Need help with ramp ideas

[schafer]

Keeping my fingers crossed. But getting my ducks in a row to ski at a new site. Muddy bottom. Anyone have good ideas for making a launch so we can back the boat in and out? Steel? Concrete? $$$ and time are my deciding factors(of course they are)

Thanks in advance

[EricKelley]

We bolted steel plates together and pulled them into the water. I've been on my lake for about 8 years and it has worked beautifully. I thought I would need to do concrete but it is not a priority now. I would choose your area carefully. Get in the water and try to find an area that is sloped correctly and level left and right. We tried other things like guard rails and concrete air conditioner pads without success. The metal plate does not have to be that thick, it stays in place. It is slick though, try to end it at the water's edge so your tow vehicle rear wheels don't get on it. I marked the boundaries with pvc pipe.

Good luck a new lake is an adventure and a lot of work.....but worth it.

[DUSkier]

We used Road Base for ours, similar situation with a muddy/clay base. Worked well, been in for 6 years and only just now starting to get a little mound in the middle.

[MISkier]

We've moved our club to different lakes over the years and have had to establish ramps at each. We used cinder blocks. We dug trenches for our desired tire paths and buried the blocks flush with their openings facing up/down. At a certain point you can't get the blocks too far in the water, so we had some gravel/rock brought in. We put a fairly thick layer in and that eventually established a nice base on top of the mud (or, in one case, sand). It depends on how much the lake owner will allow.

[CReckard]

We purchased "hog slats" from our local ready-mix. They are 4x10, have slats in them and are used for floors in hog buildings. They work perfect.

[Wish]

@CReckard‌ Wow, those look perfect. Just googled them. How strong are they and how heavy are they? How did you manage the lifting shifting and general moving of them.?

[CReckard]

They brought them in on a flat bed with a boom arm and then put them right where I wanted them. There original purpose is to be elevated, but since mine are not, they are very firm and solid on the ground. See the attach and it should give you more info. http://www.bernereadymix.com/pdfs/cattlehogslats.pdf

[Bulldog]

Another economical idea are to use wire racking for commercial buildings. They are strong and can be found in varying length.

[Deanoski]

we put gravel 5/8 min I believe in the mudding bottom pond works. cheap fast easy.

[kstateskier]

The last boat ramp I built we brought in a dump truck load (7-8 yards) of gravel and I bought 2 aluminum loading ramps from Uhaul for 2 cases of beer. Poured and spread the gravel as far in as we could get and then used the ramps to handle the rest. We installed PVC pipe to mark the edge of the ramps and it worked great.

[kstateskier]

disclaimer: The dump truck load of gravel was not purchased for 2 cases of beer, it was a couple hundred $$$.

[Wish]

I did see a railroad ties used on a river. Basically laid like this-> ||||||||||||||| ..about 3" apart with 2x8s on edge running down each side with lag bolt running through them and into each RR tie. The RR ties sink like rocks and are so heavy they stay put. Plus they end up sinking into the soft bottom a bit, locking them in even more. Lot of them needed though. But I'd guess they could be found used.

[A_B]

A friend swears by parking lot turtles butted together.

We poured concrete above water and had large rectangular chunks of concrete like 2'x4'x5" that we used an excavator to jockey into position.

I have poured concrete in water, and it is very hard to get uniform, and it ended up breaking apart and being replaced by the concrete slabs.

I always thought used steel conveyors might work under water.

[behindpropellers]

Shafer,

 

Do a search for precast concrete. Railroad ties are probably not a good idea since there could possibly be epa complications in the future.

[Waternut]

Would this ramp be a daily use thing or a one or two times a year thing?

[skier2788]

Our lake has a pretty silt bottom. Threw four inch expanded metal in and a good four wheel drive truck has no problem. All depends on the bottom and length.

[schafer]

Thanks for all the great ideas. I'll be measuring slope in the next couple days. See how long of a ramp I will need. Once I get it installed I'll post pics

[thompjs]

Corps of Engineers make 6in thick slabs with plenty of rebar on flat ground near where ramp will go. Then they push it in with front loader or back hoe depending on size.

 

 

[elr]

Take a look at "military landing mats" - 18" x 12' - $45 (150#s)

[kurt]

We have a precast company in town .I called them up and they had a bunch of 8 " plank that they ruined in the manufacturing process

And gave them to me for nothing , you just need a trailer and sky track to get them in place . They will last forever I got 6 or 8 pcs plus they will span over imperfections in the ground