Floats make up the multipart hulls of catamarans and trimarans and provide buoyancy for floatplanes, seaplanes and houseboats.[1] They are used in pontoon bridges, floating piers, and floats anchored to the seabed for recreation or dockage. They are also used in shipbuilding and marine salvage, often deployed uninflated then pressurized to raise a sunken object. In military, floats are used as pontoon bridges or transportation platforms for heavier vehicles or machinery.
In popular usage, the term pontoon can refer to any of several of the following objects that make use of nautical floats.
A pontoon boat is a flattish boat that relies on nautical floats for buoyancy. Common boat designs are a catamaran with two pontoons, or a trimaran with three.[2] In many parts of the world, pontoon boats are used as small vehicle ferries to cross rivers and lakes.[3]
An anchored raft-like platform used for diving, often referred to as a pontoon
Anchored recreational platform
Raft-like platforms used for diving and other recreational activities are sometimes anchored at beaches and lake shores, often seasonally. Such platforms may be supported by foam-filled plastic floats or air-filled pontoons, and are known simply as "pontoons" in Australia and New Zealand.[4][better source needed] They may also be called swim floats.[citation needed]
A floating dock, floating pier or floating jetty consists of a platform or ramp supported by nautical floats. It is sometimes joined to the shore with a gangway but can be laid out the whole way from the shore to the end. This type of pier maintains a fixed vertical relationship to watercraft secured to it.
A pontoon bridge (also known as a ponton bridge or floating bridge) uses floats or shallow-draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. Most, but not all, pontoon bridges are temporary, used in wartime and civil emergencies.[5] Seattle in the US and Kelowna in British Columbia, Canada are two places with permanent pontoon bridges, see William R. Bennett Bridge in British Columbia and these in Seattle: Lacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge, Evergreen Point Floating Bridge and Homer M. Hadley Memorial Bridge.
A floatplane (float plane or pontoon plane) is a type of seaplane with one or more slender pontoons mounted under the fuselage to provide buoyancy.
Construction
Pontoons for marine industrial uses are usually fabricated from steel.[6] Pontoons as parts of watercraft and aircraft are more typically molded in glass-reinforced plastic. Other techniques include those of traditional wooden boatbuilding as well as plywood over wooden ribs or metal sheets over metal ribs (aluminium or steel), reflecting the prevailing practice in aircraft and boats. In most cases, the decking surface on top of the pontoon is made from glass-reinforced plastic (GRP) or composite lumber. In model building, floats can easily be carved out of solid blocks or laminated sheets of foam.[7][failed verification]
float, nautical, other, uses, pontoon, pontoon, floats, also, called, pontoons, airtight, hollow, structures, similar, pressure, vessels, designed, provide, buoyancy, water, their, principal, applications, watercraft, hulls, aircraft, floats, floating, pier, p. For other uses of pontoon see Pontoon Floats also called pontoons are airtight hollow structures similar to pressure vessels designed to provide buoyancy in water Their principal applications are in watercraft hulls aircraft floats floating pier pontoon rhinos pontoon causeways and marine engineering applications such as salvage The British racing seaplane Supermarine S 6B 1931 During World War II the United States Navy Civil Engineer Corps developed a modular steel box pontoon for the Seabees to use It was an industrial sized Lego system of pre drilled pre cut angle iron and steel plate that could be assembled anywhere for which they became famous They used them to facilitate amphibious landings With the pontoons Seabees assembled docks causeways and rhinos to whatever size needed They allowed landings on Sicily where no one thought possible They ferried Patton across the Rhine and put the Marines ashore on Okinawa They would be used during the Korean War in the landing at Inchon in 1950 and again in Lebanon during the 1958 Lebanon crisis Various objects that make use of floats are often referred to synecdochically as pontoons Contents 1 Applications 1 1 Pontoon boat 1 2 Anchored recreational platform 1 3 Floating dock 1 4 Pontoon bridge 1 5 Floatplane 2 Construction 3 Gallery 4 See also 5 ReferencesApplications EditFloats make up the multipart hulls of catamarans and trimarans and provide buoyancy for floatplanes seaplanes and houseboats 1 They are used in pontoon bridges floating piers and floats anchored to the seabed for recreation or dockage They are also used in shipbuilding and marine salvage often deployed uninflated then pressurized to raise a sunken object In military floats are used as pontoon bridges or transportation platforms for heavier vehicles or machinery In popular usage the term pontoon can refer to any of several of the following objects that make use of nautical floats Pontoon boat Edit Main article Pontoon boat A pontoon boat is a flattish boat that relies on nautical floats for buoyancy Common boat designs are a catamaran with two pontoons or a trimaran with three 2 In many parts of the world pontoon boats are used as small vehicle ferries to cross rivers and lakes 3 An anchored raft like platform used for diving often referred to as a pontoon Anchored recreational platform Edit Raft like platforms used for diving and other recreational activities are sometimes anchored at beaches and lake shores often seasonally Such platforms may be supported by foam filled plastic floats or air filled pontoons and are known simply as pontoons in Australia and New Zealand 4 better source needed They may also be called swim floats citation needed Floating dock Edit Main article Floating dock jetty A floating dock floating pier or floating jetty consists of a platform or ramp supported by nautical floats It is sometimes joined to the shore with a gangway but can be laid out the whole way from the shore to the end This type of pier maintains a fixed vertical relationship to watercraft secured to it Pontoon bridge Edit Main article Pontoon bridge A pontoon bridge also known as a ponton bridge or floating bridge uses floats or shallow draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel Most but not all pontoon bridges are temporary used in wartime and civil emergencies 5 Seattle in the US and Kelowna in British Columbia Canada are two places with permanent pontoon bridges see William R Bennett Bridge in British Columbia and these in Seattle Lacey V Murrow Memorial Bridge Evergreen Point Floating Bridge and Homer M Hadley Memorial Bridge Floats on a Cessna 208 Caravan 1 floatplane Gloucestershire Airport England 2017 Floatplane Edit Main article Floatplane A floatplane float plane or pontoon plane is a type of seaplane with one or more slender pontoons mounted under the fuselage to provide buoyancy Construction EditPontoons for marine industrial uses are usually fabricated from steel 6 Pontoons as parts of watercraft and aircraft are more typically molded in glass reinforced plastic Other techniques include those of traditional wooden boatbuilding as well as plywood over wooden ribs or metal sheets over metal ribs aluminium or steel reflecting the prevailing practice in aircraft and boats In most cases the decking surface on top of the pontoon is made from glass reinforced plastic GRP or composite lumber In model building floats can easily be carved out of solid blocks or laminated sheets of foam 7 failed verification Gallery Edit Small open catamaran Foldable trimaran with the floats in extended position Floats in a small floatplane A helicopter pontoon augmented by an inflatable emergency pontoon shown in black The underside of a boat during constructionSee also EditBuoy Caisson lock gate Navy lighterage pontoons Outrigger Raft Semi submersible platformReferences Edit The Cruising Multihull 978 0070698680 International Marine Ragged Mountain Press 1996 p 45 ISBN 9780070698680 Retrieved 2009 05 27 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location link Hearst Magazines January 1990 Popular Mechanics Popular Mechanics Magazine Hearst Magazines 48 ISSN 0032 4558 Bonnier Corporation July 1931 Popular Science The Popular Science Monthly Bonnier Corporation 64 ISSN 0161 7370 Murray Rose Pool formerly Redleaf Pool Double Bay 2028 12 January 2016 Leonardo Fernandez Troyano 2003 Bridge Engineering A Global Perspective Thomas Telford pp 692 ISBN 978 0 7277 3215 6 Gregory P Tsinker 2004 Port Engineering Planning Construction Maintenance and Security John Wiley amp Sons pp 452 ISBN 978 0 471 41274 8 rchomepage com ww12 rchomepage com Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Float nautical amp oldid 1116282891, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
