Suction dredge excavation for boat slips, channels, and ponds
Auburn Dredging is a suction dredging service for boat slips, boathouses, channels, and ponds serving Auburn, Lake Martin, and east Alabama. Depth checked before we quote, permits filed before we pump, prices published before you call.
Restoring a silted boat slip on Lake Martin costs $2,500 to $6,000 for a typical single slip, and the job runs in three parts: an Alabama Power shoreline permit plus Corps of Engineers coverage under Nationwide Permit 19, which caps minor dredging at 25 cubic yards; a suction dredge that pumps the sediment through a sealed line to geotextile dewatering tubes on the bank; and spoil that either spreads on your property once it drains or leaves by truck at $15 to $35 a cubic yard. Pumping takes one to two days, permits take two to six weeks, and a dredged slip typically holds its depth 10 to 20 years on open water, less near a creek mouth. The same method cleans out farm ponds, stormwater basins, and marina basins without draining them.
See your price range right now
Three questions, priced straight from the published cost guide. No email wall, and the range updates as you answer.
Sediment depth moves the price inside the range. A quick sounding at the boathouse pins it down before we put anything in writing.
Three kinds of water, one method
Boat slips & boathouses
The pontoon that touches bottom at winter pool is the classic Lake Martin call. We sound the slip, pull the accumulated silt back out to the depth it was dug with, and clear the approach lane if the flat has crept past your boathouse mouth. The boat floats in every season again, and the fix holds for a decade or more.
Ponds & stormwater basins
Farm ponds, subdivision amenity water, and the stormwater basins every HOA owns a piece of. Suction dredging restores the original depth with the water and fish still in place, and for stormwater basins we document the recovered volume against the engineering drawings so inspections have an answer.
Channels, marinas & permits
Community channels, HOA basins, and marina slips price by measured volume, and every job on Alabama Power or Georgia Power water starts with the shoreline permit. We prepare the filings ourselves, and the permit page explains the whole process in plain words before you commit to anything.
From first call to full depth
- 1
Depth check
We sound the slip or survey the pond, measure the sediment, and give you a written number from the published table. The $300 to $800 fee credits against the job.
- 2
Permits
Alabama Power or Georgia Power shoreline approval plus Corps of Engineers coverage, prepared and filed by us. Two to six weeks, and nothing floats until it clears.
- 3
Setup
The dredge arrives by barge or ramp, dewatering tubes stage on the bank, and a turbidity curtain rings the work area.
- 4
Pumping
The suction head walks the bottom and sends sediment through a sealed line to the tubes. A single slip pumps in one to two days.
- 5
Spoil and closeout
Tubes drain clear water back to the lake for a few weeks, then the dried spoil spreads on site or leaves by truck. You get the depth soundings before and after.
The numbers, before you call
Dredging quotes in this part of Alabama have a habit of arriving only after a salesman visit. Ours start on a public page. These are the ranges we quote from, and the full cost guide explains what moves each one.
| Job | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Depth check and sediment survey | $300 to $800 |
| Single boat slip | $2,500 to $6,000 |
| Boathouse plus approach lane | $4,000 to $9,000 |
| Pond cleanout, under 1 acre | $12,000 to $35,000 |
Auburn out to the water
We work from Auburn across Lake Martin’s shoreline towns, up the Tallapoosa to Tallassee’s river lakes, and east to Lake Harding and the Chattahoochee. Each area page covers the water we actually work there, what it costs, and the questions owners in that spot ask.
Asked before every job
What does it cost to dredge a boat slip on Lake Martin?
Most single slips run $2,500 to $6,000. Sediment depth and where the spoil can go are what move the number, and our cost guide publishes the full table so you can see the range before you ever call.
Do I need a permit to dredge my slip or shoreline?
Yes. On Lake Martin, Yates, and Thurlow, Alabama Power approves shoreline work, and the Corps of Engineers covers minor dredging under Nationwide Permit 19 up to 25 cubic yards. We prepare and file both before any work starts.
Does suction dredging muddy the lake or hurt fish?
No. The sediment travels through a sealed line to dewatering tubes on the bank, a turbidity curtain rings the work area, and the water that returns to the lake has filtered clear. Ponds get dredged with the fish still in them.
More on the FAQ page, including drawdown timing, spoil handling, and what happens when a permit gets kicked back.
Start with the depth check
Tell us where the water is and what it is doing. We’ll sound it, measure the sediment, and hand you a written quote priced off the public table. If dredging is not the right answer for your spot, we say that too.