Repair a Leaking EZ Dock

Many times a cracked or punctured EZ Dock section can be repaired by simply melting the polyethylene dock material with a torch or plastic welding iron (a large hot metal iron that melts the plastic together). Occasionally we have customers that have punctured or cut the dock with bullets, boat propeller from an outboard engine or some other accident and we use an old dock section to piece a repair and melt that into the open hole. If you have stress cracks near coupler pockets they normally occur after constant large storms due to extreme pressure on the dock. At times these cracks can be repaired in the same manner, melting the material together, but if it is in place that receives a lot of stress it may not hold.

The EZ Dock system includes couplers which are designed to break before a dock section cracks which is the reason the docks are provided with an 8 year warranty. EZ Dock is the most durable dock system available today and issues regarding cracks from storm damage are extremely rare.

You also have a “weep hole” on the end of each dock section that allows the dock to change pressure inside as atmospheric conditions change outside. At times in rough water we have seen water enter the docks through the weep hole but this is normally in salt water applications where waves are bouncing off a bulkhead and back into the dock system. This year EZ Dock introduced a new vent (see attachment) which can be used that will prevent any water from entering the dock regardless of rough water conditions. These can be inserted into a hole in the end of the dock while you seal the original “vent hole” that has been included since the docks were invented 20 years ago. You can plug the old vent hole with any silicone material similar to bathtub caulk.

Draining docks is a simple process – drill a hole in one corner on the edge of the dock near the top, drain the water, and purchase a threaded plastic plug from Home Depot of the same size you make the hole, the plug will prevent water from entering the dock through the drain hole you created. Since the entire dock section is an open chamber only one hole is required to drain the entire dock.