How To Hang A Tarp For Shade

To hot to be in the sun without a shade? Whether camping or on the back porch, a tarp is usually the easiest and most effective shade available almost anywhere. Using a tarp as shade shouldn’t be a long-term solution but is frequently used as a travelers tool or a 1-2 day set up in the backyard. Depending on the location, situation, and available materials, there are many different ways to hang a tarp. We will show multiple different ways to hang a tarp so anyone can do it with their nearby surroundings.

How to Hang a Tarp in an A-Frame Shape

This technic to hang a tarp for shade is the most common and usually the easiest way. Due to the ridge line in the middle, you will be protected from the sun almost all day without having to adjust the shade. As well as if it rains the rain will easily slide off the edges since there is a significant slope. You will need 5 different sting lines and 4 stakes.

Begin by running a string from two trees or poles about 8-10 feet high, which will act as the ridgeline.
From there drape the tarp over the ridgeline to make the A-frame shape.
Once it’s draped over you will want to attach the rest of the string line to each corner of the tarp.
To secure the tarp down pull each corner string tight and stake it down to the ground
When all four corners are secured you now have an A-frame shade to stay out of the sun and rain.

How to Hang a tarp without Knots

It can be difficult to always know the proper knot for the right situation but here you don’t need to know any type of knots!

Very similar to the last method begin by hanging a ridgeline between two trees or poles
From there create a loop in the string where you want one of the tarp corners to be
Slide the loop through the corner hole in the tarp
Slide a solid stick or ground stake through the loop of the string helping secure the corner so it won’t slip back through the tarp.
Grab the next corner and pull it tight as you repeat the last step.
Once the two corners are secured to the ridgeline it will need to be secured to the ground.
Finally stake the last two corners into the ground.

How to Hang a Tarp From All Four Corners

Hanging a tarp with all four corners is a very effective method as the entire surface area of the tarp will be providing shade. I don’t recommend this method to protect from the rain. The flat surface will catch and trap all the rain on top adding excessive weight until it falls. The other two methods are recommended for rain as it allows the rain to drip off.

If you have four trees in a square pattern all that is needed is four lines of string/twine.
Begin by tying each line of twine to the four different corners of the tarp.
Once you have tried on each corner pick one tree and wrap the string around the tree and tie it. This should be tied about 7-10 feet high so you can easily walk and do things under it.
Repeat this step for the other three corners. Make sure the tarp is pulled tight each time you start at a new corner.
If you don’t have four trees separated in a close square you can replace it with however many poles are needed.

Additional Tips and Tricks

Size-

Tarps come in many different sizes and when it comes to creating a sun shade or rain protection out of them I would recommend having a tarp larger than a 4’ by 4’ and usually smaller than a 10’ by 10’. If you already own a tarp that is bigger or smaller than that there is no need to buy a new one unless you want to. It is very doable to hang a tarp for a shade that is smaller or bigger than that range but if you don’t own one yet it is recommended to get one in that range.

Material-

Most of these hanging techniques require 3 main materials that should be very common in almost any household. String, ground stakes, and a tarp are the three necessary materials to hang a tarp. Poles can be needed as well if there are few trees or other usable structures nearby.