Waterfront Projects Done Right
Trent Hollis · July 9, 2026
Right now, I’m standing over a corroded cleat where somebody wrapped a bow line three weeks ago, except the rope slipped straight through the fairlead and let a 22-foot center console drift into its neighbor’s slip. Clean gouge down the hull. The bitter end had nothing on it — no stopper, no knot, nothing. That … Read more
Trent Hollis · July 8, 2026
A marine contractor quoted my neighbor $8,500 to install a custom boat canopy on his Gulf Coast dock. He built the same structure himself on a Saturday afternoon for under $900 in materials. That gap — between contractor pricing and what the job actually costs when you’re holding the drill — is exactly why I’m … Read more
Trent Hollis · July 8, 2026
Most waterfront property owners believe that a shackle pinned to their anchor chain will hold just fine, and most of the time they’re right — until the moment it isn’t. Out on the water, shock loads from wind gusts and boat surge can exceed what a simple shackle connection was ever designed to withstand. The … Read more
Trent Hollis · July 7, 2026
Boat slippage under load during a tidal swing will wreck your entire afternoon — and your insurance claim. Over two decades installing and repairing dock infrastructure from Pensacola to Port Aransas, the single most frequent question I field is: “Which adjustable knot should I be using when I tie off my boat?” My standard answer … Read more
Trent Hollis · July 7, 2026
Pier Protector – Pile Wrap for Docks & Piers (48 inch, 20 I wrap new pilings in an afternoon, seal them tight, and skip the return calls for five extra years. Check Price on Amazon →
Trent Hollis · July 6, 2026
Eighteen months into running my own marine contracting business, I hauled a brand-new aluminum dock frame out of the Gulf that looked like it had been through an orbital sander. Pitting scarred the entire surface. The structure was already weakening. Galvanic corrosion had done the damage — and the owner hadn’t spotted a single warning … Read more
Trent Hollis · July 6, 2026
Thirty miles out of Pensacola, my fishing partner watched a 40-pound yellowfin tuna take his line to the backing. The fish struck, the drag sang, and his connection simply separated at the knot. He’d threaded a basic clinch directly onto his double-line leader, and under load it gave way completely. That fish never made it … Read more
Trent Hollis · July 5, 2026
The first detail I inspect when walking out to check on a shoreline stabilization job is whether the toe is still holding. Standing knee-deep in Gulf Coast mud after that client’s storm surge, I watched his riprap installation from two years prior come apart — half the stone had migrated, the filter fabric lay exposed, … Read more
Trent Hollis · July 5, 2026
Most waterfront property owners don’t realize that composite decking specifications—particularly color selection and cap technology—are classified differently across manufacturers, and those differences create substantial barefoot comfort disparities. Here’s what actually happens: you step out onto your new dock after 11 a.m., and within seconds you’re doing an involuntary barefoot shuffle back toward the cabin. Not … Read more
Trent Hollis · July 4, 2026
Watch a 24-foot center console tear loose from its moorings and collide with a neighboring vessel, and you absorb a lesson that reshapes your entire approach to dock rigging. The owner had picked the wrong rope material and paired it with insufficient diameter — two compounding errors that turned into a genuinely bad afternoon. If … Read more