So, for some reason, even if it's just your wife complaining about it, you've decided that the furniture on your boat, well, sucks. You need an upgrade.

Oh, groan. I can hear all the men now. No, you don't have to go shopping with your wife. However, that's just me talking. You still have to live with her. Wife or no wife, buying furniture for your boat is a necessary evil.

No fear! Men, you can do this and it can still feel manly! Women boaters, carry on, you know what you're doing.

In this post, we're going to lay out the important stuff about pontoon furniture. Nope, it really doesn't include fabric swatches and colors that you can't even pronounce. It's more important manly stuff. Mostly.

What Is So Important About Pontoon Furniture?

Like everything on your boat, your furniture first has to be made for the environment. This includes all aspects of the environment it will be in, whether you're using it or not. So, what does that really mean?

Well, besides the obvious factors of water and UV, where do you live? What's the weather like? Does it rain a lot? Are there pests galore? Does it get hot and humid? Is there arid ground nearby where your boat is kept (meaning that dust and dirt will blow in the wind and get into your boat)?

Any environmental factors can affect your boat, and thus your boat furniture. Nice furniture will protect you from all of this. When choosing your furniture, you should check the tags and make sure it's resistant to the damaging environmental factors in your area.

Do you only use your boat in the summer but it sits in the water the rest of the time instead of being in storage? This is important. A lot of damage comes from when you're just doing nothing but letting Mother Nature beat you down.

On the other hand, do you use your boat all year long but leave it  outside when you are not using it? Even though you may have some kind of roof or boat cover, it is still outside in the elements when not in use and this takes a toll.

I know this firsthand from living in Texas. I even cut back on the number of toys I had one year once I looked at upkeep and maintenance on things I wasn't even using.

As Americans, we tend to acquire stuff whether we use it or not. As for the rest of you in other parts of the world, I certainly did not mean to leave you out and I hope my examples still make sense.

If you buy cheap stuff from an unknown company, you risk ending up with subpar furniture that won't hold up for more than a season or two. Say hello to rips, tears, mold and mildew.

The goal of this discussion of pontoon furniture is to help you find smart items that will weather any storm. The type of items that can handle the elements and the wear and tear that you'll inflict on them over the years.

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Where to Buy Quality Pontoon Furniture

1.Cabela's Pontoon Furniture As with anything pontoon, or anything really, there are many options. That said, if it's outdoor stuff, there's one name we hopefully all know.  That name is none other than Cabela's. These guys have been doing outdoors since God invented ticks. So, do the rod and reel guys really take care of your boat also? Actually, yes. From fold-down seats to pedestal tables and seats with cup holders, you can find everything you need with these guys. Imagine just making measurements and going online to take care of all of your pontoon furniture needs, and the next thing you know you're on your way to installing with a case of beer and a screw gun. These guys really do make it easy. Additionally, how things are used and changed from one state to the next on your boat is huge, and these guys have thought of that too. You don't have to be limited by any one manufacturer's ideas. If you want a swivel base and they didn't think of it ,then buy your own. Screw gun and beer, please.

Recommended Item:Wise Premier Pontoon Bench Seat

2. PontoonStuff When you're at the top of your game, there's only one way to go. Everyone is going to target the best spot. There are always going to be contenders. One of the guys pushing for that top spot is PontoonStuff. Now, this name may sound confusing, but what they do is sell pontoon stuff. Interesting, huh? Additionally, as with many businesses these days, a huge part of their business is online sales. However, you can find many of the brands they sell, such as Deckmate. I'm not sure if you're the kind of person that needs to walk into an actual store and touch things, but this may be a consideration and certainly an advantage over Cabela's if you don't have one nearby. Recommended Item: Right Lean Back Pontoon Seats

3.Marsh Brother's, Inc. for Premium Pontoon Furniture No, really, I'm not ranking companies here so keep that in mind. I'm here to give you options in no particular order so don't go looking for trophies from me on their websites. This option is branded as an upper-class option and even has one of those fancy kinds of names, so you may need to take the wife and look for a matching purse and shoes. They're Marsh Brothers, Inc. and they have many options for your future furniture. Their Premium Series is monochromatic, which is one of those fancy words for not a lot of color so you don't have to worry about color fade over time. Additionally, they have a Platinum Series and an X-Series, of course, with different options. Personally, I feel that white gets too dirty and, of course, black is just hot so you never see it on boats. This makes me partial to shades of gray that you'll never really know is dirty until someone sits on it. Recommended Item:The Premium Series

4. Last But Not Least, Overton's

So, to wrap up things, we have one more huge name to round out your best options for pontoon boat furniture. Our last company is Overton's. This is yet another company who, like many, have a few different lines of products, like Toonmate, with different options. They carry some similar items (and some of the same items) as other companies on this list, of course, but having another go-to store gives you several options where you can compare pricing. Overton's is pretty killer, offering modular designs in multiple colors. These guys offer enough options that you'll feel that your pontoon boat furniture was made just for you. Additionally, if you ever run short on ideas, just throw a party on the water where everyone anchors out and ties up and you can try out their stuff! Of course, you still need to install the furniture when you get it so you're back to the beer and power tools. Recommended Item: Toonmate Premium Bucket-Style Captain Seat

Final Thoughts on Buying Pontoon Furniture

Now, see, that wasn't too painful was it?

Yes, you may have had to get the matching purse and shoes and you may have even had to go for dinner and a shopping spree because you were spending money on a boat, but it still should have been relatively easy.

In fact, if you do your shopping online and send the boxes to your buddy's house, you may be able to keep it a secret until the next time she gets on the boat. At that time, you can tell her the boat fairies must have left it all behind and installed it.

Bottom line, sooner or later you're going to need new furniture. You could recover your existing furniture, but not only is that a topic for another post, there's something about having the chance to go all new again.

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Hopefully, we've set you on the right path to picking out your new pontoon furniture, and by the time the wife finds out, you may be able to make that boat fairy story work.

If it does work, don't forget where you got it when you're buying beer the next time. Enjoy and keep coming back for more great ideas.