Boat Bimini Top

Boat Bimini Tops and Pontoon Boat Bimini Top reviews.

Welcome to Boat Bimini Tops where you can find a wide variety of boat bimini tops for boats of every types, style, and size. Check out the top brands and styles of boat bimini top products now.

Boat Bimini Tops

One of the primary reasons for owning a boat are relaxing in the sun on the open water, but at some point most boat owners realize that they want to install a boat bimini top for cover against both rain and sun. The choice then is what size cover is needed, and what type of material to have it made out of. There are advantages and disadvantages for each material type, and making an informed decision can prevent costly repairs or replacement long before when it would have been necessary.

Boat Bimini Top Materials

Boat bimini tops are usually made from a number of materials. These are cotton duck, vinyl, polyester, and acrylic. Cotton duck is pretty cheap, however it won’t last as long as other fabrics because of how quickly it breaks down due to exposure to sunlight. Cotton duck cloth is also susceptible to water leaks, so counting on it to keep you from getting wet on a rainy day is a losing proposition.

The next material choice for a boat bimini top is vinyl, perhaps one of the most popular choices for boaters because it is waterproof and easy to clean, in addition to being ultraviolet- and mildew-resistant. The only disadvantage with vinyl is that it can become brittle and crack over time, as well as lose its color.

If looking for multi-color boat bimini top polyester is the best value you can get. In addition to having extremely rich colors from which to choose, polyester also resists damage due to exposure to sunlight extremely well without fading much.

Polyester tops resist stretching and are very strong, so they tend to retain their shape much better. Overall polyester is more water repellent and abrasion resistant that an acrylic fabric, but the polyester top will also fade faster.

Acrylic boat bimini tops are considered to be the premium choice for boat covers. The woven material is silky smooth and wrinkle resistant, holds up well to sunlight exposure, and has exceptional strength and resistance to fading. Unfortunately, acrylic covers that are not solution dyed have a greater tendency to stretch and sag and are prone to leaking.

Boat Bimini Top Hardware

After deciding on a fabric for the boat bimini top the next things to consider are the size of the cover and the material of the mounting hardware. Typically a small cover in the 5-foot range can be purchased for around $250. As the size increases so does the cost.

Mounting hardware comes in aluminum, nylon or stainless steel. Aluminum is much lighter and costs a lot less, however stainless steel mounting hardware will last a lifetime. Less common, but increasingly popular, are chrome and brass-coated fittings, which also last a long time but do corrode.

Nylon fittings are both durable and inexpensive, however exposure to sunlight and weather will eventually cause them to break.Boat bimini tops are available for any size and style of vessel and can be bought online as part of a universal package that is designed to fit a standard type and size of boat, or a custom cover can be made tailored to specific needs and features. Made from a variety of materials these covers can be both durable and colorful, however you will need to make tradeoffs to get the exact cover you want.