Home Built Pontoon Boat - How to Build a Pontoon Boat

Pontoon boats are inexpensive in comparison with the other forms of boats. They come with special kind of shallow draft that reduces the risk of submerging. This is the reason why many big vessels are equipped with pontoon boats for emergency situations. In the United States, pontoon boats are hugely popular as rental boats and vehicle ferries that help people to cross the rivers. Pontoon boats are also preferred for their user friendliness and the added fun of maneuvering it to almost all water bodies. Pontoon boats are also used for the purpose of fishing and sightseeing. One can be extremely close to the water as there is not much physical barrier between the person and the waters below. One can also build a pontoon boat the DIY way.

Home Built Pontoon Boat
Building pontoon boats on your own is really an easy job. One can build the pontoon boat using numerous household tools that are cheap as well as easy to get hold of. These materials include closed cylinders of concrete or metal. To be precise, the basic structure of a home built pontoon boat is like a catamaran or a trimaran boat with their platform being used as a dock. All that one needs is good and sufficient material, hard work and a good layout of the pontoon boat. If the basic parts of the pontoon that are- engine, railing and tubes are in proper shape, you can also rebuild your existing pontoon boat. You can also elaborate the pontoon boat to a houseboat by simply adding a Bimini top to the boat, which is equally easy.

Before building the Pontoon Boat
There are many basic points of concern when you build your own pontoon boat. The eventual destination of a boat is water, hence one must build it near the water region so that it will be easy later on to take boat to the river or sea.

• Design: It is very important to draw out a well worked plan for the pontoon boat. Taking notes and making a proper checklist of what and how much material you need can save your lot of trouble during the boat making procedure.
• Location: Pick a location that is near to the water front, because after the pontoon is ready, you will have to drag the it to the water and the ground distance will not do a lot of good to your boat.
• Material: While building the pontoon boat, make it a point to choose the right kind of material that should be unbreakable and strong. Materials like PVC pipes, military drop tanks, water drums and barrels will just do fine for the pontoon boat.

My suggestion would be to use the military drop tanks as they are highly aerodynamic, which can also be considered as hydrodynamic. If you don't get the drop tanks, you can still use PVC pipes or water drums. The key is that the material you use to build the pontoon boat must have floating qualities.

How to Build a Pontoon Boat?
Material

• PVC pipes and fittings
• Timber and screws
• Glue gun, screw gun, nails and hammer
• An oar or a paddle
• Measuring tape
• Meter strapping (galvanized)
• Tow vehicle and trailer
• Jacks (to lift the boat)
• Camping gear
• All the required safety equipments

Procedure

• Put two pieces of PVC pipes of (12 inch diameter) and keep them in parallel position on a flat surface. Seal one end with the help of a slip cap and glue. You can also use wooden plugs by fastening them with the help of the screws and epoxy.
• Take a pine wood board of 2" x 4" with their length being 7'9". Put them on the length of the pipe on 24" centers.
• Nail the ends of the beams with a band across the beams. Use a 2" x 4" board of 16' on each side of the beams. This will serve as the main support system of your vessel.
• Nail the beams to a 2"x4" treated block (21" long), with the help of coarse thread and hex head screws. Screw the blocks tightly to the beams.
• For the bracing, use 16 galvanized strap, which is 1 inch wide and strap it all over the board from corner to corner. This bracing is done in order to keep the pontoon boat in a proper square shape. Measure and check that the measurements are equal at every diagonal across the opposite corners.
• To secure the blocking, fasten each beam by drilling the strapping with the drill machine or using tech screws.
• Take 1"x6" treated timber or a good quality lightweight marine grade plywood to install the deck of your pontoon boat. Make sure the material of the deck is not too heavy.
• The prime thing of concern should be the safety of the pontoon, as well as its riders. Take all the safety measures to make sure that nothing unfortunate happens.
• If kids or amateur swimmers are going to ride the pontoon boat, then it is necessary to install the handrails. You can use PVC pipe of 3/4 inch diameter to post on the deck with the help of glue slip joint couplings.

Your home built pontoon boat is ready, you just have to lift the boat up with the help of a flat bed trailer. Boating is a popular pastime in the summer season, now that you know how to build the pontoon boat, make sure you keep the additional safety measures on the boat, such as life jackets, throwback rubber rings, ropes and other life saving equipments. Isn't it easy to build your own pontoon boat?