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  • Custom under seat cooler

    DnHWake

    By DnHWake

      • Year: 2016 Brand: Malibu Model / Trim: 23LSV Cost: $0-$249 DIY or Professional Install: I installed it

    Something that really bothers me on the new boats is the crappy removable Igloo/Yeti coolers that are way too small to hold enough beverages for 6-10 people on a boat all day long.  We like to get out on the water to wakeboard and surf at 10am and not return until dark.  This cooler will hold ice for 2-3days, It holds over 90 cans with room for ice.   I made it out of pink insulation foam from home depot.  I cut the foam with a jig saw, glued the pieces together with gorilla glue, routed the corners smooth and wrapped it in fiberglass and epoxy with a white dye so I didn't need to paint it.  I used three layers of fiberglass - probably way overkill but I didn't want it to dent or crack when dumping cases of cans in the cooler.  The inside corners took some extra work - i used fiberglass powder filler and mixed it with epoxy to get real thick then filled the corners so it was a soft inner radius - much easier to cover in fiberglass.  I wanted it as big as possible so I had to make it in two pieces and caulk the back part on after it was in the boat - I then added a rubber refrigerator seal and a small drain hole in the bottom with a plug -   I have the solidworks model if anyone wants it PM me.593740fe406be_coolerwithcans.JPG.8c3720312d0668e6a2b814aa95c3b904.JPGIMG_4580.thumb.jpg.d7c8e5a81fd48e18a2b298e18325f1ff.jpgIMG_4582.thumb.jpg.2437ad864db94e0f6e8ce2c9eb736ba3.jpgIMG_4595.thumb.jpg.37197b6d0a403eae16916b2081e110c8.jpgIMG_4596.thumb.jpg.d91e9847d414557788ef36ae2ff68ce2.jpgIMG_5979.thumb.JPG.7bfe61c4b3afd5d32a6625ca81ff88b6.JPGIMG_5981.thumb.JPG.9389773e998ac2bf8289fd50bd103605.JPGIMG_5983.thumb.JPG.ea0491c389dba19c00b70ba53b928079.JPG

    • Like 7
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    DnHWake
    3 hours ago, Hyperryd said:

    Great job. Hey just curious, why the recessed area in the floor?

    The recess fits right in the floor where the original igloo removable cooler went.  That is how crappy and small the stock cooler is!

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    DnHWake
    On 6/7/2017 at 9:58 AM, MartinArcher said:

    Very cool.  Looking forward to seeing the seat/seal.  Well done.  

    Updated with final pictures above, that's a case of cans in there for scale and I can now see I need to clean the seal it's getting a little mildew!

    • Like 2

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    Rugger

    This might be a project for me in the future.  We use custom soft coolers instead of the built-ins, but even though they last longer than the stock, they are nowhere near as efficient as yours.  Nice build.  Great addition to the site too, thanks.

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    Rugger

    @DnHWake any changes you’d make to your cooler?  I’d like to make one either later in summer or off season.    Do you feel the seat is insulation enough with the right seal?  Thanks

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    DnHWake

    I added some silver bubble wrap to the lid to insulate it a little better, it holds ice  overnight, and probably keeps cold for 2-3days!

     

    • Like 1

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    Rugger

    Cool thanks.  It’s one of my favorite projects on here because we camp all the time and constantly shuffle ice in and out.  I need to make one.  Our 07 247 has two coolers built in but they are paper thin.  The soft coolers work better sitting inside the built ins but still not cuttin’ it.  Appreciate the feedback

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    Rugger

    @DnHWake  so your boat didn’t have a built in cooler at all, right?  Just a removable igloo?  I’m tearing into mine a bit and was gonna ask if you removed the built in first, but I think I have a different setup.  Mine (07 247) has two plastic “ice chests” (tubs) built in, but is paper thin with maybe 1/4-1/2” foam layer behind the shell and walls.  Thinking I might just use these tubs as the outside base and build inward... I would really only gain 1/2” at most by starting over.  A0847E9C-9AA6-422B-85E3-401B76EC94E7.jpeg

    Funny thing too, I never knew my boat had lights inside the ice chest but I found an led strip in there.  It doesn’t work so I never noticed the trigger.  Don’t know if it was stock or previous owner added.  

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    DnHWake
    2 hours ago, Rugger said:

    @DnHWake  so your boat didn’t have a built in cooler at all, right?  Just a removable igloo?  I’m tearing into mine a bit and was gonna ask if you removed the built in first, but I think I have a different setup.  Mine (07 247) has two plastic “ice chests” (tubs) built in, but is paper thin with maybe 1/4-1/2” foam layer behind the shell and walls.  Thinking I might just use these tubs as the outside base and build inward... I would really only gain 1/2” at most by starting over

    .  A0847E9C-9AA6-422B-85E3-401B76EC94E7.jpeg

    Funny thing too, I never knew my boat had lights inside the ice chest but I found an led strip in there.  It doesn’t work so I never noticed the trigger.  Don’t know if it was stock or previous owner added.  

    Correct, the newer boats have a really thin & cheap removable igloo cooler, it’s completely worthless.  If I had your boat I would insulate those two tubs as much as possible.

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    Rugger

    Ok thanks.  Yeah mine are basically suitable to hold the removable soft coolers, which we’ve used quite a bit, but we tend to boat and camp for 4-5 days at a time and burn through lots of ice for sure.  I’ll come up with something.  Thanks 

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