Put your heart and soul into maintaining your boat and preventing its accessories from water and weather; the damage is inevitable. Sooner or later, you’ll notice your seats old, dirty, and ragged, and it is only human to want to replace them.
The bad news is that boat seat costs you hundreds of dollars! But don’t you worry – we have some good news for you as well! Be it building from scratch or repairing boat seats, we’ve put together 17 DIY boat seat ideas for you. Read on to figure out the best DIY boat seats for you!
Table of Contents
- 1. How to build your own Boat Furniture
- 2. Making New Marine Vinyl Boat Seats
- 3. How to restore your Boat Seats and Cushions – DIY Upholstery
- 4. How to Build a Boat Bench Seat? – Guide for DIYers
- 5. Bayliner Boat Restoration – Back Seat Rebuild
- 6. How to Build a Boat Bench Seat? – Guide for DIYers
- 7. HOW TO REUPHOLSTER VINYL BOAT SEATS CHEAP DIY WITH NO SEWING FOR UNDER $100!! DO IT YOURSELF & SAVE!
- 8. Homemade Boat Seats
- 9. Making Custom boat seats from scratch – cutting boat seat wood.
- 10. How to Build Pontoon Boat Seats
- 11. How to make a CUSTOM boat seat From scratch?
- 12. DIY Boat Seat Upgrades: Replace Ragged Seats In Time For The Boating Season
- 13. Reupholstering Boat Seats
- 14. DIY FLY FISHING BOAT SEAT
- 15. DIY Boat Seat Rebuild and repair
- 16. How to Reupholster Boat Seats, Cushions & Covers in 7 Easy Steps
- 17. Boat Seat Build {Robalo Boat Project 61}
- Summary
1. How to build your own Boat Furniture
The Youtuber from Smokin Reels demonstrates how to build boat furniture all by yourself in this tutorial. He uses ¾ inch marine plywood for the purpose. He further shares his boat furniture design with you and provides you with a brief overview of the process.
On the downside, adding this many pieces of furniture to your boat might not be practical given the added weight. Therefore, carefully decide what you actually need and try to minimize the weight as much as possible.
2. Making New Marine Vinyl Boat Seats
Jskingry from Instructables decided to build seats and motor boats for the back of his boat. This DIY uses supplies and tools listed in ‘Step 1’ of this written tutorial, plus a sewing machine.
The blogger thoughtfully elaborates the process in six steps such that this tutorial is easy to follow along even if you’re a beginner.
3. How to restore your Boat Seats and Cushions – DIY Upholstery
Average Joe’s DIY tutorial is hands down one of the best boat seats reupholstering videos on Youtube. The Youtuber replaced his ragged wooden boat seats and replaced them with new seats and back cushions.
Dewalt 459 has left a quick suggestion in the comment section regarding how painting the new plywood with a couple of coats of exterior paints adds to the longevity of the seats. What are your thoughts on this advice?
4. How to Build a Boat Bench Seat? – Guide for DIYers
As the title suggests, this blog by BOATING BASICS ONLINE is the complete guide for those who wish to DIY a boat bench seat.
In the first section of the blog, the blogger guides you on building a wooden banquette seat, followed by steps for building cushioned and vinyl-covered boat bench in the later section of the post. For your ease, all the tools and materials are listed in the post.
5. Bayliner Boat Restoration – Back Seat Rebuild
Watch how the Youtuber from Zachs Garage rebuilds the back seat of his 1998 Bayliner capri. The best part of this tutorial is that the explanation is on point.
We guarantee you’ll have no problem following this tutorial, even if you’re a beginner. The Youtuber further shares in the comment that once he’s happy with the build, he plans to seal the frame with glass. We hope this information helps!
6. How to Build a Boat Bench Seat? – Guide for DIYers
You’ve decided to build a boat bench seat. But where do you start? Luckily, this blog post by Ride The Ducks of Seattle gives a brief overview of how to build a boat bench seat.
From various seat options available to materials required to detailed steps on building the boat seat, this guide covers it all. Ride The Ducks of Seattle has plenty of other boat-related DIYs; Do check them out!
7. HOW TO REUPHOLSTER VINYL BOAT SEATS CHEAP DIY WITH NO SEWING FOR UNDER $100!! DO IT YOURSELF & SAVE!
This tutorial is perfect for those who wish to reupholster their ragged boat seats. The Youtuber, Joe Rut, redid his boat seats using marine-grade vinyl all by himself. And the best part is that you can have four brand new boat seats for yourself for under $100.
This video will definitely motivate you to start working on your boat seats right away, as it did to some of the commenters on the video.
8. Homemade Boat Seats
TWFisher on iBOATS shares in the forum that he spent a ton of money on his boat, and now he plans to DIY some inexpensive boat seats on his own.
He has asked for advice on the topic, and many other boat enthusiasts have shared their views and advice regarding the DIY. If you’re a beginner in DIYing boat seats, you’ll greatly benefit from the information exchanged in this forum. Make sure you check them out!
9. Making Custom boat seats from scratch – cutting boat seat wood.
Follow this video tutorial by MECA Upholstery Tips if you plan on building boat seats from scratch. The Youtubers DIY professional-looking seats from scratch.
On the downside, given the language barrier, non-Spanish speakers might find this video hard to follow. Nevertheless, it is still a great video if you want to collect a brief insight on homemade boat seats.
10. How to Build Pontoon Boat Seats
Now, if you’d like a tutorial with the exact plan and step-by-step elaboration on building a pontoon boat seat, this written tutorial by GONE OUTDOORS is just the perfect tutorial for you. If you’re a beginner in boat-related DIYs, we’d highly recommend you this tutorial.
All the tools and materials required are listed at the beginning of the post. Furthermore, don’t discount the blogger’s tips and warnings shared with you at the end.
11. How to make a CUSTOM boat seat From scratch?
Here’s another tutorial by Meca Upholstery Tips, in which they demonstrate how to build custom boat seats from scratch using wood and reupholster them using suede and vinyl.
Again, if you don’t understand Spanish, you might find this video difficult to interpret. Nevertheless, you can always educate yourself briefly on the process by watching this long-form tutorial and then proceed to watch easy-to-follow tutorials during the actual DIY process.
12. DIY Boat Seat Upgrades: Replace Ragged Seats In Time For The Boating Season
If you’re wondering what type of seat to DIY to replace your old ragged seats with, this blog post by LakeExpo is just the post for you. Be it traditional seating options, speciality seating options, or portable seating options; find all the information here.
What’s more, you’ll also be provided with extra information on how to add comfort to your boating experience. Do check them out!
13. Reupholstering Boat Seats
No doubt, the Youtuber from The Swedish Upholstery is a true craftsman. She transforms her boat seats from ragged-up to dolled-up effortlessly.
On the downside, this tutorial requires you to sew. And, renting a sewing machine and supplies can up your overall cost. Therefore, if you aren’t familiar with sewing or don’t own a machine, we’d definitely recommend you to stick with the no-sewing method instead.
14. DIY FLY FISHING BOAT SEAT
The bloggers from THE BEARDY BROS transformed a $40 boat seat with a swivel base into a fantastic fly fishing boat seat. All the DIY process is elaborated in detail, and the prices of the supplies are mentioned as well.
It is mentioned in the blog that the seat cost a grand total of around $55. That’s a lot cheaper than branded seats available in the market. How great is that?
15. DIY Boat Seat Rebuild and repair
Unlike many other ‘DIY’ tutorials that require you to own heavy and professional machines, this tutorial by FriscoBoater’s Garage is something that you can actually replicate at your home all by yourself.
The Youtuber brilliantly uses wood strips to replicate the comfortable bent back structure of his existing seat. Everyone in the comment section is raving about how great the DIY is. Let us know what your thoughts are regarding this build!
16. How to Reupholster Boat Seats, Cushions & Covers in 7 Easy Steps
If sewing is not for you, here’s a 7-step staple-gun method of reupholstering your boat seats, cushions, and covers.
What’s more, the blogger from POONTONopedia has also shared with his readers an in-detail cost analysis of boat seat reupholstering and has also given his view on whether to replace or reupholstering boat seats is beneficial from a cost-effective point of view.
17. Boat Seat Build {Robalo Boat Project 61}
Watch this tutorial by Om Fishing to build rear boat seats for a Robalo boat from scratch. If you’re into woodworking, this tutorial is probably quite easy for you to follow.
The design is fantastic as it is. However, you can always customize it as per your comfort choice if you deem it necessary.
Summary
So, what have you decided? Are you willing to build boat seats from scratch or want to stick with easier upholstery boat seats?
From no-sew tutorials to ones that require sewing, we’ve covered everything in this post. We hope you were able to find the perfect DIY that matches your skill and preference. The ball is in your court now! Gather the supplies and create brand new boat seats for yourself!
Great article. I followed these steps and they are very successful. I used a removable seat cushion instead of one mounted permanently to the bench. It is more efficient to clean and offers more versatility.