Seawall cap repair in Boca Raton
The cap is the part of the wall you actually see, and it is also where the city's elevation rule gets measured.
What a cap repair covers
- Patching cracked or spalled concrete
- Sealing hairline cracks before salt water reaches the steel inside
- Rebuilding sections where steel has rusted and expanded, cracking the concrete around it
- Rebuilding the cap to the city's current elevation standard when the wall is replaced, not just patched
Start a free request
Pick what you need. Five short questions.
What the city's standard asks of a new or replaced cap
Boca Raton's Engineering Design Standards Manual sets the point of measurement for the elevation rule at the cap: a new or replaced seawall or dock has to reach a minimum of 4.0 feet NAVD88 and stay at or below 6.0 feet. The cap also has to be designed so another 12 to 18 inches can be added later, in a defined future cap zone, without altering the existing structure below it. None of this applies to a cap that is only patched or resealed, only to a cap that is newly built or replaced.
Rust stains mean the steel inside is already corroding
Corroding steel expands as it rusts, which is what cracks concrete from the inside. A rust stain or a hairline crack with a stain running from it is worth having a contractor look at before it spreads into a larger spall. Left alone, the exposed steel keeps losing section, and the repair gets bigger.
Cap repair questions
Does patching the cap trigger the elevation rule?
The city's elevation standard is written for a new or replaced seawall or dock. A patch or repair that does not replace the cap is a different question for your contractor and the city's plan reviewer to confirm.
What is the future cap the city's manual mentions?
It is a 12 to 18 inch zone the design has to allow for, so another course can be added later without altering the wall that is already there. It is a design requirement for new or replaced walls, not something every existing wall already has.
Can I just reseal a cracked cap myself?
A hairline surface crack is sometimes a minor repair, but rust staining or a crack that keeps spreading usually means the steel inside is already corroding. Have a licensed marine contractor look at it before you seal over a problem that is still active.
Get your wall looked at
Send a request and we will pass it to an independent licensed marine contractor who works Boca Raton canals and the Intracoastal. Have your address ready and, if you can, a few photos of the wall.
Free referral service. An independent licensed marine contractor does the work. How this works.
