How to Make a Lantern Holder for a Boat

A lantern holder will enhance your night boating experience by providing hands-free light where you need it, whether it be on deck for a party or cookout, for rigging your fishing tackle or for just cleaning up. A good lantern holder can also be attached to the rail or gunwale so you can find things that have fallen out of tackle boxes or to provide a soft, less glaring light for boaters.

Things You'll Need

  • 2 pieces of 1" PVC pipe, one 24" long, one 36" long
  • 2 PVC elbows, 1"
  • 1 piece of 1.25" PVC pipe, 40" long
  • 2 each, 8" hose clamps
  • Glue for PVC pipes
  • Small can of PVC cleaning solvent
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Instructions

    • 1

      On a boat with a free standing vertical fixture, such as a handrail stanchion on a pontoon boat, attach the 1.25"x 40" PVC pipe to the stanchion by fully opening the hose clamps one at a time and putting the hose clamps around both the stanchion and the PVC pipe, then tightening the hose clamps only until the PVC pipe holds firmly in one place. The PVC pipe should be inside the hand rails.

    • 2

      Clean the ends of both pieces of the 1" PVC and the PVC elbows with the PVC cleaning solvent, to insure a good glue joint.

    • 3

      Glue one end of the 1"x 24" PVC pipe and one end of the 1"x 36" into one PVC elbow, to form an "L" shape, as shown. Glue the second elbow onto the other end of the 1"x 36" PVC pipe, as shown.

    • 4

      Lower the end of the 1"x 24" PVC pipe into the 1.25" PVC pipe which has been fastened to the stanchion, as shown.

    • 5

      Hang the lantern on the hook formed by the PVC elbow at the end of 36" PVC pipe.