Maintenance of idle ships and restarting

[cementhands]

A huge concern is the maintenance of ships in the ocean and being unoccupied. The salt water of the ocean causes rapid deterioration of ships. The normal full maintenance crew is lacking so deteriorating conditions are likely both Inside and out on ships. Anyone who has closed up a house or business knows this. You return from Florida from your winter escape and things are needing tons of care. Imagine the plumbing in a ship that is constantly running and being maintained. Stopping that for an extended period of time is going to cause glitches on reopening. Machines used to constantly running and being idle often have many problems on restarting. Closing my seasonal business for the winter often involved extra work getting up and running in the spring. It might take a while for restarting cruise ships to run smoothly. 

[msmayor]

This is yet another reason we are going to cancel our December cruise on Escape.

 

I am simply not confident that, for the significant investment in this vacation (three balcony staterooms during a holiday week - over $10k) I am going to feel like it was money well spent.  Final payment will be due in August, and I don't think any of the lines will be up and running by then so there will still be some significant unknowns.

 

The cruise product that we see on the other side of this, once they are able it re-start, IS going to be different.  I really want to have a better idea of what I'm going to get for my money.

 

Fortunately, I booked back in early 2019 when deposits were only $50 pp.  I've only got $600 invested in this so far, so if I have to wait 90-120 days for my refund, I'm OK with that.

[ColeThornton]

Schedule maintenance will still be accomplished on board the ships. Systems will still be ran. Exterior upkeep will continue.  I don't believe there are any NCL ships right now that are in Cold Shutdown, feel free to correct me if I'm mistaken on that. The ships are not unoccupied.  As much as these ships are worth they are not going to be neglected which in turn will cost a ton in repairs.  Money the cruise line doesn't have right now.

 

[chengkp75]

The crew has been reduced to the minimum statutory manning, which means that most of the technical departments are still there (deck and engine) so maintenance will continue, as required by the ship's certification.

[pickle11]

47 minutes ago, cementhands said:

A huge concern is the maintenance of ships in the ocean and being unoccupied. The salt water of the ocean causes rapid deterioration of ships. The normal full maintenance crew is lacking so deteriorating conditions are likely both Inside and out on ships. Anyone who has closed up a house or business knows this. You return from Florida from your winter escape and things are needing tons of care. Imagine the plumbing in a ship that is constantly running and being maintained. Stopping that for an extended period of time is going to cause glitches on reopening. Machines used to constantly running and being idle often have many problems on restarting. Closing my seasonal business for the winter often involved extra work getting up and running in the spring. It might take a while for restarting cruise ships to run smoothly. 

Thank you for your words of encouragement.  You make it obvious that the cruise lines will not be ready.  How many times a day do you use the toilet on a cruise?  Normal smooth cruises I guess will not happen.  Maybe machines do not have to be used at 100% capacity all the time.

I guess you can use the same concern for the airline industry as a lot of planes are sitting idle now too.  Maintenance for equipment not being used regularly at 100% capacity. 

[CruiseMH]

There is a reason why on all ships there are still between 50 and 100 crew members. they are thereto  keep the ship in good shape. There is also a reason why almost all cruise ships are making some maneuvers at sea from time to time to keep the engines and important ship systems running.They know that they cannot close down the ship completely for several moths.

They will also have to keep the air conditioning running - at least at a low level - to keep the interior as dry as possible cause moisture could cause rust and "rotting" of the interior.

If you read many articles about idle ships they always mention that it takes between 4(warm layup) and 10 weeks(cold layup) to prepare the ships for operating with passengers again. And these 4 to 10 weeks are exactly used to bring back all system to operational mode.

So,once the cruise lines will offer the first cruises you can be assured that the ships will be in perfect shape .

 

[roger001]

I would think restocking the ships with  crew enough to accomidate however many passengers they intend to carry will be a big issue for them.  

[atanac]

2 hours ago, roger001 said:

I would think restocking the ships with  crew enough to accomidate however many passengers they intend to carry will be a big issue for them.  

Crew maybe, the entertainers will be much more difficult.

[BirdTravels]

7 hours ago, cementhands said:

A huge concern is the maintenance of ships in the ocean and being unoccupied. The salt water of the ocean causes rapid deterioration of ships. The normal full maintenance crew is lacking so deteriorating conditions are likely both Inside and out on ships. Anyone who has closed up a house or business knows this. You return from Florida from your winter escape and things are needing tons of care. Imagine the plumbing in a ship that is constantly running and being maintained. Stopping that for an extended period of time is going to cause glitches on reopening. Machines used to constantly running and being idle often have many problems on restarting. Closing my seasonal business for the winter often involved extra work getting up and running in the spring. It might take a while for restarting cruise ships to run smoothly. 

Source of your Comment? Seems unsubstantiated. 

[romalley99]

That is why these ships are in "Warm Layup". Just about the whole fleet, with the exception of Escape, Epic and Joy, are currently in "Warm Layup". This is a state the ship goes into when it will be not used for an extended period of time. No ships are currently in "cold layup", which would require sea trials and a drydock to clean the underside upon re-entering service. 

 

Warm Layup is designed specifically for times like this... for the ship to be laid up. They will still go out to sea every couple days/weeks to replenish water and clean their tanks... which keeps the ship and machinery in great working condition. 

[beerman2]

13 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Source of your Comment? Seems unsubstantiated. 

He was equating it to his seasonal business and closing it for the winter and what it takes to reopen.

 

A big stretch to compare the two, but that's his source/opinion.

Edited June 8, 2020 by beerman2

[Georgia_Peaches]

I have confidence they are on top of maintenance and ship operations.  The ships are too big of an investment and financial risk....

[PTC DAWG]

12 hours ago, romalley99 said:

That is why these ships are in "Warm Layup". Just about the whole fleet, with the exception of Escape, Epic and Joy, are currently in "Warm Layup". This is a state the ship goes into when it will be not used for an extended period of time. No ships are currently in "cold layup", which would require sea trials and a drydock to clean the underside upon re-entering service. 

 

Warm Layup is designed specifically for times like this... for the ship to be laid up. They will still go out to sea every couple days/weeks to replenish water and clean their tanks... which keeps the ship and machinery in great working condition. 

What’s up with The Escape...?  She’s my favorite NCL Ship

Edited June 8, 2020 by PTC DAWG

[adjensen]

14 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

What’s up with The Escape...?  She’s my favorite NCL Ship

 

It's presently sailing to Rome.

[chengkp75]

16 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

What’s up with The Escape...?  She’s my favorite NCL Ship

Escape is returning crew to Europe, Joy is returning crew to Asia, and Epic is in Miami as a "hotel" for crew that cannot or are not being repatriated by other means, and are not needed for warm lay up of their ships.

[romalley99]

1 hour ago, PTC DAWG said:

What’s up with The Escape...?  She’s my favorite NCL Ship

 

1 hour ago, adjensen said:

 

It's presently sailing to Rome.

 

1 hour ago, chengkp75 said:

Escape is returning crew to Europe, Joy is returning crew to Asia, and Epic is in Miami as a "hotel" for crew that cannot or are not being repatriated by other means, and are not needed for warm lay up of their ships.

 

Escape is in the Med repatriating crew there. Then she will go to India and finally end in Manila sometime around July 15th. The original schedule that was floating around was changed up a bit, so it's not too accurate anymore. 

[PTC DAWG]

Thanks for the answers...

[pcakes122]

20 minutes ago, romalley99 said:

The original schedule that was floating around was changed up a bit, so it's not too accurate anymore. 

Speaking of schedules, there was an NCLH "relaunch schedule" (including ship names & dates of NCL, Oceania & Regent ships) posted on a FB group about an hour ago.  (It was a screenshot of an Excel file that was supposedly shared via email with some Breakaway crew.)  I won't share it here since I don't want to spread an entire list of unsubstantiated rumors (and if it is valid I'm sure it wasn't meant for public release!) but I will say that the earliest relaunch of an NCL ship was last week of September.  There was 1 ship in September, 4 in October, 4 in November, 4 in December,  2 in January, and 2 in February (if I counted correctly!)

 

The file is out there on the interwebs if folks want to see it.  I cannot link the FB group but the group topic is focused on cruises out of NYC.

 

PS Edited to add that I see the list is now also being cross-posted to some NCL FB groups.

 

Edited June 8, 2020 by pcakes122

[Sand and Seas]

1 hour ago, pcakes122 said:

Speaking of schedules, there was an NCLH "relaunch schedule" (including ship names & dates of NCL, Oceania & Regent ships) posted on a FB group about an hour ago.  (It was a screenshot of an Excel file that was supposedly shared via email with some Breakaway crew.)  I won't share it here since I don't want to spread an entire list of unsubstantiated rumors (and if it is valid I'm sure it wasn't meant for public release!) but I will say that the earliest relaunch of an NCL ship was last week of September.  There was 1 ship in September, 4 in October, 4 in November, 4 in December,  2 in January, and 2 in February (if I counted correctly!)

 

The file is out there on the interwebs if folks want to see it.  I cannot link the FB group but the group topic is focused on cruises out of NYC.

 

PS Edited to add that I see the list is now also being cross-posted to some NCL FB groups.

 

I don't do Facebook......can you just say if you saw Joy on the list by October?  

(Final Payment coming soon😕)

[jskinsd]

On 6/7/2020 at 6:22 AM, cementhands said:

A huge concern is the maintenance of ships in the ocean and being unoccupied. The salt water of the ocean causes rapid deterioration of ships. The normal full maintenance crew is lacking so deteriorating conditions are likely both Inside and out on ships. Anyone who has closed up a house or business knows this. You return from Florida from your winter escape and things are needing tons of care. Imagine the plumbing in a ship that is constantly running and being maintained. Stopping that for an extended period of time is going to cause glitches on reopening. Machines used to constantly running and being idle often have many problems on restarting. Closing my seasonal business for the winter often involved extra work getting up and running in the spring. It might take a while for restarting cruise ships to run smoothly. 

When do you think it will be safe for you?

[pcakes122]

19 minutes ago, Sand and Seas said:

I don't do Facebook......can you just say if you saw Joy on the list by October?  

(Final Payment coming soon😕)

Joy shows 10/24 - hope that helps! 🙂

 

[Sand and Seas]

3 minutes ago, pcakes122 said:

Joy shows 10/24 - hope that helps! 🙂

 

That does make it interesting!   We have some decisions to make.  Thanks☺️

[pcakes122]

1 minute ago, Sand and Seas said:

That does make it interesting!   We have some decisions to make.  Thanks☺️

And remember - this is "unconfirmed."  I will add that there was also ship engine information on the spreadsheet, so if I had to guess, made it appear like it was from an internal communication to NCL engineering or mechanical crew(?) which seemed to give it credence.  It also included all NCLH ships (not just NCL) which (for some reason) also made me give it more weight.  Even so, although the column said "Relaunch date" it could all be subject to change.

[Broadwaybb]

Trying to join the right group to see this 😃 Any news on the Getaway included?

[Sand and Seas]

1 hour ago, pcakes122 said:

And remember - this is "unconfirmed."  I will add that there was also ship engine information on the spreadsheet, so if I had to guess, made it appear like it was from an internal communication to NCL engineering or mechanical crew(?) which seemed to give it credence.  It also included all NCLH ships (not just NCL) which (for some reason) also made me give it more weight.  Even so, although the column said "Relaunch date" it could all be subject to change.

True.  Possible relaunch date could be bringing crew back to prep for passengers.   It sounds like their tentative plan for when they might get CDC approval.   Just interesting to see any sort of plan.  Bigger ships first maybe.