Sunshade over trampoline, advice needed

[CaptainRivet]

Hi all,
It's time I get finally a proper shading "tent" over the trampoline. Classic way with rope between genua and mast, tent style cloth over it and mounted to reling with strapps. I have one already from my old mono made from very good sunambrella but that will need extension anyhow in all dimensions.
I would like to gather your experience for longer use experience in general and especially on the following points.
1) is standing height in the middle beneficial or even more? If not standing which height is best from experience. The middle is mounted with rope/webbing strap around the genua and to the mast, so the higher I put it the shorter is the top protecting part (angle of genua).
2) as I need to extend it anyhow I could sew into the middle a stripe of the perforated material so heat can get out much better. But that means it's not fully covering from sun and also means it's not watertide for the occasional poor down in eg Caribbean. The cat oriententates into wind so the wind pushes the heat out, also in light wind? Needed or good to have or better full cover?
3) connection cloth to reling:
A)grommets and elastic or non elastic rope or both=one side elastic and the other non with hooks Or
B)webstraps sewn to cloth with a spanner.
Anything else that needs attention/is important?
Cat is a FP Lavezzi.
Used for circumnavigation on barefoot route.

[Shrew]

The higher you rig your sunshade the more sun exposure you're going to get early and late in the day. At standing height, your shade will be focused on the middle of the day.

Technically, ALL boats (not just cats) point bow into the wind when on anchor or mooring.

It is doubtful you'll want to sit out there in a hard rainstorm. Heavy squalls are often accompanied by at least some wind, which will drive rain into the space.

[CaptainRivet]

Originally Posted by Shrew

The higher you rig your sunshade the more sun exposure you're going to get early and late in the day. At standing height, your shade will be focused on the middle of the day.

Technically, ALL boats (not just cats) point bow into the wind when on anchor or mooring.

It is doubtful you'll want to sit out there in a hard rainstorm. Heavy squalls are often accompanied by at least some wind, which will drive rain into the space.

Thanks.
So whats best compromise for height?
It's tent style so except when sun comes directly from bow you also have shade if sun is lower, from stern mast/lazybag and deckhouse cover a big part.

Sure not hard rainstorm, then also the windage of the tent is an issue. But in the occasional poor down in Caribbean why not? It also covers the 2 front facing hatches so I can keep them fully open and get wind into salon.

If you have current and or wave and a very light wind from different direction a cat is not necessarily pointing into the wind but swinging around...most mono would do too, my old longkeeler would point into direction of current.

Just looking for the best compromise and proven setup from experience. A lot of cats have it and have experience with it...
Like webstraps for 3 sounds the best option but I cannot easy replace them (if properly sewn they should last as long as the cloth,true?) and elastic is it an advantage or even needed in some occasions.

[Franziska]

Instead of Sunbrella you could try this stuff. Fairly cheap but well suited for the job.

https://www.amazon.com/Shade-Cloth/s?k=Shade+Cloth

[Kinkircating]

We don't have it yet, but we are having Ullman make us one that is copying what the Sailing Zatara family did with theirs (copying is the sincerest form of flattery they say!)

Since it's being made in South Africa they are using a local manufacturer, the cloth is called Knittex - Drix. What's unique about what we are doing is having 3 mounting points for swinging chairs underneath and using the halyards to support. This will be on a Balance 526, but the pics here sort of show what we are doing:

[Jenta]

In July of 2019 we purchased this for our Lagoon 440 and it fits perfectly.
Though we don't use it all the time, we do use it a lot so it has had a LOT of exposure for the last 6 years and it still looks new except one small spot where it rubs against the mast.

Can't beat the price and the quality has been spectacular.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072JSRR34

[Franziska]

Originally Posted by Jenta

In July of 2019 we purchased this for our Lagoon 440 and it fits perfectly.
Though we don't use it all the time, we do use it a lot so it has had a LOT of exposure for the last 6 years and it still looks new except one small spot where it rubs against the mast.

Can't beat the price and the quality has been spectacular.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072JSRR34

Plus 1 from me.


That's exactly the material I was referring to earlier. Farmers even use it on their fields. We also made suncovers for our portlights and rope bags from it. Comes also in different translucency levels.



Super cheap an very well lasting, especially if you reinforce the edges.

[CaptainRivet]

Originally Posted by Jenta

In July of 2019 we purchased this for our Lagoon 440 and it fits perfectly.
Though we don't use it all the time, we do use it a lot so it has had a LOT of exposure for the last 6 years and it still looks new except one small spot where it rubs against the mast.

Can't beat the price and the quality has been spectacular.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072JSRR34

That price is really hard to beat.
Instead taking my old hardly used and extend it only the cloth will cost more then the whole sunsail here. Just need to find a supplier that ships to canaries.

[Sos]

Originally Posted by Jenta

In July of 2019 we purchased this for our Lagoon 440 and it fits perfectly.
Though we don't use it all the time, we do use it a lot so it has had a LOT of exposure for the last 6 years and it still looks new except one small spot where it rubs against the mast.

Can't beat the price and the quality has been spectacular.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072JSRR34

Not waterproof so won't keep open hatches dry!

[fxykty]

The way to beat lower angle sun is vertical side panels. Go full height in the middle (bending over under the shade is horrible), lower at the front than at the mast, and angle the panels about 15* from horizontal. It’s better for shape if you can take a halyard out to each bow and use non-elastic to connect the four corners (front to halyards and aft to shrouds). Wings behind the mast can help with shading the cabin top and protecting front facing hatches from light rain. The side panels can be rolled up on the non-sunny side or when the sun is higher angle.

Haven’t built ours yet, but have designed it and know exactly what we need to buy. It’s a lot of material for our boat (rectangle approximately 8m by 6m, 2x 1.5m x 6m side panels and 2x 2m x 4m front/rear panels (when lying to westerlies/easterlies). No need for Sunbrella as it doesn’t need to be waterproof - any decent shade cloth fabric will do.

[Jenta]

Originally Posted by Sos

Not waterproof so won't keep open hatches dry!

Very true, but it is quite water resistant/retardant and if at an angle over the hatch should do pretty well.

[CaptainRivet]

Originally Posted by fxykty

The way to beat lower angle sun is vertical side panels. Go full height in the middle (bending over under the shade is horrible), lower at the front than at the mast, and angle the panels about 15* from horizontal. It’s better for shape if you can take a halyard out to each bow and use non-elastic to connect the four corners (front to halyards and aft to shrouds). Wings behind the mast can help with shading the cabin top and protecting front facing hatches from light rain. The side panels can be rolled up on the non-sunny side or when the sun is higher angle.

Haven’t built ours yet, but have designed it and know exactly what we need to buy. It’s a lot of material for our boat (rectangle approximately 8m by 6m, 2x 1.5m x 6m side panels and 2x 2m x 4m front/rear panels (when lying to westerlies/easterlies). No need for Sunbrella as it doesn’t need to be waterproof - any decent shade cloth fabric will do.

That’s basically a 2nd full enclosure Bimini over the trampoline. Lot material to store if not in use.
But the idea with halyard on the front is good one. On the bottom you wanna use front cleat or crossmember or could use the 2 blocks for the spi as counter to halyard? Mhh on one side at the bow I have a flag pole holder I could actually put in a pole to keep that corner up.
To simplify your setup for overhead high angle sun I just use halyards and the shrouds. If sun goes low I just lower one side facing the sun down to the reling.
That should do it in 90%.
It’s mostly the strong sun during peak hours when it’s high up you wanna have shade, if sun is low it’s less strong and no shade needed.
To get shade over salon window I just use a bigger sunshade sail linked above by Jenta that goes beyond the mast by approx 1m and make a cut out for the mast and a Velcro or zipper or grommets to join after cut out. Yes it won‘t be watertide but if I figure I need that above the hatches I can use my old but basically unused smaller sunumbrella cover and sew it on top of the big sunsail in this area.
How does that plan sound?

[CaptainRivet]

Originally Posted by Kinkircating

We don't have it yet, but we are having Ullman make us one that is copying what the Sailing Zatara family did with theirs (copying is the sincerest form of flattery they say!)

Since it's being made in South Africa they are using a local manufacturer, the cloth is called Knittex - Drix. What's unique about what we are doing is having 3 mounting points for swinging chairs underneath and using the halyards to support. This will be on a Balance 526, but the pics here sort of show what we are doing:

That’s a very tempting but also expensive setup.
On a 50+ft cat I would definitely go for that and copy this too 1:1. zatara‘s sunsail is not covering the net as connected to the 2nd forestay. But these chairs a definitely a great idea.
I just have 40ft but I have a front facing spreader where also the radar is mounted on and can very simply use its front tip to connect a rope and have one swinging chair hanging down from it by just a grommet into the sunsail for the rope to pass through at that point. Saves me also one bean bag that’s hard to store when not in use.

[CaptainRivet]

Originally Posted by Franziska

Instead of Sunbrella you could try this stuff. Fairly cheap but well suited for the job.

https://www.amazon.com/Shade-Cloth/s?k=Shade+Cloth

How do you cut that material, hot knife?
I can only can get that sunsail in 5m x 5m but need 5.8 till 6.5m in width. So the plan would be cut it in half an insert in the middle V shape a piece of a bit lower quality sunambrella (the 3m x1.4m is 70 Euro) for the first 3m over the trampoline to the mast. So starting with 80cm till 1.2m where it the perfectly clears the rigging wire from the diamond stay. From there continue both wings over the salon windows.
Advantage is also the sunumbrella is watertight and covering both front facing opening hatches from the salon.
What do think about that plan?

[Franziska]

Originally Posted by CaptainRivet

How do you cut that material, hot knife?
I can only can get that sunsail in 5m x 5m but need 5.8 till 6.5m in width. So the plan would be cut it in half an insert in the middle V shape a piece of a bit lower quality sunambrella (the 3m x1.4m is 70 Euro) for the first 3m over the trampoline to the mast. So starting with 80cm till 1.2m where it the perfectly clears the rigging wire from the diamond stay. From there continue both wings over the salon windows.
Advantage is also the sunumbrella is watertight and covering both front facing opening hatches from the salon.
What do think about that plan?

Can be cut with normal scissors.
We sewed a PVC reinforcement around the edges.