Seawalls: Buying A Waterfront Home Guidelines
When purchasing a waterfront home you want to be certain about the condition of your waterside appointments. The dockside bulkhead can be either a concrete seawall, rip-rap rock, natural mangroves or a fiberglass bulkhead material.
Seawalls: If you buy a home in the incorporated city of Punta Gorda than the city is responsible for the maintenance of the seawall. A nice perk and the canal depths are also the responsibility of the city as well. Seawalls in other parts of Charlotte County are owned by the home owner.
Punta Gorda Isles/ Burnt Store Isles Seawalls: Since these are city owned you don’t have too much to worry about. The city has a grading system on which seawalls need replaced in advance of their predicted date of expiration so to speak. One important thing for you to know as a purchaser of a waterfront home: In nearly all cases your existing dock and boat lift will not be affected by the replacement of the seawall or repair of the cap. The seawall can be replaced without removal of these structures. With few exceptions the docks are free-standing and of course, the boat lifts are as well. If are interested in viewing a video that shows the seawall replacement process, copy/paste this link from the canal maintenance department in Punta Gorda: http://www.ci.punta-gorda.fl.us/services/canal-maintenance/canal-maintenance-video-series
General Charlotte County Seawalls: When buying a waterfront home in Port Charlotte and other unincorporated areas of the county you better be working with a smart realtor that knows what to look for. Many of the seawalls in this county are well past their prime and some are just in bad shape and are a huge financial liability after the purchase. Many of the home owners don’t realize how bad their seawalls are so they don’t disclose it. I know what to look for and getting an opinion from a marine contractor is often the right thing to do. Unfortunately, unless the seawall has lateral cracks, bulging, leaning, etc. they will often tell you it may last 2 years or 10 but its near the end of its life. There are many factors affecting a seawall including water depth, water flow, installation method/quality, concrete integrity, etc. The key is to be aware of the seawall condition during the purchase inspection period.
Rip-Rap Seawall: A common alternative to a concrete seawall and less expensive. The marine contractor excavates the waterfront edge removing all vegetation. Than places a synthetic barrier land side, places rocks from into the water to the land elevation and sometimes pours concrete to hold everything in place. These work very well and seem to hold up to the test of time in my observations. Albeit, not as attractive but functional and easy to install a dock and boat lift as well.
Fiberglass Seawalls: These were used a long time ago and now I am seeing them being installed in more recent times. I am sure they are a less expensive alternative to concrete. Basically, it is a corrugated material for strength that is banged down into the canal bottom. Deadman anchors back into the land side hold it into place. Stone and concrete are often backfilled behind the material to stabilize it.
