We would like to build a floating dock for our pond i would like to know everything about it from the floaters

Question

We would like to build a floating dock for our pond i would like to know everything about it from the floaters

Answer 1

When I was growing up, floating piers and rafts were made using 55 gallon drums with sealed ends.  A frame was built to trap 4 or 6 barrels and wire or strapping was run underneath to hold them in place while decking was applied to the top much like a patio.   We made our rafts with two side sections with barrels at each end and a middle well with a sunken platform with a ladder on the side, so you could swim into the middle and stand there before climbing out.

  Since that time, floating items have almost entirely gone to using large solid blocks of foam because the foam is lighter than the barrels, won't rust or puncture and will take rods or wires inserted into it to hold the block in place.   The model is still a frame to hold the blocks and keep the deck above water.   Foam blocks should be available under Plastics-Foam in the Yellow Pages.  

A 2x4 foot block sunk 8" is displacing 5.33 cubic feet of water which weighs about 330 pounds so that gives you some idea of how much foam you need to support how many people that might stand or lay on the dock and the weight of the frame.

Answer 2

I used plastic barrels.