28.1 DESCRIPTION

Large reefer ships have generally been regarded as the beauties among cargo ships. Easily recognised by their characteristic smart hull lines with usually more raked stems than other cargo ships they express power and speed and in their full right. Add to that white painted hulls and superstructures and one easily thinks of the South with sun and fresh fruit. And not least when such a ship is observed underway.

Reefer ships is short for refrigerated ships, that is, ships designed to carry perishable goods at specified temperatures usually between ?27 and +13 degrees Celsius. The first mechanically powered ships on which perishable goods were shipped were naturally dry cargo ships with tweendecks. When provided with large capacity cargo hold ventilating fans, such ships, without either cargo hold insulation or refrigeration machinery, could carry various vegetables and fruits in temperate climate zones over quite some distances. These were the forerunners of the real reefer ships, which were not introduced until the early 1930s when the required refrigeration technology had become available from experiences with plants ashore. Today (2000) there are three main types for shipment of perishable goods, colloquially called reefer cargoes:

Reefer Cargo Ships (Figure 28.1), a designation used in this chapter to distinguish this type from the other two main types but ordinarily just called reefer ships. They all carry cargo on the tanktop (lower hold) and on the tween-deck(s). This type, however, includes three ship groups:

1. traditional ships...