3 Tips for Designing Your Boat Lift

November 28, 2025

Designing your own boat lift can be quite a challenge because of how complex they are with structural conditions, safety, and the lift mechanism. However, here at Pier Perfection, we take pride in being at the top of Kalamazoo’s boat lift designers by providing great boat lift design with Floe International.

In this month’s blog, we’re going to discuss three tips for designing boat lifts in Kalamazoo, and how they can help you throughout the designing process.

Weight Capacity

When designing your boat lift, we recommend having your lift’s weight capacity exceed that of the boat’s fully loaded weight. Your lift should be able to withstand 15-20% more than the weight of the boat.

This margin helps prevent damage to the lift and boat, and accommodates factors like water, fuel, gear, and potential future boat upgrades.

What’s it Going to be Anchored in?

Consider the bottom composition under the water (muddy, sandy, rocky) when choosing anchoring systems, as the type of bottom dictates the most suitable anchoring method. Pilings might be effective in stable ground, while deadweight or chain anchors might be better for fluctuating water levels or specific bottom types like sandy or muddy substrates.

Can it be Integrated Beside Your Dock?

It’s critical to consider the type of dock you have when designing a boat lift because the dock type dictates how the boat lift can be installed, anchored, and impacts its stability and functionality.

For instance, fixed docks and floating docks will require different boat lifts because the docks are different. Fixed docks are suitable with a traditional bottom-standing lift while floating docks are paired with floating lifts that can also rise and fall with the water level.

Contact Pier Perfection for More Tips!

There’s even more to consider when designing your boat lift but knowing these tips can help you in the designing process and not run into costly mistakes later on.