BEHIND THE SCENES

Maintaining a barge is not like maintaining a house or an apartment.
Everything is specific.

The walls are 12 millimeters thick, made of pure steel, requiring special tools. Additionally, everything must be custom-made. As a result, we work almost exclusively with craftsmen specialized in maritime work and equipped accordingly.

Major maintenance involves two main tasks. The first concerns the exterior painting, which is more prone to damage as it is exposed to constant ambient humidity. It is continuous work. Moreover, every ten years, it is necessary to hire a pilot and a sailor to take the barge to a shipyard where it will be dry-docked to clean the hull. Algae, mussels, moss, crustaceans must be removed, and the hull thickness checked with a sonar. If everything is fine, a protective paint layer is sufficient. If necessary, some parts of the hull may need replacement to restore the original thickness.

To allow the boat to navigate, the engines are regularly started to keep them in perfect working condition. Approximately every 6 months, a specialized mechanic checks and runs the 3 rear engines and the bow thruster, located at the front of the boat.