Back to the main site

Has anyone installed a television on their boat? Suggestions?

LouisVuittoon

LouisVuittoon

Member
Messages
7
Reaction score
9
Does anyone have any suggestions or helpful info on installing a 30 inch tv on their boat? I don’t want it permanently installed. It would just be nice to watch some golf while on the water sometimes.
 
I remember seeing something years back. Did you do a search?
 
lakeliving said:
I remember seeing something years back. Did you do a search?
Click to expand...
I also remember seeing it .It dropped into a seat back .
It may have been in the original Toys and other hobbies .
 
Obviously, they do make outdoor tv's which would likely be required in order to get enough brightness and contrast to be able to see it on a sunny day. The bigger question for me would be how you'd get a live signal. Seems as though a satellite dish might be fairly large for a boat. Then again, where there's a will, there's a way.
 
I’ve thought about this myself a few times. A small portable TV I can connect my phone to and just stream a game while out on the water when the lake is calm. However, if I ever set that up, my family may never see me come ashore again. :D
 
I've been thinking about doing this for a while, but not with a TV -- using a small, portable projector. We would do it on summer evenings when the sun goes down, after having fun swimming. It is on my list to get setup before April-May timeframe. Because it would be in lower light situations, the brightness of the projector would be less important. We also don't care about HD/4K, etc, our project is more to watch classics and enjoy company of others.
 
Sorry no time for a TV on our boat. Too busy tubing, cruising or relaxing enjoying the silence and solitude :-)
 
Oh Boy ! Now a TV on your boat! All the beautiful things to enjoy while boating ! No way a TV just a bunch of garbage ! Buy a Captian's chair and put it in your living room.
 
Stay with me now, not for daytime, but what about a projector?
Screen would act like a sail, but I am sure with a little brain power one could figure out a creative way to get a cheap projector rigged up to a screen that wouldnt shift too much on the boat.
https://www.amazon.com/Projector-Go...8&qid=1549453561&sr=8-5&keywords=projector+tv
AND they are pretty cheap on Amazon. Now I am trying to figure out how to do a movie night on the lake! Bluetooth to the radio for speakers and stream from the phone, even hang projector from the Bimini.
 
I'm thinking it might be easier to purchase a houseboat. In addition to the T.V's, you also get one heck of a slide!
 
If you haven't got this taken care of, I can help. I'm a custom AV installer. I assume you've already figured out the power issues etc. So I'll skip that. Here's what I'd recommend regarding the TV.

First, there are a couple of manufacturers that make outdoor tvs. The most popular being SunBriteTV. The TVs are completely weatherproof. The smallest unit they make is a 32". Retail price on it is $3295. (doesn't include speakers) It's also considerably heavier than a standard 32" weighing in at 41bs. as opposed to an indoor 32" that might weight about 10 lbs.

How would I approach this if a customer asked? I'd tell them to take into account the law of diminishing returns. You can pay $3300 or you could pay $100 for the cheapest thing at Best Buy. Now, if your $100 TV gets ruined...you're not heartbroken and you're also not out $3300.

So, what's the downside to installing a $100 TV on your boat? A couple of things.
1. There's not a bigger picture killer than the sun. It has the ability to wash out a TV so it's not even visible. However, if you installed it under the bimini and pointed away from the sun, I can see getting a "passable" picture" that you'd probably be happy with.

2. Water- A $100 indoor TV isn't in any way designed to be outside. No way, No how. If it gets a drop of water on the back of it, it's done. Not to mention the risk of electrical shock by a wet person touching it.

However, if you can mange those things...It would work.

Now, how do you get picture? All HDTV's have an HD tuner built into them. So you buy a small HD antenna..something like this, plug it into the back of the tv, do a channel scan and you're off to the races! https://www.bestbuy.com/site/mohu-l...v-antenna-black-white/3488006.p?skuId=3488006

Now, you're only getting your local channels.. Don't assume you'll be watching the Golf Channel out on your lake. If I can answer any questions, I'm happy to help.

Good luck!
 
This is a great idea, did you ever come up with a mounting location? I was thinking on the ski tow bar but the sun would make it tough to view. My other idea is under the Bimini, thinking I can find desk bracket that would work on the square brackets. With new smart TV’s it’s easy to stream TV if you have a solid internet connection.
 
The end of boating season often interferes with the start of football season. A TV on a boat at the beach would be a great way to tailgate!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top