Services
SnapJacket Piling Repair
SnapJacket
SnapJacket provides a highly durable, long-term solution for restoring and protecting worn marine pilings. Its user-friendly design allows for fast installation, helping reduce overall dock repair expenses. Because the system opens and locks securely around the pile, there’s no need to remove or disturb any structures above, such as docks, lifts, or boathouses.
Traditional piling replacement often requires heavy equipment like barges and partial disassembly of the dock—making it both time-consuming and expensive. This is especially true when the piling supports additional structures.
With SnapJacket, the repair process is far more efficient. Once the jacket is installed and filled with concrete, it stops further internal deterioration by eliminating marine organisms that damage the wood from within. The concrete fills any voids, forming a solid reinforced core inside the existing piling.
Whether your pilings are starting to weaken or have already failed, SnapJacket offers a dependable restoration method. When engineered correctly, it can even rebuild a severely damaged piling to meet or exceed its original strength.
How the work goes
1. Inspect every piling, above and below the waterline
We look at each piling for waterline necking, soft wood, borer holes and movement under load, then check the condition below the mudline, because that is what decides whether a jacket or a new piling is the right answer. Lift pilings get extra attention: a lift concentrates thousands of pounds on four points.
2. Jacket or replace
If the wood in the mud is sound and the damage is at the waterline, SnapJacket restores the piling in place. If the piling has failed below the mudline, the dock is being enlarged or re-engineered, or you want concrete or composite pilings, we drive new ones. Because we do both, the recommendation follows the inspection, not the product.
3. Fit the jacket without touching the deck
Marine growth is cleaned off and sand is blown out from the base so the jacket seats below the damaged zone. The two-piece PVC jacket opens, wraps around the piling and locks. The dock, lift or boathouse above stays exactly where it is.
4. Fill with concrete
The jacket is filled with concrete, which flows into the voids the borers left, encases the wood and cures into a solid reinforced core. Once sealed, the organisms that were eating the piling from within are cut off from the water they need.
What a SnapJacket is, and how it differs from a wrap
SnapJacket is a UV-protected PVC jacket that snaps together around an existing timber piling and is filled with concrete. The distributor states that the concrete fill kills the borers inside the wood, creates a new solid piling, requires no disassembly of the structure above, and can restore even broken pilings. [buildingproductsplus.com]
It is a two-piece snap-together jacket installed without disturbing the deck; sand is blown out from around the base before it is fitted so the jacket extends below the damaged zone. [americanpoleandtimber.com]
A piling wrap is different. A wrap is a thin barrier sheet fastened around the piling to keep borers out of sound wood; it protects but adds no strength. A jacket is a structural repair: a concrete column formed around the piling that carries load. Wraps make sense on new or sound pilings as prevention; jackets are for pilings that have already lost section.
Piling jacketing itself is a proven concept on larger marine structures. What SnapJacket changes is that the jacket can be fitted by a crew from a small boat or the dock, without a barge or heavy equipment, which is what makes it practical on a residential dock.
When SnapJacket fits, and when replacement is the better call
The decision comes down to what is left below the mudline and what the piling has to carry. A jacket rebuilds the section that borers took at the waterline; it does not put a broken piling back in the ground or give a loose one more embedment.
- Fits: damage concentrated at the waterline (necking, hourglassing, borer holes) with sound wood below the mudline.
- Fits: a dock, lift or boathouse above that you do not want to dismantle, and pilings that are otherwise plumb.
- Fits: several pilings on the same dock, where the alternative is a barge mobilization and partial disassembly.
- Replace instead: the piling has broken or rotted through below the mudline, or has lost embedment to scour or storm uplift and is leaning.
- Replace instead: the dock is being enlarged, reconfigured or re-engineered for a heavier lift.
- Replace instead: you want to move to concrete or composite pilings for the long term.
- Either way, the state side is simple: installing or repairing pilings on a private dock is an exempt activity under FDEP's rules. Your city building permit still applies. [law.cornell.edu]
- In Broward, a county environmental general license covers dock repair or replacement not enlarged beyond 500 square feet of over-water area. [broward.elaws.us]
Why South Florida pilings fail at the waterline
Shipworms are bivalve mollusks, not worms, that tunnel through wood from the inside; UF/IFAS Extension notes burrows from seven inches to more than six feet long. From the outside the piling can look fine until it necks at the waterline. [blogs.ifas.ufl.edu]
Marine-grade pilings are treated to 2.5 pounds of CCA per cubic foot for salt water, but Florida's warm, high-salinity water shortens their life; one large supplier reports 25 to 35 years on the Gulf Coast for properly treated pilings and about five years or less for untreated wood, with shipworms and gribbles doing most of the damage. Those are the supplier's figures. [americanpoleandtimber.com]
Have pilings looked at on a regular interval, after any storm, and after a boat strike; a diver probes for borer tunnels, scour at the mudline and movement under load.
Boat-lift pilings deserve the fastest response. Four pilings carry the lift, the boat, the fuel and whatever is in the boat, and a lift should not be used on a piling that has lost section. Hurricane surge also lifts and loosens pilings, so a post-storm check is worth doing before the lift goes back to work. [dockdogsfl.com]
Questions we hear
What is SnapJacket piling repair?
SnapJacket is a UV-protected PVC jacket that snaps around an existing timber dock piling and is filled with concrete. The concrete fills the voids marine borers left, encases the wood and cures into a solid reinforced column, and the seal cuts the borers off so deterioration stops. Because the jacket opens and locks around the pile, the dock, boat lift or boathouse above stays in place. Langley Coastal installs the system across South Florida and Manatee County. [source]
SnapJacket vs replacing pilings: which should I choose?
SnapJacket fits when the damage is at the waterline and the wood below the mudline is still sound; the distributor states it can restore even broken pilings without dismantling the structure above. Replacement is the right call when the piling has failed below the mudline, has lost embedment and is leaning, when the dock is being enlarged or re-engineered, or when you want concrete or composite pilings. We install SnapJacket and drive new pilings, so the recommendation follows the inspection. [source]
How do I know if my dock pilings need repair?
Above water: a piling that narrows at the waterline (necking), soft or spongy wood when probed, visible borer holes, a lean, a cracked cap or hardware that has loosened. Under load: a dock that moves when you walk it, or a lift that sways. Below water only a diver can confirm borer tunnels and scour at the mudline. Have pilings checked on a regular interval, and after any storm or boat strike.
Can dock pilings be repaired without removing the dock or boat lift?
Yes, when a jacket is the right repair. SnapJacket is a two-piece jacket installed without disturbing the deck: growth is cleaned off, sand is blown out from the base, the jacket is snapped and locked around the piling and filled with concrete. Traditional replacement often means a barge and partial disassembly of the dock, especially where the piling carries a lift. If the piling has failed below the mudline, a new piling is still the answer. [source]
How do I fix a wobbly or leaning dock piling?
A piling that wobbles has lost either its embedment (scour or storm uplift) or its cross-section (borers or rot at the waterline). Tightening framing bolts will not fix it. A loose or leaning piling generally cannot be repaired in place; it is supplemented by driving a new piling beside it and transferring the load, or replaced. If the wood in the mud is sound and the loss is at the waterline, a concrete-filled jacket restores it. The diagnosis needs a below-waterline look.
Piling wrap vs piling jacket: what is the difference?
A wrap is a thin barrier sheet fastened around a piling to keep marine borers out of sound wood. It is prevention: it protects but adds no strength. A jacket is a structural repair: a form around the piling filled with concrete that becomes a load-bearing column and encases the damaged wood. Wraps belong on new or healthy pilings; jackets are for pilings that have already lost section. Putting a wrap on a necked piling hides the problem without fixing it.
Do I need a permit to repair or replace dock pilings?
At the state level, installing or repairing pilings associated with a private dock is an exempt activity under FDEP's rules, and replacing a dock or pilings in the same footprint within five feet of the original location is also exempt. Your city or county building permit still applies; in Broward a county general license covers dock repair or replacement not enlarged beyond 500 square feet. In Miami-Dade any work over tidal water goes through DERM. [source]
How much does SnapJacket cost compared with replacing a piling?
We do not publish prices, but the reason SnapJacket is usually the lower-cost route is structural, not marketing: no barge mobilization, no disassembly of the dock or lift above, and a fast installation. What moves the number is how many pilings need jackets, their diameter and how far below the waterline each jacket has to extend, water depth and access, and whether any pilings need replacement instead. An inspection settles the count before anyone quotes.
Guides
Sourced answers to the questions we hear most.
- Boat Lift Installation, South Florida →
- Boat Lift Maintenance, South Florida →
- Boat Lift Sizing and Capacity, Florida →
- Dock Construction & Rebuilds, South Florida →
- Dock Cost Factors in Florida →
- Dock Insurance & Storm Repair, Florida →
- Dock Materials for Florida Salt Water →
- Dock Permits in South Florida, Explained →
- Dock Piling Lifespan in Salt Water →
- Floating Dock Systems, South Florida →
- Piling Services, South Florida →
- Hurricane Cleanup & Marine Salvage, Florida →
What our customers say
Quality work that was completed ahead of schedule. We were pleased with their consistent communication throughout the project and the ability to meet deadlines and solve complex problems. Their focus on safety and quality was evident.