Kanvaslight: Bright Thinking

Wouldn't it be cool if the canvas in your boat's bimini or T-top had its own integrated illumination? It seems impossible, but that's the concept behind Kanvaslight. The flexible, rollable, waterproof, polyester fabric itself is what lights up, thanks to a 5- to 24-VDC "light injector" that illuminates optical fibers that transmit LED light. The fibers on the canvas create a warm white or RGB-dimmable glow (with an optional phone app control), bright enough to read by.

Take a look for yourself.

But don't look to shop online or at your local chandlery. Tampa-based manufacturer Guardtex is currently only selling to manufacturers to integrate and sell Kanvaslight as a feature to its canvas product. Most boatbuilding customers are based in Europe now, but expect that to change fast. Kanvaslight will be sold to boat and canvas manufacturers as OEM equipment, so look for it to appear on new boats and tops coming to the marketplace soon.

Multiple fabric lengths (from 20 inches to 8 feet), widths (2 to 8 inches), and colors are available, and the Kanvaslight can be sewn right into the canvas or attached with hook-and-loop tape, zippers, or even magnets.