# Cleaning of Holds - Then and Now - Research



## Simone69 (Jan 14, 2011)

Hi There - hoping you can help me with information for an article I am writing regarding the cleaning of ships holds.
What I am looking for is information on how the cleaning of holds has changed over say the last 20-25 years. 
Can you tell me how holds are cleaned in the present day - techniques used, who cleans them (crew or contractors), are they cleaned dock side or during voyages etc.
What kind of cargoes cause the most headache re cleaning - coke, lime etc and how were they cleaned in the past compared to now?
How has the reduced turnaround time and reduced crew situation effected the cleaning of holds - is it more diffcult OR have technological advances in cleaning methodology helped.
Any information, opinions, web links etc most welcome and thanks in advance for your help


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## Nick Balls (Apr 5, 2008)

Big subject. Firstly you need to talk about which type of vessels .
My own experience in the past was that for a start it was always the job of the crew. It was done during the voyage (Port time far to valuable for such a delay) 
Worst 'previous' cargo cleaning I recall was after the carriage of molasses (around 15 Thousand tonnes carried on a general cargo vessel.)This was at a time when you had plenty of crew , these days ship types have changed , crews have got much smaller so things must have changed somewhat. 
Modern specialist vessels such as used in the offshore industry would clean the likes of mud tanks using specialist shore based services. 
Whatever the scenario it also depends on what is being carried next! A cargo surveyor will clearly determine the standard required and cargo will not be loaded until such a survey has been conducted.


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## woodend (Nov 23, 2009)

A question to which there is no short answer. Nick Balls has covered a great deal and I can only say that on the ships I was on the crew did all the hatch cleaning as port time was kept to a minimum. If you were loading again at a discharge port the ship would quite often be put to anchorage until ready to load to clear the berth. Bulk cargoes such as coal and cement were the worst that I experienced to clean holds after.


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## stan mayes (Jul 22, 2006)

Lamp- black and plumbago was usually contained in thick paper bags
similar to cement bags and was stowed in the tween decks.
Carerfully loaded and stowed by the dockers in US Gulf ports it received 
rough handling by the dockers in London and consequently many bags
were damaged with much of this type of cargo being left to the crew to
clean when outward bound.
The dockers were well paid in receiving 'dirty money'.
When we seamen came up from the holds it took a long time to scrub
our bodies to remove that horrible stuff.
Cleaning holds after discharging bulk sulphur was also a 'delightful' job.
In Ropner's Teespool we carried a lot of both these cargoes in three trips
I made during 1947.
Stan


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## stan mayes (Jul 22, 2006)

Scandinavian ships coming to London with cargoes of timber and forest products - prewar and postwar.
Following discharge of cargo the crew cleaned the holds and all the refuse
was put into large canvas slings and suspended over the ships sides..
The ship then went to Beckton Gas Works and loaded a cargo of coke.
This being a light cargo much of it was loaded high on the decks.It was
contained by timber uprights and chicken wire.
It was a common sight to see these ships sail down the river with a cargo
of coke and the slings of hold rubbish hanging over the sides of the ship.
Clear of the river and into the North Sea the slings were emptied leaving
a trail of floating rubbish.
This practice continued up to end of 1950s.
Stan


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## Thats another Story (Mar 4, 2009)

i think it was either blue funnel AENEAS or JASON had latex tanks that was a job and a half scraping the deck inside them on the good side any toy's from Hong Kong left in the hatches were collected and given to the local children's hospital Glasgow KG5. good days apart from the livestock from the far east down there.john(Thumb)


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## Pat Kennedy (Apr 14, 2007)

JOHN PRUDEN said:


> i think it was either blue funnel AENEAS or JASON had latex tanks that was a job and a half scraping the deck inside them on the good side any toy's from Hong Kong left in the hatches were collected and given to the local children's hospital Glasgow KG5. good days apart from the livestock from the far east down there.john(Thumb)


John, 
They *all* had latex tanks. Most times it would peel off like a bad case of sunburn. We used to gather up the scrapings and make a football tied up with whammies, and have a six a side match in the tween deck!
regards, 
Pat(Thumb)


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## Thats another Story (Mar 4, 2009)

yes pat another memory back thanks john.(Thumb)


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## roger matthews (Jan 4, 2011)

before loading china clay the hold had to be scrubbed and it was then inspected by the china clay representative,if he had any doubts the crew would have to go through the process again untill it was passed for loading.


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## Anchorman (Jan 13, 2006)

Rember in the 60s getting $15 a tank in the states, for "puddling" solidified palm oil and tallow off the stringers of a tanker into the cargo below during discharge. Looking back not the most sensible of things to do. Still paid for the runs ashore.


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## John Cassels (Sep 29, 2005)

Hold cleaning , the subject of many an argument between charterers and
owners. Have argued the case from both sides of the fence - always
interesting.


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## Supergoods (Nov 25, 2007)

stan mayes said:


> .
> Cleaning holds after discharging bulk sulphur was also a 'delightful' job.


There was nothing nice about bulk sulphur, if you washed it down with salt water the slops were mild sulphuric acid, it had to be fresh water washdown only.
In Brocklebanks, when we carried it as part cargo from the US Gulf to London, the fire brigade came down and held a drill with the high pressure hoses from the shore hydrants.

Cleaning the decks with fresh water after loading was a job given to the apprentices by certain sadistic mates, tears are salt water so your eyes suffered.

Ian


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## Thats another Story (Mar 4, 2009)

Pat Kennedy said:


> John,
> They *all* had latex tanks. Most times it would peel off like a bad case of sunburn. We used to gather up the scrapings and make a football tied up with whammies, and have a six a side match in the tween deck!
> regards,
> Pat(Thumb)


pat did you even start with a crumpled up newspaper the wrap 'ed latex around it bigger and better bounce?what memory's(Jester)


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## Jim Mclaughlin (Oct 9, 2008)

Simone69 said:


> Hi There - hoping you can help me with information for an article I am writing regarding the cleaning of ships holds.
> What I am looking for is information on how the cleaning of holds has changed over say the last 20-25 years.
> Can you tell me how holds are cleaned in the present day - techniques used, who cleans them (crew or contractors), are they cleaned dock side or during voyages etc.
> What kind of cargoes cause the most headache re cleaning - coke, lime etc and how were they cleaned in the past compared to now?
> ...


Crude oil wasn't the most pleasent of cargoes to clean especially on a supertanker.
This process of tank cleaning involved inserting a butterworth machine into the hold (tank) A sort of high preasure revolving power washer best describes this peice of machinery.
This would clean the sides of the tank, but then men would go into the the bottom of tank to shovel up the crude, shale, into a pile then someone would be on the end of a large suction hoze which would suck residue into a holding tank elsewhere on board. A mucky job to say the least. Thats how we done it in the late 1970s not sure what the procedure is today.


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