Dock Electrical

[PWilks]

Have a lake property in northern Minnesota and my wife and I would like to have power ran out to our dock for some dock lights and boat battery charging, as well as hardwiring our motorized boat lift.

The problem is every winter we have to pull both our dock and our boat lift out before the lake freezes.

Currently we have a 30 amp GFCI breaker feeding a sub panel ~6’ from the shore, but I’m looking for a means of easily disconnecting the circuits run beneath the dock boards to the motorized boat lift.

The boat lift and dock are independent and get removed separately when that time of the year runs around, so ideally we would have a means of disconnecting the physical wire from the sub panel to the conduit run beneath the dock boards, and another means of physically disconnecting the conduit/wires at the connection between the dock and the boat lift.

I’ve thought about locating a marine rated plug on the dock, and similarly one on the boat lift so they’re independent, and simply connecting them with a very short wet rated extension cord, but I’m not sure this is the best or code compliant way of doing this.

Any insight would be appreciated. The main goal here is to be able to disconnect things easily such that the dock and boat lift can be pulled easily in the winter without a lot of electrical hook-up/disassembly required every year.

Thanks.

 

[nadogail]

It looks like you are trying to establish an economical “Shore Power” connection to a floating dock.

This is beyond my area of expertise, best be prepared to spend some serious coin.

 

[PWilks]

It looks like you are trying to establish an economical “Shore Power” connection to a floating dock.

This is beyond my area of expertise, best be prepared to spend some serious coin.

It’s not a “floating dock” per say. It’s a roll in dock and boat lift. They don’t move relative to the water level. When winter rolls around, simply get a couple guys and literally push the dock up onto the shore.

I’m merely looking for a practical way to disconnect the circuit feeding the motorized 120V boat lift from the conduit ran below the dock boards, and disconnect the circuit between that same run of conduit and the conduit coming out of the sub panel, such that I can roll my dock and lift out of the water.

If it was hard piped with rigid conduit the whole way, I would have no way to pull the dock in the winter.

 

[nadogail]

It’s not a “floating dock” per say. It’s a roll in dock and boat lift. They don’t move relative to the water level. When winter rolls around, simply get a couple guys and literally push the dock up onto the shore.

I’m merely looking for a practical way to disconnect the circuit feeding the motorized 120V boat lift from the conduit ran below the dock boards, and disconnect the circuit between that same run of conduit and the conduit coming out of the sub panel, such that I can roll my dock and lift out of the water.

If it was hard piped with rigid conduit the whole way, I would have no way to pull the dock in the winter.

If it is a dock and floating, it looks, smells and walks like a Floating Dock.

Maybe, a twist lock plug and connector body will meet your needs.

 

[dcg9381]

It looks like you are trying to establish an economical “Shore Power” connection to a floating dock.

This is beyond my area of expertise, best be prepared to spend some serious coin.

Most of the docks here are floating docs. They seem to be fed by GFCI covered breakers and use ground-contact rated cord. Because lake levels can vary tremendously, you're leaving some cord out there. Every couple of years, some non-GFI dock gets a cut in a power main and someone dies.. I won't wire floating docs with AC power - too much liability for me.

Up north, we've got a dock that has to come out every year. The most common power I see on these is a solar panel and a big battery.

 

[tarmy]

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[tarmy]

I have a floating dock. I decided for safety reason not to hard wire the actual dock. I ran power to a box at the head of the stairway and use properly rated extension cords if I need power on the dock for anything. I have found that I pay way more attention to the temp install and use if I am just doing it for a day or so and that I can adjust the set up for the exact condition I am trying to service. No problems in 16 years…

 

[Eemelenty]

If you're dealing with tide changes, a floating setup like EZ Docks can make a big difference. They adjust with the water level, so you won’t have to worry about your conduit getting stressed when the tide moves. For power, using a dedicated GFCI breaker and proper marine-grade wiring is a must, especially in wet conditions. Also, think about a weatherproof junction box to keep things safe and dry.

 

[Norcal]

Old thread alert!

 

[sparky 1971]

If you're running conduit that far, go bigger than you think you need. Future upgrades are a pain if the conduit is maxed out. I'd also consider a sub-panel.

Something like the subpanel 6' from the shore that was mentioned in the first post 2-1/2 years ago?