or leaving port, or refueling or replenishing from
another ship. Since the sound-powered telephones
provide communications between all the engineer-
ing spaces, you must know the proper procedures.
When you talk, speak slowly and distinctly.
Pronounce the syllables of each word very clearly.
When you receive a message, or are given a
message to transmit, repeat it word for word,
exactly as it was given to you. Do not engage in
any idle chatter.
As the messenger of the watch, you will also
perform other duties as assigned by the petty
officer of the watch. These duties include
checking operating machinery and recording
temperature and pressure readings in the
appropriate logs.
The operating log is an hourly record of
operating pressures and temperatures of almost
all operating machinery. The log readings include
lube oil and boiler pressures and temperatures,
pump suction and discharge pressures, and other
items needed to operate the engineering plant.
You will have to write and print legibly. You also
have to spell common Navy terms correctly and
maintain your logs neatly and accurately. You
should know the proper operating and limiting
or danger pressures and temperatures of your
equipment. This allows you to know when a piece
of machinery or equipment is not operating
properly.
COLD-IRON WATCH
When a ship stops operating its own plant and
is receiving services from shore or other ships, the
ship is considered to be in a cold iron status. A
security and fire watch is usually set by each
department. This watch is called the cold-iron
watch.
Each cold-iron watch makes frequent inspec-
tions of the assigned area and looks for fire
hazards, flooding, or other unusual conditions
throughout the area. The watch sees that no
unauthorized persons are in the watch area; that
all spaces are cleaned; and that no tools, rags,
gear, and the like are left adrift. The watch also
keeps the bilges reasonably free of water. (NOTE:
You must get permission to pump water from the
duty engineer officer and the OOD.)
The watch makes hourly reports to the OOD
or the DCC watch on all existing conditions.
Any unusual conditions are reported to the
OOD or DCC immediately. They can notify the
department responsible to take the necessary
corrective measures.
When hot work is done in the watch area, the
cold-iron watch ensures that a fire watch is
stationed. The fire watch stands by with a C02
extinguisher.
If a fire watch has not been
stationed, the cold-iron watch stops all work
until a fire watch can be stationed. The cold-iron
watch then carries out all pertinent orders.
If the ship is in dry dock, the cold-iron
watch will check all sea valves after working
hours. This is to ensure that the valves are secure
or blanked off. The cold-iron watch also ensures
that no oil is pumped into the dry docks at any
time. The watch will not allow any weights, such
as fuel oil or feedwater, to be shifted without
permission of the engineer officer or DCA.
BURNERMAN
The burnerman is responsible for cutting
burners in and out as directed by the boiler
technician of the watch (BTOW). The burnerman
must keep a close check for dirty atomizers and
change them when authorized by the BTOW. The
burnerman must always be assisted by another
watch stander when lighting fires or cutting in
additional burners. This procedure will ensure that
fires are safely lit and are burning properly, that
no fuel leaks, and that fires can be quickly secured
if a casualty occurs.
CHECKMAN/UPPER-LEVEL WATCH
On ships that do not have automatic feedwater
controls, the checkman is responsible for
operating the feed check valve and maintaining
the proper water level in the steam drum. This
is the checkmans only responsibility. On ships
that have automatic feedwater controls, a
checkman is not needed unless the control is
shifted from automatic to manual. The respon-
sibilities of the upper-level watch include (1) the
operation of the forced draft blowers, deaerating
feed tank, and all boiler-related equipment on the
upper level; (2) surface blowing; (3) starting and
stopping machinery; (4) opening and closing
valves; (5) monitoring gauges; and (6) aligning
systems.
FIREROOM LOWER-LEVEL
The fireroom watch is responsible for starting,
stopping, and maintaining proper levels and
pressures on all boiler-related equipment on the
lower level. This equipment will normally include
the main feed booster pumps and the fuel oil
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