Vinyl Seawall Vs Concrete

The vinyl seawall fix.

Vinyl seawall vs concrete.

If you re in coastal florida and your seawall is of any considerable age it was probably constructed with concrete. For instance property and or water conditions may not allow a contractor to get in with heavy equipment to remove or replace concrete seawalls. Vinyl seawalls may be fine for small projects but if you re reinforcing the investment of a large property whether it s commercial or residential vinyl can t often stand up to its concrete competitor. Concrete is porous so it allows salty sea water to permeate the structure.

It is a proven product and millions of feet of shoreline bordering oceans canals lakes streams and ponds has been protected by vinyl sheet piling. Vinyl has an estimated lifespan of more than 50 years which is longer than concrete. Vinyl seawalls consist of driving 18 width by 1 4 thickness vinyl pilings into the lake bed. This seawall is most commonly capped off with a treated lumber double wale and top board.

Vinyl sheet piling has been a solution of choice for protecting coastal land from erosion since the mid 1990 s. The tie back system consists of 5 8 diameter threaded rod tied back to a 5 9 depth structural i beam anchor. Regardless of the name the walls use piles of rocks rubble boulders or other similar materials to protect the shoreline from. Vinyl is a great choice for those who have a failing concrete seawall that cannot be replaced with a new concrete seawall.

Because of the nature of the material vinyl or plastic seawalls do not rust crack or rot like concrete and are not affected by harsh salt water. The best value in vinyl seawalls. There are many different materials one can use to build a seawall including vinyl wood concrete and rip rap. Concrete seawalls are made using reinforcing steel rebar and are very strong.

When constructed well and properly maintained they may last over 30 years. This weakens the concrete itself and the salt rusts and corrodes the steel rebar that reinforces the coast line. In addition wood seawalls may be prone to rot and provide an area for marine life to live.