Homemade Wood Kayak Racks

Homemade wood kayak racks can be built with a few simple materials. This one can be built free-standing or you can attach it to a building. This flat design makes for easy on- and off-loading, though for storing multiple kayaks, it does take up more space than vertical designs. This rack works best for a close-to-the-water location where kayakers load and off-load frequently and with a collection of canoes and kayaks of various sizes.

Things You'll Need

  • Post-hole digger
  • Two 8-foot 4 x 4 posts or telephone pole or heavy post
  • Chain saw
  • String level
  • Six bags ready-mix concrete
  • Shovel
  • Wheelbarrow
  • Two 12-foot treated 2 x 12s
  • Circular saw
  • Heavy duty drill with long 3/8 wood bit
  • Four 6-inch-long half-inch galvanized lag screws
  • Half-inch washers
  • Socket set with half-inch-deep socket
  • Box of 2 1/2-inch galvanized screws and flat washers to fit
  • 40 feet of old fire hose or carpet strips
  • Twelve half-inch eyebolt screws
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Instructions

  1. Assembling the Rack

    • 1

      Measure your shortest boat. Divide the length by three then multiply by two. The rectangle described by the rack will be 12 feet long by the width you got from the figure you just calculated.

    • 2

      Cut the posts into 4-foot lengths with a chainsaw or other large saw. Mark the site for the first pair of posts holding a cross beam so that the posts are 9 feet apart. Dig 2-foot deep postholes at the marks. Measure the distance for the second pair of postholes so that they are the distance you got in Step 1 from the first pair and also 9 feet apart. Dig two more 2-foot deep holes. Stick the posts into the holds. Use the string level, adding or subtracting dirt in the bottom of the holes until the tops of the posts are level with each other.

    • 3

      Mix the concrete and pour around the posts. Use two bags of concrete per hole. Allow to cure overnight before bolting on the crossbeams.

    • 4

      Predrill four 3/8 inch holes, one in each post and lag screw the 2 x 12 crossbeams to the posts so they are even with the top of the posts and on the outside of the rectangle described by the posts. Make sure they stick out past the posts evenly on all four sides (about a foot and a half). For safety, use a larger drill bit and recess the lag bolts by drilling a wider hole in the top predrilled holes you just made before screwing in the washer and lag screw. This way, the head of the bolt will be below the surface of the post.

    • 5

      Use carpet strips, or better yet, buy a length of old fire hose from your local fire department. They occasionally sell or give away old hoses. Just ask the station captain to save one for you when they do. Screw the carpet or hose to the top of the cross beams. Start at one end and screw to the beam with a screw and washer. Push up the hose or carpet strip to create a bump and add another screw 6 inches or so from the first. Continue creating a series of padded bumps down the length of the rack.

    • 6

      Predrill six 3/8-inch holes 2 feet apart the length of the outside faces of the crossbeams. The end holes will be less than 2 feet--2 inches from the ends of the beams. Screw the eyebolts into the holes to use as tie-down points for the racked kayaks or canoes.