The box located under the edge of the v- berths apparentally a safety feature in case the meter gets broken, leaks or access while in the water, has inclosed sides about 12 to 15 inches deep the top appears to be above water line, the wood backing has delaminated and fiberglass broken down several inches revealing foam floation bats filling all the area under the v-berths. Thinking about coastal cruising from Carolinas south and fla west coast I could leave this area open for storage and not use a knot meter which would mean less flotation or close it back as it was with the cap over the thru hull fitting with flotation and just use the box for storage. 1. lets hear some comments on this. 2. i would like to hear about some of your coastal crusing experiences. Yeh, I know 22 footer kinda small, but that's all i got. David S. happy sailing!