What are maintenance of hatch cover as per SOLAS ?

Following are maintenance carried out of hatch covers

1. Carry out regular examination of the hatch covers,hatch beams and coamings to identify –

• General levels of corrosion (check with your classification society for corrosion allowances);
• Localised corrosion at welded connections (grooving);
• Cracks in joints and weld metal;
• Permanent distortion of plating and stiffeners.

2. Call a Class Surveyor and carry out repairs as soon as possible when there are:

• Indications of excessive corrosion e.g. holes or local buckling of the top plate;
• Cracks in main structural joints;
• Areas of significant indentation, other than localised mechanical damage.

3. Be particularly vigilant after heavy weather.

4. Rectify any steel-to-steel fault before renewal of rubber packing. Renewal will not be effective if steel-to-steel contact points are defective, and expensive rubber packing will be ruined after only a few months of use.

5. Replace missing or damaged hatch gaskets (rubber packing) immediate. The minimum length of replaced gasket should be one metre;

6. Keep hatch coaming tops clean and the double drainage channels free of obstructions. (Open hatch covers to clean coaming tops and the double drainage channels after loading bulk cargo through grain or cement ports.

7. Keep cleats and wedges in serviceable condition and correctly adjusted.

8. keep wheels, cleats, hinge pins, haul wires, and chain tension equipment well greased;

9. Test hydraulic oil regularly for contamination and Deterioration.
10. keep hauling wires and chains adjusted correctly.