Cargo Holds Cleaning

HISTORY

Ship Supply

Fortuna International was founded in 1999, making it one of Denmark’s oldest internationally operating shipping companies. Incorporated in Denmark, we are listed on Nasdaq Copenhagen as a part of the OMX Nordic Mid Cap index.

We provide dry cargo and product tankers services globally and offer our shareholders earnings from industry-leading operator activities implemented by a highly skilled organisation in addition to cyclical exposure to dry cargo and product tanker markets.

HISTORY

Fortuna International was founded in 1999, making it one of Denmark’s oldest internationally operating shipping companies. Incorporated in Denmark, we are listed on Nasdaq Copenhagen as a part of the OMX Nordic Mid Cap index.

We provide dry cargo and product tankers services globally and offer our shareholders earnings from industry-leading operator activities implemented by a highly skilled organisation in addition to cyclical exposure to dry cargo and product tanker markets.

HISTORY

Underwater Inspection

Fortuna International was founded in 1999, making it one of Denmark’s oldest internationally operating shipping companies. Incorporated in Denmark, we are listed on Nasdaq Copenhagen as a part of the OMX Nordic Mid Cap index.

We provide dry cargo and product tankers services globally and offer our shareholders earnings from industry-leading operator activities implemented by a highly skilled organisation in addition to cyclical exposure to dry cargo and product tanker markets.

HISTORY

Dry cargo holds cleaning

DRY CLEANING or sweeping is the initial stage of cargo holds cleaning of any vessel before the next cargo loading. Dry cleaning is the process of thoroughly sweeping the hold sides, fore and aft bulkheads, ladders, tank top, bilges and etc. from the cargo residue. At this stage, the brushes with a long handle are being used for a quick access to the hold low and upper areas. In addition to brushes, the brooms and shovels are used to collect cargo residues from the hold lower areas and tank top. From top areas to tank top it is required thoroughly passes all possible places of cargo accumulation, such as the hatch covers undersides, hatch comings, hatch coaming trackways, drainage channels and drain holes, ladders, platforms, pipe protection, cable channels, frames, etc. It is imperative that prior cleaning, the hatch covers must be opened and closed several times to shake off the cargo residues and loose rust as much as possible. The bilge wells, must also to be opened and all the cargo remains must be removed. In case of cargo holds cleaning after certain types of cargos, such as, clinker or cement, it is necessary to blow all hold surfaces with compressed air. Please bear in mind that blowing is carried out upwards.

The residues collected on the tank top after dry cleaning are packed into special containers and lifted to the main deck for further disposal. The quality of the dry cleaning works has gives its influence on the final result of holds preparation.

Fortuna International is the world’s leading company in cargo holds cleaning. We have extensive experience and a team of professionals.

Second STEP

Chemical Application

Chemical cleaning

Chemical cleaning is an important, and sometimes simply necessary, step in the cleaning of the cargo hold before the next load. The use of chemicals will significantly speed up the CARGO HOLD WASHING process and improve the HOLDS CLEANLINESS. Cleaning cargo holds with chemicals is a complex process, which requires a high qualification from the employees who carry it out. It is necessary:

to choose the correct chemicals based on the type of contamination
to know and follow the rules for applying of chemicals
to carry out preliminary preparation of cargo holds’ surface before cleaning
thoroughly to carry out the application process
to observe strictly the safety precautions during works with chemicals

The process of chemical cleaning of cargo holds

It should be taken into account, that the application of any ship chemicals is carried out only on the dry surface of the hold. The use of chemicals on a surface, which was previously washed by sea water, reduces its effectiveness for 40%.

If holds surface has previously been washed by sea water, then chemicals should be applied on a desalinated and dry surface, as salt build-up will not provide the necessary conditions for the active chemical agents to work and a positive result will be reduced. Wash-out of chemicals can be done either by seawater or freshwater.

Preparation for chemical application is carried out on board of the vessel and the concentration of fresh water is determined according to the level of the hold contamination. The dilution proportion, as recommended by the manufacturer, must be also considered. Sometimes acceptable to use undiluted chemicals if the level of contamination is very high. Reapplication should be considered to achieve the best result.

Features of cleaning after coal, coke

For cargoes such as coal and petroleum coke, which leave greasy stains and marks, it is necessary to use strong alkaline chemicals, which are being applied in the form of emulsion, for a certain time, and washed-out by seawater. To remove stubborn stains, it would be necessary to apply the chemicals more than once. During the active phase, the alkali begins to foam, indicating a normal reaction process between the solidified cargo residues and the chemical.

Also, chemicals based on calcium chloride-hypochlorite (chlorine) are used for such cargoes; when applied, it does not has any color and emits a specific odor.

Cleaning the cargo holds surfaces by acid

For cargoes such as cement and cement clinker, various ores, etc. which often leave a residue trace on the holds surface, diluted acid chemicals must be also used for their removal. The most used is hydrochloric acid, which is also known as muriatic acid. The diluted acid is applied directly to the cargo remains, allowed to work, and then washed-out. Where the residue is stubborn, multiply acid application may be required, in the worst case, the residue must be physically removed. When acid reacts with the cargo residues, it begins to change color to a green tint and release the steam.

Important: Do not allow the chemical to dry on the holds surface, in practice the working time of the chemical is 15 to 30 minutes, depending on ambient temperature and relative humidity

Safety precautions
You must know that during chemicals application you should pay attention to the safety precautions for specific chemicals, at least ,before starting to work, all unprotected body parts and respiratory tract must be protected with special personal protective equipment. Depending on chemicals type, the appropriate face mask, filters, gloves, boots, suits, other consumables to be used.
Fortuna International has the capacity, knowledge, and experience to carry out chemical cleaning of cargo holds. We are ready to perform any type of cargo hold cleaning services anywhere in the world.
( Fortuna International knows how to carry out the chemical cleaning of cargo holds and performs it with proper safety precautions. We are ready to perform any type of cargo hold cleaning services anywhere in the world. )

THIRD STEP

GENERAL SEA WASHING

it is a cleaning method used during process of cargo hold cleaning after not a dirty cargo such as coal, clinker and etc and in well maintained cargo holds (without paint flakes, loose rust, hardened cargo residues). After well done dry cleaning, chemicals application and within appropriate time frame, the general sea washing (wash down or wash out) should be done as an important stage of chemicals application. Thereafter, the holds must be rinsed by the fresh water. How the general washing of holds is being done?

After well done dry sweeping and chemicals application, the sea water, under pressure, from the main deck fire system, to be supplied by fire hoses via enhanced delivery system, such as Maxi-Gun or Combi-Jet.The flow of the sea water should be directed to the contaminated areas of cargo hold and hatch cover.

Selecting the method of cargo hold cleaning requires an individual approach and depends on many parameters. For example, it is very important to know, what kind of cargos were shipped before and what is the next cargo. The staff of “Fortuna International Ltd” will determine the best option for cargo holds cleaning to meet the required cleanliness standard. And our Cleaning Team will quickly and efficiently perform their duties on board, all over the world.

fourth STEP

HP Machine wash

Washing by HPM – cleaning the holds and hatch covers by using the special high-pressure machines (output pressure 300-500 Bar). Hold cleaning process with HP machine washing.

High-pressure hoses are connected to the HPM, providing a distance of 30 m to 80 m from the machine to the point of use. The machine must be fitted with a special turbo-nozzle (rotary) to increase the impact force of the flow on the heavily contaminated surface. Portable HPM, installed on the tank top or on the main deck of the vessel, allows water under the pressure to be transferred through high-pressure hoses to an easily operated handle, which is used by the cleaner inside the cargo holds and also at heights with using special climbing equipment to wash out the hard-to-reach areas (under deck constructions, upper part of bulkheads, top side tanks, pipe guards etc.).

During washing, the cleaner should ensure that all parts of the hold are thoroughly washed and that any cargo residues remaining on the hold surface (under deck and coaming frames, behind the frames, pipes and pipe guards, ladders, platforms, top side plantings and lower hoppers, stools, etc.) are removed. During proper washing, the paint flakes and rust scales to be removed, as well. It must be taken into consideration that poor dry cleaning and poor chemicals’ application will lead to hardening or sticking of cargo residues during wet works.

If the cargo residues or cargo stains are still visible after HPM washing then these areas should be rewashed again, in worse case, the chemicals should be applied locally again with manual brushing of problematic holds area and further HPM blasting from close range.

After HPM washing, with use of seawater and rinsing by fresh water is completed, then it is highly recommended to check holds condition after several days, since water caught behind paint and scale can later dislodge the rust and paint scales. In any case, the holds should always be checked numerous times prior arrival at the port of loading to ensure that there are no any defects or debris have appeared as a result of the vessel’s passage and hull vibration.

Once the washing is deemed successful and all cargo residues have been removed, the holds and hatch covers should be rinsed with fresh water to remove dried salts formed on the surface after previously used seawater. Fresh water is supplied through the vessel’s freshwater system, so the volume of available fresh water be taken into consideration.

The level of rinsing by the fresh water depends on the next cargo. For example, if the next cargo is steel products, it is very important to rinse the surface as much as possible, as any condensate can generate the salt water, which affects the corrosion of the steel.

Fortuna International Ltd. provides HPM washing services of cargo holds in all countries of the world. The mobile brigade (cleaning team) will quickly arrive at the destination to perform a high-quality cleaning of the holds.

Fifth step

De-Rusting cargo holds

The prepared of metal surface is considered as cleaned metal surface from defects indicated above, excluding possibility of undermining the paint coatings with a sharp hand tools (scraper, hammers and etc), and transitions between the settled paint and the cleaned metal (step) are smoothed out by grinding with hand tools, and necessarily locally painted in the treated areas. Pneumatic-electric hand tools, such as, angle grinder, needle hammer, etc. usually are used for the above works as well.

Attention is required to the preparation of hold‘s surface and welding lines. The surface must be smooth and free of any rust places. It is allowed to use a special equipment such as rustibus or the application of acid chemicals to remove rust scales and oxidant from hold‘s tank top.

According to ISO 8501, required cleaning standard of cargo hold is St2*

What St2 means:

St2 – Thorough manual and mechanical cleaning – When viewed free of magnifying devices, the surface must be without visible oil, grease, and dirt as well as loose paint coatings, rust, adhering scale and foreign substance.

For more than 15 years, Fortuna International Ltd Has been doing an excellent job using all necessary methods for cargo hold cleaning, including rust removal. We have the required equipment to remove cargo residues and rust scales and to paint the cargo holds. Well-trained and skilled professionals quickly and efficiently will perform necessary works to prepare the cargo holds for inspection before sailing. We are ready to solve any issues with cargo holds cleaning anywhere in the world.

HISTORY

Tank top & Bilges

The final stage in the preparation of the cargo holds for the loading of next cargo is cleaning of tank top and bilge wells. The use of high-pressure machine is compulsory regardless of the origin of previous cargo. During visual inspection, it should be decided either to use a rustibust machine or not. In case of hard flaking rust was found on the tank top surface, that has been not removed by the water high-pressure machine, it is required to use rustibus, for the better result. Quite often, the tank top is cleaned from the cargo remains and there are no any rust, but the entire surface is covered with corrosive dust. In this case, the acid chemical must be applied on the tank top surface. It is very important not to allow it to dry on tank top. In fact, the chemicals must be washed out after 20 – 30 minutes when the application was done.

Cleaning the bilge wells

In any case, the bilge wells must be cleaned from cargo residues and etc and must be covered with tarpaulin, burlap, or similar with watering tape around the perimeter to prevent the cargo from getting inside.

When all the washing operations have been completed, any water that may have collected in tank top indentations and other areas of cargo holds should be mopped up and removed. If the vessel is fitted with ventilation system, it should be switched on to increse the drying process as well. Bilge wells must also be dry. It is almost inevitable that some condensate will occur on the surfaces of the internal hold surface, so it is recommended to check hold condition prior surveyor’s inspection. To reduce the level of condensation which may appear, it is necessary to ensure ventilation of the hold prepared for loading by partially opening of the hatch covers or turning on the ventilation system. Fortuna International Ltd will quickly and efficiently carry out all the necessary services to clean the cargo holds before loading your vessel again. Namely:

Our team will arrive at lightning speed anywhere in the world and get to work.

seventh step

Cargo holds painting

Lack of timely holds maintenance is the main reason for increasing of time required for holds cleaning and, depending on the required cleanliness standard, can result in the necessity of touch up or even a full painting of holds surface. Partial touch-up is required to prevent further corrosion of the metal and to improve the general hold condition and possible damage of the next cargo at the areas where the paint peeling off or surface is rusty with flakes or areas with damaged coating, for example, the scratches are appeared after use of grab during unloading operations.

The process of painting the cargo holds of seagoing vessels

Prior painting of cargo hold the surface must be well-prepared. Outside drydock the surface preparation could be done by using manual or electrical or pneumatic mechanical tools (the loose paint, rust scales, sharp edges, oil greeds must be removed to correspond with St2* standard of metal surface cleaning as per ISO 8501), thereafter these areas must be rinsed with fresh water and become dry. It is important to start painting after not more than 2 hours in order to prevent the process of oxidation of the cleaned surface during contact with air due to high humidity and salinity at sea passage.

The main part of painting works is done by paint rollers, sometimes by paint sprayer. As metal does not have the ability to absorb liquids, the leakages can appear on the metall surface. It can be avoided by painting of small areas and with a thin layer. Special attention should be paid to areas prone to corrosion: edges, holes, welding lines, etc.

While using two-component paint, you have to follow the mixing ratio recommended by the manufacturer. During favorable weather condition, the paint curing takes about 2-3 days, in well-ventilated hold unless the manufacturer has stated another recommendation.

The suitable conditions for painting works are the air temperature starting from +4°C and humidity about 40-70%.

Fortuna International Ltd performs all types of hold preparation works in order to get surveyors approval of cargo holds for carriage of intended cargo. Our company is ready to clean and paint holds in any country in the world in timely and cost-efficient manner.

* St2 – Thorough manual and mechanical cleaning – When viewed without magnifying devices, the surface must be free of visible oil, grease, and dirt as well as loose adhering scale, rust, paint coatings and foreign substance

Holds Cleaning

Cleanliness Solutions.

Cleaning Department