News — boat block party

Wakeboarding Accessories: Get Your Boat Ready For Labor Day

By: Wake-Worx

Surfing is probably the most fun you can have in the water: the buildup of choosing the right wave, catching it, and using every muscle in your body to balance out, stand up, and ultimately ride it is an extremely satisfying experience. Unfortunately, access to actual waves can limit the amount of surfing you can do in your life, usually only benefiting those living near tropical coastlines with decent wind speeds which produce surf-able waves. Luckily, thanks to the invention of wakeboarding and wakesurfing, now you can go surfing anywhere boats are allowed!

Wakeboarding is done when a rope (usually between 52 and 78 feet long) is attached to the back of a boat, allowing someone who’s standing on a wakeboard to hold on and ride the wake that the boat produces as it picks up speed. Wakesurfing is similar but involves a shorter rope (usually around 20 feet), or sometimes no rope at all. These water sports allow people who live near lakes to enjoy the thrill of surfing without needing to relocate.

So, with Labor Day being the last holiday of the summer, you’re going to want to make sure your boat is equipped with the best boat accessories to help you get up on that wake wave and see what everyone’s been raving about. At the very least, you’re going to need a ballast system to help your boat balance and create bigger, more ride-able waves. If you’re already an experienced wakeboarder or surfer, look into purchasing an aftermarket surf system which gives you complete control over the size and direction of your wake while also ensuring that your boat is safely balanced. Once your boat is decked out with these essential boat accessories, try to find some American themed wakeboards or wakesurf boards — Labor Day will be upon us soon, after all.

Spend this coming Labor Day living the American dream — go out on your boat for some soothing relaxation, good company, and great fun. Find the right wakeboarding or wakesurfing boat accessories for you today and have a holiday you and your friends will be sure to remember!

For all your accessories and/or vinyl flooring options visit Pontoon-Depot's shop site. 

What to Wear on a Boat | Pontoon-Depot

By: A Pair & A Spare

I know I know, ‘What am I going to wear on the boat’ is pretty much at the top of the list of First World Problems, up there with inexplicable anger when your phone battery dies and eating so much you get sleepy. Regardless, if you’re lucky this Summer you might get invited on a boat. Yay! Rejoice because a) drinking Aperol Spritz’s in the sunshine on the water is what Summer is all about and b) you don’t own said boat (ask anyone who owns a boat and they’ll tell you that it’s like throwing money out the window).

Wearing: Denim DIY cut offs, Her one piece, Ray Ban sunglasses, Market Flats, Hat from Athens

Plan for all weather conditions

No matter what the forecast says, or what the weather is like before you leave, be prepared for both cold and windy and blazing hot sunshine. Pack sunscreen and a hat (make sure it fits properly as that pesky wind can strike at any time) as well as something warm to throw on like a denim shirt (like this one) or utility jacket (like this one).

Choose the right footwear

Make sure it’s something that can slip on and off easily and something with a bit of grip. I’m all about a flat but a wedge could also work (although is much less practical). Sandals (like these) or converse (like these) are perfect – just make sure they have light coloured soles. Black soles that mark the deck are a big no no and the first rule of boating etiquette.

Keep clothing basic

Don’t wear anything that is too precious so avoid silk and anything that you wouldn’t want getting wet – Denim is a great hardy fabric to wear – these denim shorts or these ones would be perfect. Hats and discarded items of clothing are notorious for flying off the boat too, so be careful!

Take a big bag

I always take a few outfits with me when I go on a boat, mainly because sometimes your clothes get wet or you want something more comfortable to wear. That’s where a big bag will come in – a large tote that can handle a few changes as well as your magazines and beauty products.

Take a pair of sunnies (or three)

Forgetting to bring a pair of sunglasses will truly ruin your day. I always take more than one pair because I find that friends sometimes don’t bring their own – sharing is caring! I just make sure I get them back at the end of the the day 🙂

Arrive with your swimsuit already on

Space is a big issue on boats and the changing facilities are usually below deck in the toilet. Small and cramped and terrible if you get seasick so spend as little time in there as possible. Bikinis are just as appropriate as a one piece, but I love that my one piece doubles as a bodysuit as soon as you throw on a pair of shorts. This looks like the perfect one piece, and I love this nautical swimsuit.

Consider Short Skirts or dresses carefully

Not only are these a bad idea in windy conditions but boats are often 2 levels. You spend a lot of the day climbing up and down the ladder between them so don’t wear a skirt of dress. The upper deck is where all the sunbathing happens too! A romper like this one is a great alternative.

Other tips

If you arrive in your swimsuit don’t forget to bring your underwear. A kaftan is great for throwing over your swimsuit while in the cabin or eating lunch (and is super sun smart). Don’t be afraid to get into the boating spirit. Nothing says nautical like blue and white with a touch of red and some tan accessories. Oh, and on the practical side – fashion doesn’t apply when you feel like there’s a need to put s life jacket on (when you’re inverting or traversing the seaway for example), and don’t ever get in the water when the engine or propellor are still on.

For all your accessories and/or vinyl flooring needs visit Pontoon-Depot's shop site.

Fun in the Sun: 5 Deck Boat Tips for Summer

By: Better Boat

The weather has warmed up, and so has the water—summer is here!

Ready to make the most of the sunniest months of the year? I’m going to introduce you to some handy deck boat tips to keep your favorite ride humming all through June, July, August and then some.

When I purchased my first boat, I did so in the spring (around mid-April) with my eyes on the prize—heading out onto the lake in the summer. I wanted to get out there ASAP, with friends, family and anyone who wanted to join.

The mistake I made in that moment was trying to rush that very process. If I had given myself a little bit more time and made a list (like this one), I might have prepared better (and not have forgotten a few things—like a cooler!). That’s why, as we uncover some of my best deck boat tips, it’s going to be all about patience.

Keep your head straight, your eyes on the prize (just as I did) and enjoy some of the best deck boat tips to help you prepare for summer in style.

5 Deck Boats Tips for Summer

1. Give Your Deck Boat a Thorough Inspection

If you’re bringing your pride and joy out of storage for the summer, or even if you live somewhere warm and are simply taking it out for the day, it’s always beneficial to start with a dry run.

Rather than rushing into the water and hoping for the best, give your pride and joy a thorough spring boat inspection. It’s much easier to complete a general cleaning and equipment maintenance check while still in storage or on the trailer.

Debris removal and small improvements will be easier to do out of the water, but if you uncover anything unsavory—like boat pests, for example—you can handle it right then and there (particularly if it involves your engine) on dry land.

If you put your boat away in storage, it should already be dry. However, especially in the summer after you finish each ride, you should make sure everything is clean as a whistle (and dry as the desert) before you head out again.

2. Set Your Deck Boat Party Rules

One of the biggest advantages we know about deck boats is that they’re made for entertaining. They’re the absolute perfect place to host shindigs. Everyone loves those good times out on the water.

Keeping this in mind, one of the best deck boat tips I’ve ever received is this: Give guests a rundown of the rules before they ever step foot on the boat.

If you’re planning a big day out on the water, put together a basic list of guidelines. Set some ground rules for your friends to let them know what to bring and how to act when they’re out on the water. This can be accomplished by through an email chain, a WhatsApp group or a Facebook message.

These rules can include general safety tips, like ones related to alcohol consumption, and even some fun things, like a BYOB policy or requesting favorite snacks.

Set the ground rules early and you’re more likely to avoid headaches later. Putting safety first on your boat is important, both because it keeps people from getting hurt, and it keeps you from getting in trouble with the law.

When you pre-plan your party, and people know what to expect, there’s less chance of them breaking the rules and making a mess (of your boat, or your boating record).

3. Choose the Perfect Deck Boat Environment

This harkens back to my previous point about patience. If you want to know one of the best tips for taking your deck boat, or any boat, out on the water, it’s this.

Choose your weather conditions and destination spot wisely! This means keeping an extremely close eye on the weather for the day, especially if it’s going to be your deck boat’s first time out on the water in months.

Make sure you go out on a warm, crisp day, with relatively still waters. The last thing you want is to have your engine die in the middle of a storm, or in strong winds, which is especially true of more tropical climates where flash storms are common.

In addition, try to reserve your first ride to smaller bodies of water, which generally make maneuvering a deck boat easier. Shallow waters and narrow creeks give deck boats trouble. They’re a wider size with platforms that make them not as agile and zippy as their runabout counterparts.

The conditions you choose to go out on will determine the quality of your ride, and for the first of the season, it helps to ensure everything is in your favor.

4. Bring Along Deck Boat Accessories

Especially if you rely on your deck boat for entertaining, this tip is all about the importance of planning ahead for the next time you invite friends on board.

If you want to make the most of your fun in the sun, you’ll need the proper accessories. When you own a deck boat, that’s especially important—you have more room, and more functionality, to have a better time.

This can be as simple as ensuring you have the proper cooler mounts to keep things from shifting.

Bimini umbrellas are a useful, simple addition for particularly sunny days.

A misting system may be worth the investment if there are people in your party who are known to get overheated.

You could also invest in fishing mounts, or even a deck boat for fishing altogether. You can even accessorize with fun inflatable water tubes or water skiing equipment.

The last thing you want to do is to be running to the store to purchase things for your deck boat, hours before you’re set to hit the high seas. If you plan ahead, and keep your guests in mind, you’re going to be way happier—and they will be, too.

5. Consider the Space for Guests

One last tip! When preparing your deck boat for summer, know when purchasing a larger deck boat—or upgrading from a small two-person boat—becomes the right decision.

There are plenty of proven and reliable deck boat brands out there, and buying a more spacious deck boat might be the perfect way to enjoy having more people out on the water.

I started off in boat ownership with a small little fishing boat. It was perfect when me and my buddies wanted a weekend away, but we soon started getting girlfriends, then families, and eventually wanted something large enough to take everyone out on the water. That’s why a deck boat, with its luxurious amount of space, is typically considered tops when it comes to that very experience. They run anywhere from 18 to 28 feet and have upholstered seating that can sit up to 14 guests!

The best tip I can give? Know when to get a larger boat, and don’t wait until it’s too late. If you could be having fun out on the water with your wife and kids a couple years earlier, wouldn’t you want that? Don’t procrastinate and regret not making that upgrade. Start considering the advantages sooner than later.

If you want more space, agility and acceleration, a deck boat might be the best move for you. Honestly, the best deck boat tip you might receive today is to just—in general—get better acquainted with them.

Ready for the Summer?

Keep these deck boat tips in mind for the summer and you’re bound to have less headaches, less mechanical issues, and way more fun out on the water.

You can thank me later. Until then, let the good times roll!

For all your accessories and/or vinyl flooring options, click on our shop link at Pontoon-Depot.com

Boat Organization & Storage Tips | Pontoon-Depot

A place for everything, and everything in its place—here's 20 of the best onboard organization solutions for your boat.

By: Zuzana Prochazka

No matter how big the boat, onboard stowage options never seem to be enough. Some captains even insist that for each item that comes aboard, something has to leave. That’s when it’s time to get creative—and organized. Let’s see how some clever crews have managed to fill a boat almost to the point of needing to raise the boot stripe.

1. CREATE SPACE IN THE COCKPIT

When it comes to boat organization, we think of space as being inside or on top of something but a good eye will spot spaces that are simply created. For small cockpit items like sunglasses, sunscreen and cellphones that are always sliding around in the cockpit, try making Sunbrella pockets. Canvas holders can be custom designed around the binnacle, handrails and dodgers. This keeps small stuff from getting lost or broken.

2. MANAGE THE OUTBOARD (AND OTHER HEAVY STUFF)

Even small dinghy outboards can be heavy so many boaters carry a davit to help raise and lower them to the tender (especially on a sailboat). But davits can be expensive to purchase and install and take up space on deck. Some sailboats can solve this with a shackle and block and tackle that will fit in a shoebox. Just hang the rig from the main or mizzen boom and you have a great lifting device for the outboard, dive gear, jerry cans of water or fuel and even coolers.

3. STOW THE LONG STUFF

Boathooks, deck brushes and even dinghy paddles are awkward to stow and take up valuable space in the lazarette. Try leaving them on deck in PVC junction fittings. A row of 3-4 fittings can be lashed to the pushpit and hold these tools vertically. They’re affordable and hold up well in the sun. Just be sure to lay the brushes on deck before a photo op.

4. COLLAPSE WITH CANVAS

Another item that’s not lazarette-friendly is the bucket. Instead of bulky buckets that can crack when you jam them in, consider getting collapsible canvas buckets for deck duty.

5. WRANGLE THE RODE

Line is a space hog. What to do when every space and outside locker is already full of docklines and fenders and you need a stern anchor line? No worries, Quickline has a flat rope reel that can hold up to 265 feet of flat polyester or floating polypropylene webbing out on deck. The reels are 15” – 24” in diameter and only about 1” thick. They may be mounted to a railing or stanchion and have a handy etched measure on them to let you know how much line is out.

6. WRAP THE WRENCHES

A set of wrenches usually comes in a bulky plastic case and if you have room for it, they’re nicely organized. But if space is tight, consider canvas wrench roll-ups. Fold, roll and tie wrenches up like a burrito and easily spot a missing wrench that’s not in its designated pocket.

7. TACKLE THE FASTENERS

Boats are fastener-hungry. There’s no end to the nuts, bolts, screws and hose clamps that a boat will consume and keeping them handy isn’t always easy. Why not use clear tackle boxes to organize the small stuff?

8. STORE THE SANDPAPER

Sandpaper is another consumable that boats love. Most sandpaper comes in bulky cardboard boxes that get wet and ruin the paper inside and you can never find that half sheet of 80-grit that you knew you had leftover from the last varnishing project. A better way to keep lots of sandpaper is with an expandable pocket file from an office supply store. Label each pocket with the grit level and keep small leftover pieces where they belong.

 9. MANAGE MANUALS

While you’re at it, buy two pocket files. They’re great for organizing small manuals and quick reference cards for things like electronics. They’re also good for ship’s papers like insurance, registration and schematics.

10. MAKE PILLOWS THAT AREN’T

We love pillows – they’re comfortable, decorative and really pull a “look” together. But they take up room as do sheets, blankets and towels. Why not combine them into one? Pretty accent pillows can be stuffed with towels and that leaves room in lockers for more jeans to mysteriously find their way aboard.

11. HANG YOUR HAT

Piles of hats accumulate on boats and soon can smell musty. Why not hang baseball caps and sunhats on a single plastic hanger? Just clip them on with clothespins or Velcro. This works great for flipflops on the back of door handles too.

12. VACUUM BAG PUFFY STUFF

If you’re going to keep heavier items aboard year round, consider getting a vacuum sealer. Pack fleeces, jackets and blankets into special bags and suck the air out. Not only does that shrink the contents, it keeps them mildew free.

13. CHOOSE SQUARE CONTAINERS

Galley organization is always a challenge. Not only do you have to find room for boxes and bags of basics like sugar, pasta and chips, you also have to keep them fresh and dry. Plastic containers are great but be sure to choose square ones that will butt up against each other without leaving precious space between round packaging. Label and date the containers if the food will be there a while—and toss out the cardboard that can bring cockroach eggs aboard.

14. SAVE SPACE WITH WIRE RACK DRAWERS

There are never enough drawers on a boat. But you can create them by converting a locker into drawer space using wire rack drawers that are lighter, airier and take up less room inside than actual wooden drawers. Rail and rack solutions can be found in organization outlets like the Container Store.

15. PREP THE PERISHABLES

Perishables, especially produce, can take a beating on long passages. But what to do when you just don’t have the counter space to stow all those vegetables and fruit? Hammocks utilize the space we don’t think of as space—air. String a veggie hammock near the galley. Not only does it make room out of thin air, it’ll keep produce well ventilated and swinging free so it doesn’t get bruised. Also, onions and potatoes may be kept perfectly in pantyhose. Place an onion in the hose, tie a knot, repeat. Hang the hose vertically. Just be sure to separate the two veggies because the moisture in onions makes potatoes sprout.

16. SHRINK WITH SILICONE COOKWARE

Silicone has become a “thing” in household kitchens and it makes even more sense aboard. Bulky galley tools like pot lids and strainers now come in handy collapsible versions that are easy to clean and you can even put them in the oven. Look for pots, baking dishes and even ice cube trays that can be folded and squished into tiny spaces.

17. SECURE THE KNIVES

A knife drawer is inefficient and unsafe on a moving vessel but who has room for a knife block? You do. Cut an existing block or make a new one and mount it on the side of a locker or bulkhead. Slip the knives in and make a canvas cover so you aren’t dodging flying knives in a rough seaway.

Anyone need a drink? Become the fastest bartender on the water.

18. PREP YOUR DOCKTAIL PARTIES

Throwing a party in the anchorage? Try the Docktail Bar. Manage your spirits, mixers, wine, Solo cups, limes and swizzle sticks in a handy tray that mounts on a gunwhale or rail or even slips into a rod holder. The bottles stay secure and you have more room on tables and chairs for food and guests.

19. SECURE BOTTLES AND GLASSES

Transporting the goods to your party can be tricky and noisy. Slip those wine and rum bottles into old socks and pile them into the bilge. They’ll be cushioned and silent. You can also build wine rack below the cabin sole. Oh, and glasses can be protected by hair scrunchies so you can pack them closer together even in bouncy conditions.

20. BRING THE BUNGIES

Finally, you can never have enough bungy cords. They secure everything from fishing rods to slapping halyards. An over-the-door clear pocket organizer will keep dozens of cords of various sizes, tangle free.

These simple solutions expand space aboard so you don’t need to worry about where to stow and hide everything down to the last M&M.