How to Build a Pontoon Swim Platform

Swimming and playing in the water are even more fun with a diving board, but if your water source is the lake at the cottage, a diving board might not be practical. Instead, a do-it-yourself swimming/diving platform---floating in the lake---will provide hours of fun. Best of all, it is relatively inexpensive to make, requires only a few items and can be completed in an afternoon.

Things You'll Need

  • Four 4 x 4 lengths of wood, each eight feet long
  • Screws
  • Drill
  • 24 2 x 4 lengths of wood, each eight feet long
  • Eyelet
  • Paint containing grit
  • Waterproof caulk
  • Floating barrels
  • Nylon rope
  • Cinder blocks
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Instructions

    • 1

      Screw together the four pieces of 4 X 4 board into a square, using the screws and the drill. This will form the frame of your swim platform.

    • 2

      Cover the frame with the 2 X 4 boards, screwing each piece of wood to the frame at both ends. Once each 2 X 4 board is attached to the frame, it will be sturdy.

    • 3

      Screw a heavy eyelet into the center of one of the 4 X 4 boards.

    • 4

      Paint the surface of the 2 X 4 boards with a waterproof paint that contains grit. You also can buy regular waterproof paint and stir a can of grit into it. This step will ensure that the platform does not become slippery when wet.

    • 5

      Attach the floating barrels together using waterproof caulk. Hardware and marine stores sell several different sizes of barrels, and you will have to purchase enough of the appropriate size to fill the eight-foot by eight-foot frame you created.

    • 6

      Place the floating barrels in the water, and set the wooden frame directly on top. There is no need to fasten the barrels to the wood, as gravity will hold them together. Determine the rough depth of the water by using a depth finder or a string with a rock tied to one end.

    • 7

      Tie one end of the nylon rope to the eyelet in the platform, and pass the other end through two to four cinder blocks that will serve as an anchor. Tie the rope back to itself, ensuring the length of the rope is no less than the depth of the water. Drop the cinder blocks into the water where you wish the platform to be located.