Seawall repair, dock construction, and boat lift installation across Fort Lauderdale's 165 miles of canals, from Las Olas Isles to the New River.
165 Miles of Canals. We've Worked Most of Them.
Fort Lauderdale has more navigable canals than Venice, Italy. That means more seawalls, more docks, and more boat lifts per square mile than almost anywhere else in the country, and more opportunities for things to go wrong when the contractor doesn't know what they're doing.
South Florida Seawall is based in Boca Raton, minutes from Fort Lauderdale, and we work on waterfront properties throughout the city year-round. We know the difference between conditions on a Tarpon River finger canal and an exposed Intracoastal lot in Harbor Beach. We know what the City of Fort Lauderdale requires for permits and what Broward County adds on top. We don't have a learning curve on your project.
Every project starts with a free on-site assessment. No bids over the phone, no guesswork about water depth or soil conditions. We look at your specific property before we quote a number.
The waterways themselves dictate a lot of what we recommend. A wall on the New River deals with commercial traffic and constant wake. A Las Olas finger canal holds water that barely flushes, so corrosion runs hotter there. An Intracoastal-facing lot in Harbor Beach takes open-water energy that a sheltered canal never sees. Two walls a mile apart can need completely different repairs, and we scope them that way.
Fort Lauderdale's saltwater canal system puts seawalls under constant pressure. We repair cracked panels, failing tie-backs, deteriorated caps, and soil voids on both concrete and vinyl systems.
Learn MoreReplacing a failed seawall or building on vacant waterfront? We engineer and install vinyl sheet pile and reinforced concrete seawalls to current NAVD88 elevation requirements, fully permitted through the City of Fort Lauderdale and Broward County.
Learn MoreFrom a simple finger dock on a Las Olas canal to a multi-slip configuration on the New River, we design and build custom docks using composite decking, aluminum frames, and concrete or fiberglass pilings.
Learn MoreRotting decking, soft pilings, and broken hardware all add up: Fort Lauderdale's boat traffic and saltwater environment accelerate wear on any dock. We repair what's failing and replace what's beyond repair.
Learn MoreKeeping your boat out of Fort Lauderdale's salt water between trips is the single best investment you can make in its hull. We install elevator lifts, floating lifts, and PWC platforms sized exactly for your vessel.
Learn MoreBuying a waterfront home in Fort Lauderdale? A general home inspector won't catch failing tie-backs or sub-surface void formation. Our pre-purchase seawall inspections give you a real structural picture, with a written report, before you close.
Learn MoreFort Lauderdale's canal density means most walls share the same enemies: salt, tide, wake, and age. These are the failures we find most often.
Fort Lauderdale's 165+ miles of canals hold mostly older concrete walls, and salt air plus tidal splash attacks the cap first. Once the concrete cover cracks and chlorides reach the rebar, spalling accelerates fast and the cap starts dropping chunks into the water.
Many Las Olas, Rio Vista, and Coral Ridge seawalls were built in the 1960s and 70s with tie-back rods and deadmen that have been corroding in saturated soil for decades. When they let go, the wall leans toward the water, slowly at first, then all at once after a storm.
Weep holes clog, joints separate, and every tidal cycle pulls a little more soil out through the wall. On finger canals that don't flush well, the first sign is often a depression in the lawn or a cracked paver deck ten feet behind the wall.
Daily tidal fluctuation plus constant boat wake on the New River and Intracoastal works on panel joints year-round. Cracks that start hairline widen into soil loss channels, and a single displaced panel compromises the sections next to it.
Fort Lauderdale's tidal flooding ordinance reflects what residents already see: king tides pushing over low walls onto docks, yards, and streets in Rio Vista, Las Olas, and the isles. Walls built to decades-old elevations increasingly can't hold back October tides.
A general home inspection doesn't cover what's below the waterline. On Fort Lauderdale waterfront, where a failing wall can turn into a six-figure problem, that's a gap buyers can't afford. Our seawall inspections document panel, cap, tie-back, and soil conditions with photos and a written report you can use in negotiations. For properties with docks and lifts, our broader marine inspections cover the whole waterfront in one visit.
We also do post-storm assessments. After a hurricane or a bad king tide season, an inspection tells you whether you're looking at a void that needs filling or a wall that needs replacing. Either answer is cheaper than finding out when the lawn drops.
Inspections here also come with a paperwork benefit: the written report documents your wall's condition and elevation, which insurers, buyers, and the city's tidal-flooding review all ask about at different times. Having it on file before you need it is the cheap version of being prepared.
Inspect
We walk the wall, probe behind it for voids, check cap, panels, tie-backs, and elevation, and photograph everything. You get a written condition report, not a verbal guess.
Diagnose & quote
We tell you what's failing, what caused it, and whether repair or replacement makes more sense, with an itemized quote for each option where both are viable.
Permit
We file with City of Fort Lauderdale Development Services, plus Broward County Environmental Protection & Growth Management for tidal work. FDEP or Army Corps review applies on navigable waters like the New River and Intracoastal.
Repair
Our crew executes the approved scope: injection, cap work, panel or tie-back replacement, backfill, and grading. Most residential repairs run one to five days on site.
Walkthrough & warranty
Final inspection with you on site, documentation of the completed work, warranty paperwork, and straight answers on what to watch going forward.
We work throughout Fort Lauderdale's waterfront neighborhoods. If your property touches water, we can help.
From the New River forks to the Intracoastal, each waterway sets its own exposure profile and its own permitting track. The list below covers the communities and waters we work on most.
Most Fort Lauderdale walls we inspect don't need replacing. Cracks, spalling caps, isolated voids, and single-panel damage are all repairable, and our seawall repair work covers exactly that. Replacement makes sense when the wall is past 40 years with systemic corrosion, when repairs would cost more than half of a new wall, or when the wall can't meet current elevation requirements even after a cap raise.
When replacement is the answer, our new construction work builds vinyl or concrete walls to current NAVD88 standards with new tie-backs and a proper cap. For what each path costs, the seawall cost guide and seawall repair page break down real numbers.
One Fort Lauderdale-specific note: because the city's tidal-flooding ordinance treats substantial repairs as a trigger for current elevation standards, a wall that's borderline can tip into rebuild territory once the scope is permitted. We check that before quoting so the option we recommend is the one the city will actually approve.