- 1). Locate a local dredge rental company. Use the yellow pages in the phone book or do an Internet search.
- 2). Rent a dredge boat. A power loading boat ramp needs to be 5 feet deep, so you can feel comfortable renting their most basic dredge boat. Basic dredge equipment can be worked at a 10-foot depth.
- 3). Plant stakes into the water every 10 feet from land at the boat ramp site. Have a friend hold the end of the tape measure at one edge of the boat ramp site. Drive four stakes into the water.
- 4). Get back on land and measure 16 feet from the edge of the boat ramp to mark the other edge. Drive a stake into the ground, have a friend hold the tape measure on land and walk out into the water driving a stake every 10 feet. Boat ramps should be at least 16 feet wide.
- 5). Load your dredge boat into the water using another boat ramp, sling or slip. Bring the boat to the ramp site and drop the dredge hose into the water near the first stake to use the depth finder. Note the depth and repeat this process near every 10-foot stake on both sides of the ramp.
- 6). Determine where you need to dredge. You want a 1.5-foot drop every 10 feet -- 1.5 feet at the first stake, 3 feet at the second stake, 4.5 feet at the third stake and 6 feet at the fourth stake.
- 7). Drop the dredge hose into the water, start the gasoline engine and dredge the mud at the appropriate sight. Work from the shore out. Keep an eye on the depth finder until you've sculpted a boat ramp with a 15-percent grade.
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