What Is a Bimini Top?
A bimini top is a collapsible canvas canopy with an open front and a metal frame that is typically mounted to the deck or rails of a boat. Bimini tops are designed to keep boaters more comfortable by providing on-demand overhead shade that helps to protect passengers from excessive heat, UV light, or light rain while still allowing a cool breeze to flow through.
Bimini tops are compatible with thousands of different makes, models, and styles of boats, including fishing boats, pontoons, ski boats, and more, many of which can be found right here at RecPro.
Benefits of a Bimini Top
While it may seem like all a bimini top does is give you a little shade, it might surprise you just how beneficial that shade can be. There usually aren't many trees around when you're out on the water, which means that all the heat and UV light of the sun is shining directly on you and every other part of your boat. That can make you and any passengers you may have with you start to feel really hot, really fast, and also puts you and your passengers at risk for sunburn.
The shade that a bimini top provides, combined with the breeze that it allows to pass through, goes a long way in keeping the seating areas of your boat, such as the cockpit, much cooler, which makes outings much more enjoyable for you and your passengers. The cover of a bimini top is typically made with a UV-resistant fabric, which aids in providing you with significant protection from UV light and reduces the chances of you getting a painful sunburn. The UV protection provided by the bimini isn't just for the people; it also extends to your boat by reducing sun damage to electronics and surfaces and helping to prevent fading in your upholstery.
Find the Right Bimini Top For Your Boat
Measure Your Boat Before Ordering
Measuring your boat for a bimini top is easy and will help ensure that you get the correct size for your vessel. Start by determining where you want the mounting brackets to sit on the port and starboard (left and right) sides of your boat. Then, use a tape measure and measure the width of your boat from the center of the port mounting points to the center of the starboard mounting points without measuring up and over any obstacles.
Next, measure the length of your boat from bow to stern (front to back). Take note of where your length measurement intersects with your width measurement, as that will mark the center point of your coverage area, which you will use to determine the length of the bimini top you will need. The easiest way to do that is to take the bimini length you want and divide it in half, which will give you the length of coverage on the front and back of the coverage area center point. For example, a total coverage area of 5 feet (or 60") would extend 2 ½ feet (or 30") from the front of the centerpoint and 2 ½ feet (or 30") from the rear of the centerpoint.
Finally, you'll determine the height. Start by standing in your boat and measuring from the mounting points to the height you want your bimini top to be, giving you the bimini top height you'll need. Keep in mind that shade decreases as height increases. Next, measure from the floor to the mounting points, and add that measurement to the bimini top height measurement to get your total clearance, which determines how much overhead space you will have when standing while the bimini is mounted. For example, if you have 25 inches of height from the floor to the mounting points and you want a 36-inch high bimini top, you would have a total overhead clearance of 61 inches.
Why Buy Bimini Tops from RecPro?
Shopping for bimini tops at RecPro makes it easy to find the right kind of bimini top for your boat, thanks to our selection of styles and our wide range of available sizes. Shopping with RecPro can also give you confidence and peace of mind in the reliability of your purchase, as our bimini tops are made using super durable, high-quality marine-grade materials, with a variety of canvas colors that make it easy to customize the look of your bimini top.
Multiple Sizes and Styles
RecPro offers a wide selection of 2-bow, 3-bow, and even 4-bow style bimini top sizes with a huge range of available sizes to choose from. The bimini tops here at RecPro are available in heights of 32", 35", 36", 42", 46", and 54", with lengths of 60", 66", 72", and 96". The available widths of our bimini tops range from 47" up to 96". The huge variety of sizes and styles of bimini tops offered here at RecPro makes it easy to find one that is perfect for your particular style of boat.
Quality Marine-Grade Materials
The bimini tops available here at RecPro are designed with high-quality marine-grade materials to provide you with outstanding performance and convenience while remaining lightweight and sturdy. These marine-grade materials include thick, heavy-duty aluminum tubing for the frames that are resistant to corrosion, keeping the bimini top lightweight while giving it strength, structural rigidity, and protection from harsh marine elements.
Another excellent example of the marine-grade materials used in these bimini tops is the canvas fabric options, which include Sharkskin Plus, Sharkskin Supreme SD, and Sunbrella marine fabrics. Each of these marine-grade canvas fabrics is incredibly strong and highly resilient to outdoor elements, such as extended exposure to UV light or heat from the sun. Each of these fabrics also features a unique selection of vibrant and fade-resistant colors, allowing for an incredible level of customizability.
If you want to browse boat bimini tops made with high-quality materials that give you reliability and peace of mind, with a wide and varied selection that makes it easy to find the right one for your boat, then RecPro is the right place for you. Browse through our collection today and see for yourself the outstanding qualities that our marine bimini tops have to offer you.
