Seawall repair
Get your seawall repaired before a small crack becomes a sinkhole.
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We seal cracks and leaking panel joints, rebuild spalled caps, replace tiebacks and backfill washed-out soil, then tell you honestly whether repair still makes sense or the wall needs replacing.
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- Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and the Keys
The short answer
Many seawall repairs in Miami-Dade, including sealing cracks, spall repair on the cap or face, pilaster repair and backfilling behind the wall, are exempt from a DERM Class I permit; cap and tieback replacement need an expedited authorisation with a $75 review fee (Miami-Dade DERM, 2025). Fort Lauderdale's 2016 survey priced cap spall repair at about $60 per cubic foot of epoxy mortar.
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Signs you need seawall repair
Call us when you see any of these. Each one lets water and soil move through the wall, and the damage speeds up once it starts.
- Cracks, spalling or rust stains on the cap or face
- Open or leaking joints between panels
- Sinkholes or soft ground just behind the wall
- Water seeping through the wall at high tide
- A cap or panels leaning toward the water
Typical project sizes
Repairs range from a few feet of crack sealing to rebuilding tiebacks along a whole lot. In Miami Beach a repair costing $300 or more per linear foot counts as substantial and must bring the wall up to 5.7 ft NAVD, so the size of a repair can change what the city requires.
How do you repair a seawall?
We start with a close inspection at low tide to find where water and soil are moving. Then the fix matches the fault: crack injection or patching for the face, rebuilt concrete for spalled caps, new tie rods and anchors where the wall is leaning, and compacted fill behind the wall once it is sealed.
- Inspect the cap, face, joints and toe at low tide
- Confirm the permit path (exempt, expedited or short form)
- Seal joints and cracks, repair spalls
- Replace tiebacks or the cap if needed
- Backfill and restore the yard
Which seawall repairs need a permit?
Miami-Dade DERM lists as exempt: sealing cracks and spall repair on the cap or face, repair or sealing of pilasters, backfilling landward of an existing seawall, riprap or gunite tubes under an undercut wall no more than 2 ft waterward, and sand-cement bags at the toe no more than 2 ft waterward. Cap and tieback repair or replacement need structurally approved plans from the building department and an expedited DERM authorisation. Your city may still need a building permit.[1]
Repair or replace?
If the panels are sound and the wall is tall enough for local rules, repair is usually the better value. If repairs would cross a city's substantial repair line, such as $300 per linear foot in Miami Beach, you may have to raise the whole wall anyway, and replacement can make more sense.[2]
| Item | Figure | Source year |
|---|---|---|
| Cap spall repair | $60 per cubic foot of epoxy mortar | 2016 (Fort Lauderdale) |
| Adding a 12-inch cap to an existing wall | $75 to $125 per linear foot | 2016 (Fort Lauderdale) |
| DERM expedited review, seawall cap replacement | $75 | 2025 (Miami-Dade) |
| DERM expedited review, tie rod replacement | $75 | 2025 (Miami-Dade) |
| Miami Beach substantial repair threshold | $300 or more per linear foot | 2025 (Miami Beach) |
Frequently asked questions
How much is it to repair a seawall?
It depends on the fault. Fort Lauderdale's 2016 survey priced cap spall repair at about $60 per cubic foot of epoxy mortar and a new 12-inch cap at $75 to $125 per linear foot. We give a fixed quote after a low-tide inspection.
Can I repair a seawall without a permit in Miami-Dade?
Some repairs, yes. DERM exempts crack sealing and spall repair on the cap or face, pilaster repair and backfilling. Your city building department may still need a permit, so we confirm both before work starts.
How often do seawalls need to be replaced?
Fort Lauderdale's ordinance FAQ assumed about 50 years of design life, and city engineers described 30 to 50 years for a new wall. Regular repairs help an older wall reach the end of that range.
Is foam injection a permanent seawall fix?
Injection can seal leaking joints and voids behind a sound wall, but it does not fix a wall that is leaning, cracked through or too low for local rules. We tell you which case you are in before you spend money.
Sources
- Class I Permit Application for Coastal Construction and Mangrove Trimming within Miami-Dade County (Revised May 2025), Miami-Dade County RER, Division of Environmental Resources Management (DERM), Coastal Resources Section. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Seawall FAQs (Miami Beach Rising Above, PDF dated 6.16.25), City of Miami Beach. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Seawalls and Sea Level Rise Induced Flooding (Florida Sea Grant compilation, includes City of Fort Lauderdale 'Frequently Asked Questions: Seawall Ordinance Implementation', 25 Jan 2017), Florida Sea Grant (reproducing City of Fort Lauderdale and Florida Bar ELULS material). Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Florida Statutes 2026, Section 403.813: Permits issued at district centers; exceptions, The Florida Legislature (Online Sunshine). Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Rising Above the Risk: Frequently Asked Questions (05/05/2017), City of Miami Beach. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- CAO 2022-007: Legal Opinion Regarding Scrivener's Error in Zoning Code 3-706 Bulkheads and Retaining Walls (17 Aug 2022), City of Coral Gables, City Attorney. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Staff Report, Planning and Zoning Board, 16 Nov 2022, Case UDP-T22010 (Tidal barrier / seawall ordinance amendment, ULDR 47-19.3), City of Fort Lauderdale. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Department of the Army State Programmatic General Permit VI (SPGP VI), SAJ-2015-2575, State of Florida, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District (document hosted by Florida DEP). Accessed October 27, 2026.
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