Ship Cold Protection and Freeze Prevention Guide

I. Pay attention to weather changes and prepare in advance

As captain, you must always pay attention to weather changes, especially cold waves and strong winds, temperature drops and freezing, rain, snow, fog and haze that directly affect the safe operation of the ship, and in light of the ship's own characteristics, prepare early and prevent early.

II. Pay attention to machinery and equipment, and appropriately "add clothes" to keep warm

1. During the cold winter period, water pipes, water tanks and oil pipes exposed on deck should be wrapped for freeze protection.

2. The fresh water tank in the lifeboat should not be filled more than 3/4; the fresh water tank in the lifeboat and outdoor foam fire extinguishers can be wrapped with insulating material. Check whether the lifeboat has been switched to antifreeze lubricating oil.

3. The ship's navigation lights should be kept on continuously during navigation regardless of day or night, in order to drive off moisture in severe cold, keep the interior of the navigation lights dry, prevent the filament from sudden cooling and heating, and extend service life.

4. If the lashing equipment for deck containers and the locking devices at the container bottom corners are hit by waves or splashed with water during navigation, they will freeze and become stuck in ice. It is recommended to wrap the container bottom corners with straw.

5. Do a good job of freeze protection for fire water pipes, drain residual water before closing them, and prevent fires from being impossible to fight because the fire water pipes are frozen.

6. Deck machinery and motors equipped with heating and moisture-proof devices should be turned on; in severe cold, key electromechanical equipment may be kept on continuously as appropriate.

7. The lighting bulbs in outdoor gyrocompass repeaters, tachometer repeaters and rudder angle indicators should be kept on continuously regardless of day or night.

8. The swimming pool drain valve should be kept open in winter to prevent rainwater from flowing into the pipe and freezing and cracking it.

Many check valves are made of plastic. If water inside freezes into ice, this kind of plastic valve will burst. Therefore, remember to bring them back and put them in the accommodation area.

III. Pay attention to anti-slip and freeze protection, and prevent personnel from falling

Do a good job of anti-slip measures on ladders and install protective nets to avoid the danger of personnel slipping and falling.

In cold weather, you must remember to drain the water from the deck pipes, otherwise it will be troublesome if the water inside freezes.

As is well known, for deck steam pipes, fire pipes, compressed air pipes and deck fresh water pipes, remember to drain the water.

Usually, for fresh water pipes in the accommodation area, some insulation material should be found and wrapped around them, as shown in the picture above.

In addition, the cold water pipe needs to be shut off and only the hot water pipe opened. In this way, the fresh water pipes here will not freeze.

When the deck is icy, a small amount of yellow sand should be spread for anti-slip. At the same time, in severe cold, straw bags, yellow sand, etc. should be prepared; if icing occurs, straw bags should be laid or a small amount of yellow sand spread at the gangway, side door and crew passage for anti-slip, and dedicated personnel should be assigned to stand watch to ensure safety.

IV. Pay attention to personnel heating and strictly prevent ship fires

Ships under repair or out of service are strictly prohibited from using high-power electrical appliances. When using low- and medium-power heating appliances, someone must attend them, and the power plug should be pulled out when personnel leave. Heaters must not be used to dry clothes and other flammable items, and open flames are strictly prohibited for drying to prevent fires and personal injury or death accidents.

Flammable and explosive items that must be kept in centralized storage shall not be stored privately. Burning paper or setting off fireworks and firecrackers at will is prohibited, and playing with life signal flares is strictly prohibited.

When smoking, cigarette butts and matchsticks must be extinguished before being put into the ashtray. They must not be thrown around or over the side, nor thrown into trash bins. When leaving the room, turn off lights, fans and other electrical appliances. In windy and rainy or rough weather, side windows should be closed tightly, and sleeping with the door locked is prohibited during navigation.

Smoking is prohibited in the engine room, cargo holds, material rooms or storage rooms, and lying down smoking is prohibited in bedrooms. Smoking on deck is prohibited during cargo loading and unloading or when taking on fuel oil.

Guidelines for responding to cold waves and strong winds

1. Meet wind resistance stability and trim requirements by adjusting ballast water (ballast);

2. Secure loaded cargo and lash items that are easy to move, to avoid shifting due to rolling caused by heavy winds and waves;

3. Keep watertight doors closed and ensure that deck scuppers, bilge wells and other drainage are unobstructed to avoid water ingress into compartments;

4. Pay close attention to deck icing caused by waves breaking over the ship, and prevent the resulting increase in draft, reduction in freeboard, and changes in stability.

1. If a sudden gust is encountered during the voyage, reduce speed appropriately and maintain a heading with the bow at an angle of 20–30 degrees to the wind direction to ride out the weather head-to-wind;

2. When strong winds suddenly arise, do not turn at will while underway;

3. For conditions accompanying the voyage such as flying spray and poor visibility, strengthen precautions to prevent ship collision accidents.