Beach umbrella question

[mrs.rocket]

I need to keep sweet little Lily sunburn free this summer but still want to enjoy the magnificence of our lovely county. I bought a cheap umbrella from Walmart last year that took flight as soon as the wind blew. What exactly do you look for in buying a beach umbrella, is there a particular brand I should buy and where do I go to buy it?

Thanks, peeps!

 

[lucky13]

To go along with this - how do you keep the thing anchored in the sand? Lug a mallet to the beach?

 

[Ocean Lover]

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Rio-Brands-XCB202CB-01-Sports-Anchor/dp/B000AYFAVK/ref=pd_bxgy_ol_text_b"]

This might be key....[/ame]

Use a play shovel to dig down deep then use the anchor. Mr. OL is always in charge of this little job and we haven't lost an umbrella yet.

 

[CPort]

rent one of the heavy duty one w/chairs,no lugging it around and running after it when it blows away........

 

[Lady D]

Sam's Club has a really great beach umbrella that we purchased last year for around $22.00, it is huge. They are a little higher now but have a lever that locks the sectional pole together. We used it last year and the wind blew just about everyday and it withstood the wind no problem. Never came out of the ground once. We too had bought the cheap ones at Walmart several years ago and it did the same thing as yours did. This Sam's one is just as colorful as the Walmart ones. I believe there is a Sam's Club in Panama City. It is on West 23rd St.

 

[John R]

rock that thing back and forth into the sand, drinving the pole deep. face it into the direction of the wind so it's not a sail.

 

[peapod1980]

Being as frugal as I am, I'm inclined to answer the first part of this question with--a low price. But, I do honestly look for an umbrella that's reasonably priced and preferably a little larger than the ones found in Publix. Some of them boast a high SPF on the tag because they're reinforced on the underside with extra fabric. We do use the twist-in anchors that OL showed, but I think they work about the same as a regular umbrella pole pounded in with a rubber mallet. lucky13 told me years ago a rubber mallet needs to be a regular fixture in the beach bag!
(This was no help, was it?)

 

[Matt J]

If you don't want to go with the screw you can also get it in the sand real good then dump a good couple of buckets of water on the base.

 

[kingfishn]

well, if you don't mind a shameless plug....

 

[kingfishn]

what's this???...I haven't been thanked ONE time???..in 177 posties?...~harrrumph~