Charlie Morgan wrote:

On Thu, 07 Jun 2007 23:47:03 GMT, Rich Hampel wrote:

I will ....
The dark colors are easier on your eyes because they absorb most of the
'color' reflectance.
Light Bright colors better reflect the light ... think of
snowblindness and sunburned retinas. :-)

Sunbrella has some new fabrics with one color on top and another underneath.

I have heard that dark colors are better for UV protection but I don't
know if that is the case. I talked to a charter boat captain who said
that people expected light colors in the tropics (where she was), but
that if she was doing it for herself, she'd have dark so it would be
like a cozy cave inside.

We have an off white bimini because I think it is cooler on a hot day.
More of the light is reflected off the top so less is converted to
heat. The bimini, even though of a light color, still makes shade so
that it is not too bright underneath of it. It might be a problem in
the winter to have the light reflected, but in that case, we'd have
the side curtains zipped on which would keep the wind out, and allow
it to warm up inside.

So bottom line is - I'm happy with my light colored bimini.