalks serve as a beautiful and functional addition to any marine construction property. Whether yours is a commercial, residential, or environmental project, well constructed boardwalks can add value to your property while also preserving and enhancing the natural features of the area.
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In fact, the boardwalk is such an endemic feature of marine construction that they've been utilized for over 150 years in commercial and public projects. You'll find them as a community favorite throughout bustling seaside towns and cities, as well as a staple for protected marshlands, beaches, and other land areas that border waterscapes.
The key difference between a boardwalk and a bridge is that while bridges generally cross deep or quickly flowing water, a boardwalk crosses only very shallow water, wetlands, and sometimes even dry land. Boardwalks can be constructed from wood or concrete piling, full timber, concrete or fiberglass framing with wood, composite, vinyl, or concrete decking. Their purpose is to provide easy, steady, and reliable, erosion-resistant access to sensitive marine environments.
There are several huge advantages in hiring a professional company to build a boardwalk as part of your marine construction project that include:
Knowledge of building materials
A professional will assist you through the process of determining both the most cost effective solution for your property as well as the best building materials and style to aesthetically fit the rest of your marine
construction project. An integral aspect of this process involves determining the appropriate live load according to the end-use, as a 6 ft. boardwalk for a marina's pier would need a significantly different design than a community boardwalk that needs allowance for emergency vehicles.
Knowledge of building codes
Boardwalk construction is not unlike any other type of major construction in that there are specific building codes in place that must be followed through to avoid expensive delays and penalties with noncompliance.
Construction experience
Marine construction is its own specialty as driving piles over water sometimes requires barges and special drilling equipment. In addition, depending on the area of your marine construction project, there may be special permitting that requires the construction of a boardwalk to not disturb the local environment. In such scenarios, a special 'top down construction' method must be used.
To learn more about the aesthetic and functional benefits of boardwalks in relation to the specifics of your marine construction project, contact us today at Duncan Seawall, Dock & Boat Lift.
