Refinishing/redesigning bench seats? (coosa board, storage)

[zuren]

This is mostly me thinking out loud and vetting if this is a good idea or not...

My 14' Smokercraft boat was inherited from my dad (so I know it's history since new) and has 4 bench seats with wooden tops. These wooden tops have been refinished before and will need some attention this year. I also know that after 40+ years of existence, I know that mice have removed foam flotation from under these seats. One thing that I really lack is any amount of built-in storage! There are always small odds-n-ends that I would like to stay in the boat at all times. Right now I use a tall, plastic "ammo box", but it's another loose item in the boat taking up floor space.

As I'm researching and brainstorming, I'm considering a couple of ideas:

- Replace the wooden bench tops with a material other than marine plywood; I don't want to be revisiting this project in the future, unless I want to.
I'm looking at coosa board, but open to other ideas/materials (e.g., Starboard, Azek sheets, etc.).
- Replace the foam flotation removed by vermin. Will need to see what has been removed to determine what I should do.
- Of the 4 bench seats, 2 have swivel seats clamped on. I'm considering installing some type of drop-in, sealed storage box, like this (probably different dimensions) in 1 or both of the remaining bench seats:

https://www.boatoutfitters.com/storage-bin-with-removable-tub-11x15?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9Z-u7tv55wIVyrzACh1j6wA4EAQYASABEgLPt_D_BwE

I'm aware that it is never wise to blatantly remove flotation without making up for that loss, so I'm wondering if my approach is okay:

- replace the bench tops with a lighter weight alternative
- replace any missing flotation
- install 1 or 2 storage boxes that are mostly sealed (not sure if the air they trap can be considered "flotation")

Again, I'm just scoping the wisdom in this idea before I go any deeper.

Thanks!

 

[LDUBS]

Regarding the floatation, I think that old saying applies: "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch". I imagine a couple of cu feet of foam might provide quite a bit of buoyancy (over 100 pounds?). I'm guessing any weight savings you might have with new seat top material is going to be less than the floatation you lose by removing that much foam. But that is just a guess on my part. By the way, to make things even tougher, if you follow USCG rules, you cannot consider the space inclosed in your storage boxes as providing floatation. In fact, the reg's require these spaces be flooded for a floatation test.

I suspect a lot of folks remove foam in order to gain storage, and don't look back. But, unless you can replace the foam elsewhere, I guess my response is not to do it if you want to stay in compliance with the standard.

 

[samuelh1987]

I took gallon milk / water jugs and put a few on either side of the seat cavities. I plan to use the center of the seats for storage too. Now I'm just looking for a good hatch that will fit on top of a 10'' wide bench.

 

[LDUBS]

I took gallon milk / water jugs and put a few on either side of the seat cavities. I plan to use the center of the seats for storage too. Now I'm just looking for a good hatch that will fit on top of a 10'' wide bench.

Make sure they use plastic caps as opposed to metallic ones (I would be shocked if they were not plastic these days). Some guys encapsulate the milk or soda bottles in expansive foam. Takes a lot less costly two part foam and provides some additional protection for the plastic jugs.