A pontoon is a great place to spend the day, but if it's hot, the sun may become an issue. To provide some relief and skin safety for you and your passengers, you may want to consider one of the following methods for adding shade to your pontoon boat.

1. Buy a Pontoon With Shade

If you're still in the purchasing stage, consider looking for a pontoon boat that comes with built in shade. Depending on your budget and how much shade you want, there are a lot of options. Ideally, you want shade that can be removed so you can have full sun as desired.

2. Look Into Sunbrellas

You can also add special sunbrellas to your pontoon. These come in a variety of designs and colours. Typically, these shades feature telescoping poles that can be fitted into the railings around the perimetre of the pontoon.

Some shades can be pulled up and down in the manner that you move the soft-sided cover of a convertible car up and down. Other shades, in contrast, need to be put up when needed and taken down and stored when not in use.

3. Consider a Waterproof Captain's Cover

Instead of just looking into sun shades, consider investing in a waterproof captain's cover. These also attach to the sides of your pontoon, but they aren't open-sided like a sunbrella. Instead, they cover the captain's seat and the surrounding area much like a camping tent.

Typically, there's even a zipped door that separates the captain's area from the rest of the pontoon. This type of setup gives you shade in that area, but it leaves the rest of the boat open to the sun. That variety works perfectly for some people.

4. Build an Upper Deck

To add shade and increase the amount of useable space in your pontoon, consider building an upper deck. You may want to work with a specialist to ensure that you don't add more weight than the boat can handle. To make it fun, consider adding a diving board or a slide onto the deck.

Then, you can get sun on the deck and get shade when you are beneath the deck, standing on the regular floor of the pontoon boat.

5. Use a Sun Umbrella or Hats

If you don't have the budget to buy a specialized shade for your pontoon or if you don't want to build a deck, consider just investing in some sun umbrellas. There are various ways to stabilise umbrellas so they don't blow away in the wind. Alternatively, buy a bunch of sun hats and keep them handy for passengers and friends.

For more information, contact companies like White Water Marine.