General Specifications - Appendix 6

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING 
AND CEMENTING VESSELS 
OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY

Edition of June 1943

 

Chapter 6. - 
Machinery, Electrical 
and Special Equipment, Piping, Furniture.

 

SECTION 6-A.

Machinery.

General requirements. - All ferrous metals which are to be painted shall be cleaned thoroughly  to a bare surface before any paint or preservative coating is applied.  In no case shall paint or a preservative be applied over damp, oily, or greasy surfaces or over any foreign substances.  Painting over rust or scale shall be avoided.

All pits and holes shall be cleaned thoroughly so that no rust or scale remains.

Normally galvanized surfaces or other surfaces with special protective finish shall not be painted.  Ventilating fans, however, shall be primed and interior finish painted in accordance with Navy Department Specification 17F8.  The greatest care shall be taken that such surfaces are not disfigured or marked with symbols for identification during assembly or installation in such a way that the symbols cannot be removed readily without injuring the protective coating.

Care should be taken that the following items are not painted:

Bell pulls, sheaves, and enunciator chains and other mechanical communication devices.
Composition water ends of pumps.
Electric insulators and insulation of all kinds; special insulating coatings may be specified.
Glands, stems, yokes, toggle gear, all machined external parts of valves.
Heat exchanging surfaces of heating or cooling equipment.
Joint faces of gaskets and packing surfaces.
Lubricating  gear, such as oil holes, oil or grease cups, lubricators, and surfaces in contact with lubricating oil.
Lubricating oil reservoirs.
Name plates.
Radio antennae and antennae leads.
Radio transmitters, receivers, and amplifiers, all parts.
Rods, gears, universal joints, couplings or valve operating gear.
Springs.
Strainers.
Threaded parts.
Valve bonnets of nonferrous parts.
Working surfaces.
Zincs, wherever installed.

Subsequent to completion of all shop tests and prior to shipment, all finished, working, and internal surfaces of machinery except those of noncorrodible materials and boilers, and those required to be painted shall be coated with thin film rust preventive compound (Navy Department Specification 52C18) for protection against deterioration during shipment and  storage prior to installation and operation aboard ship.  The correct grade of thin film rust preventive compound (Navy Department Specification 52C18)  for the above surfaces is as follows: Grade III is intended for use on corrodible interior surfaces of machinery laid up under cover which, in normal operation, are in contact with water or steam.  Grade II is intended for use on ferrous and other corrodible metal surfaces of machinery laid up under cover which, in normal operation are in contact with gasoline, oil, and other media except steam or water.  Grade I is intended for use in lieu of Grade II where machinery is exposed to outdoor weather conditions, or where any doubt exists as to the duration and conditions of storage. The internal surfaces of main and auxiliary reduction gears and the oil passages of main and auxiliary steam turbines shall, in all instances, be protected by Grade I compound in lieu of Grade II compound.  Machinery whose internal surfaces are coated with the above grades of thin film rust preventive compound may be placed in operation without removing  the protective coating.  After application of any of the above grades of rust preventive compound, a drying period of approximately 30 to 60 minutes is necessary in order to allow the volatile thinner to evaporate.   If the freshly applied rust preventive compound comes in contact with any objects before complete drying has occurred, abrasion or absorption of the compound may result, leaving the slushed surface inadequately protected against corrosion.

 All flanged openings shall be closed  by blank flanges of wood bolted in place, or in the case of screwed connections by pipe plugs; suitable soft gaskets shall be used  with the flanges to make reasonable tight joints and prevent access of air and moisture.  If the blank flanges do not afford proper protection, all finished flanges shall be protected by other means against corrosion.

All units shall be inspected upon receipt at ship or navy yards to insure that preservation of all materials is adequate.  Further steps for preservation as may be directed by the Supervisor of Shipbuilding or Commandant, respectively, shall be taken if machinery is to be stored for any length of time prior to installation.  

Unless otherwise specified, all external , unmachined surfaces of Ungalvanized ferrous metal parts of machinery shall, prior to shipment and after a thorough cleaning, be coated with one coat of zinc chromate primer, formula 84, or brown metal primer, Navy Department Specification 52P26.  After shipment, one or more coats of gray enamel, Navy Department Specification 52E4, shall be applied by the shipbuilder to secure satisfactory coverage.  

All external surfaces of ungalvanized ferrous metal piping, fittings, and valves shall, prior to shipment and after cleaning, be given one coat of zinc chromate primer, formula 84, or brown metal primer, Navy Department Specification 52P26.  After shipment, the shipbuilder shall apply finish coats as specified for the compartment wherein.

All internal and external surfaces of ungalvanized sheet-metal work shall be given one coat of zinc chromate primer, formula 84, or brown metal primer, Navy Department Specification 52P26, and finish coats as specified for the compartment wherein.

All heated unmachined external surfaces of ungalvanized ferrous metal parts of machinery such as turbine casings, boiler drums, etc., whether they are to be later covered with heat insulating material or not, shall, prior to shipment and after thorough cleaning, be coated with one coat of heat-resisting paint, Navy Department Specification 52P19.

All heated external surfaces of ungalvanized ferrous metal piping, fittings, and valves shall, prior prior to shipment and after thorough cleaning, be coated with one coat of heat-resisting paint, Navy Department Specification 52P19.

All heated surfaces, internal and external , of ungalvanized ferrous sheet-metal work such as boiler inside casing, etc., shall be given one coat of heat-resisting paint, Navy Department Specification 52P19.

In special cases, unmachined external surfaces of castings may be finished up smooth by filling with a suitable hardening cement.  Such parts should be finished with one coat of paint or enamel.  If located inside the vessel, the color of the finish shall be light gray enamel,  Navy Department Specification 52E4.  If located outside, the finish color shall match the surrounding structure.

Painting of external surfaces of nonferrous metal castings, piping or other parts is, ordinarily, not required prior to or during installation, except in the case of the aluminum alloys.  For the latter, all parts shall be given one coat of zinc chromate primer, formula 84, or brown metal primer, Navy Department Specification 52P26. before assembly or installation.  Radio equipment, and other special parts shall not be painted if special finishes have been applied in accordance with the purchase specifications.

Zinc chromate paint shall be used for touching up rivets, welded joints, and defective coatings in assemblies of galvanized material which cannot be galvanized after fabrication.

Painting of details after installation and prior to final completion. - All exposed metal parts shall be finished after installation on board ship in accordance with a schedule prepared by the shipbuilder and approved by the Bureau or the Bureau's inspector.

SECTION 6-B.

Electrical Installation.

General. - The painting of various types of shipboard electrical equipment is specified in the following paragraphs.  The intent of the requirements specified herein is to provide a finish which has suitable preservative properties to protect vital electrical equipment against deterioration incident to shipboard service while at the same time reducing to a minimum any fire hazard resulting from lack of restrictions as to the type of paint and number of coats used.  These objectives are basically achieved by the use of a "two coat" system, consisting of a primer first coat and a reasonably hard semigloss second coat, using paints which produce a flame-resistant finish.  It is essential that paints of the types specified  be used and that the number of coats be restricted.  It is further essential that any retouching necessary incidental to the installation be accomplished in a manner to result in no more than the specified number of coats.  That is previous coats must be removed on any affected surfaces requiring repainting.  These requirements shall apply in general to the equipment indicated except where otherwise specifically approved.

Cleaning. - Before painting any electrical equipment, as herein after specified, the surfaces to be painted shall have dirt, dust, mill scale, grease, oil, and irregularities due to welding operations removed and the surface shall be in a clean and smooth condition.  Before the surfaces have an opportunity to reacquire any dirt or corrosion, they shall be thoroughly cleaned by one of the following two methods:

Method A. - All surfaces shall be given a balanced hot iron and zinc phosphate treatment to form a uniform crystalline coating of iron and zinc phosphate, followed by a final rinse in dilute chromic acid solution (0.5 pound chromic acid per 100 gallons of water).

Method B. - All surfaces shall be thoroughly washed with a volatile grease solvent, a vapor degreasing process, or a hot alkali cleaning solution.  If the alkali solution is used it should be followed by a water-rinse.  Following the washing, the surfaces shall be sand or  grit blasted where necessary to insure adhesion of the primer coat.

Care shall be taken in handling to prevent the collection of corrosion-forming agents on the surfaces after cleaning and prior to priming.  

Primer Coat. - Immediately following the cleaning operation and before any corrosion-forming agents  have collected, the surface shall be thoroughly dried and a primer coat shall be applied to the surfaces being painted.  Zinc Chromate primer, formula 84, or brown metal primer, Navy Department Specification 52P26 shall be used for this primer coat.  Other primers may be used when specifically approved by the Bureau of  Ships.

Motors and Generators. - Prior to installation (usually at the manufacturer's plant) - Motors and generators shall have  non-working ferrous surfaces painted as follows:

Cleaning and priming shall be accomplished in accordance with the following paragraphs.

Internal surfaces of field frames shall have one coat of black varnish, Navy Department Specification 52V1 or black insulating varnish, Navy Department Specification 52V13.

Internal surfaces of end brackets and enclosing parts shall have one coat of gray machinery enamel Navy Department Specification 52E4 except that for totally enclosed propulsion motors and generators the color shall be white.

External surfaces shall have one finish coat of gray machinery enamel, Navy Department Specification 52E4.

After installation in the vessel, motors and generators shall receive only such additional paint as may be necessary to restore any finish damaged in connection with installation.  Repainting of such surfaces shall be accomplished by removing previous coats from the effected areas, cleaning and repainting  in the same manner as specified for the painting prior to installation.  If motors are installed in topside locations exposed to  the weather, an additional finish coat as specified for the surfaces of the vessel in the area where installed shall be applied over the light gray machinery enamel.

Switchboards, Power, and Lighting. - The requirements of this paragraph shall apply to switchboards and panels for power and lighting applications and for electric propulsion.

Prior to installation (usually at the manufacturers plant), painting shall be as follows:

All ungalvanized ferrous portions including panels and structural frames, after fabrication including welding, machining, drilling, and tapping but prior to assembly of equipment in the boards, shall be cleaned  and the primer coat specified above applied.  Care shall be taken to insure that any surfaces impracticable to paint after fabrication are coated with primer prior to assembly.

One coat of gray machinery enamel, Navy Department Specification 52E4, shall be applied to all surfaces given the primer coat. Each front panel shall be smooth and free from nicks, scratches, and unevenness in the finish.

After complete assembly, the the front surface of the front panels shall be given a second finish coat of gray machinery enamel and all other surfaces previously painted with gray machinery enamel shall be retouched by removing the previous coat and repainting where scarred during assembly.

All copper and aluminum buss bars on open switchboards shall be painted with two coats of red-colored insulating  paint, Navy Department Specification 17116, or other paint approved  for this purpose.  The coating shall be a flexible, tough, moisture and acid resisting material having an insulating value of at least 500 volts per mil. thickness of coating.

The two coats of paint shall be applied to the bus bars after assembly, each of approximately 0.004 to 0.006 inch thickness.  Prior to the painting, burrs and sharp edges shall be removed  and the bus bars cleaned to remove dust, grease, oil, or other foreign material.  The paint may be applied by  spraying or flowed on with a soft bristle brush when spraying is impracticable.  The coatings shall be applied evenly and shall be free from pin holes.  Special care shall be exercised to obtain a good coating on all edges and projecting parts such as joints, bolts, and nuts.  Additional coats shall be applied over these parts as necessary to insure adequate insulation and prevent  the entrance of air or moisture to the joint.  

After installation in the vessel, switchboards shall receive only such additional painting as may be necessary to restore any finish damaged in connection with the installation.  Repainting of ferrous surfaces shall be accomplished by cleaning, priming, and application of finish coat to the areas effected in the same manner as specified for painting prior to installation.  Scratches and mars on bus bar painting and all joints disassembled during installation shall be repainted in accordance with the requirements for painting bus bars as specified for prior to installation.

Electric Cable. - Prior to installation the cable will be painted in connection with its manufacture as required by the applicable cable specifications.

During installation, after the cable has been pulled in, but prior top strapping in place, and before the stuffing tubes are packed, steel or aluminum armored cables (other than terminal ends on backs of switchboards and panels or inside fittings and connection boxes) shall be given a thorough inspection and if in good condition, i.e. factory painting not marred or scraped off in spots in the process of handling or pulling in the vessel, shall be given the finish coats of compartment painting only.  If required, due to having been marred or scraped, the cables shall be painted at those places with one coat of zinc chromate primer, Navy Department Specification 52P18 or brown metal primer Navy Department Specification 52P26 after which the finish coats of compartment painting shall be applied.  Where the cables pass through stuffing tubes or terminal tubes, particular care shall be taken to paint surfaces within the gland areas with the compound as specified on Bureau standard plans for stuffing tubes and terminal tubes and to paint other areas with the primer before packing and assembling the gland nuts of these tubes.  Cable supporting structure unless galvanized or zinc-plated after fabrication shall be given  the prime coat prior to strapping the cables in place.

After secured in position, all cables and supporting structure shall be painted with the finish coat of the compartment paint or exterior paint used for the surfaces interior and exterior on which the cable are located.

Metal enclosures. - Requirements of this paragraph shall apply to metal enclosures for: 

Motor controllers.

Electrical panels, terminal boxes, fittings, fixtures, etc., including all those in accordance with Bureau standard plans as well as others.

Enclosures for electrical equipment  in general  (except Radio Equipment) not otherwise specified.

Prior to installation all metallic surfaces including the boxes and covers both inside and out shall be painted as follows:

At the manufacturers shop, after fabrication including welding, brazing, machining, drilling, and tapping, and including brazing in of terminal tubes where this is done by the manufacturer, the surfaces shall be cleaned, dried and the prime coat applied in accordance with lines 4 to 10 page 31.

Either at the manufacturer's shop of at the installing yard as specified by the purchasing activity, one finish coat of an alkyd resin base, light gray machinery enamel, conforming to Navy Department Specification 52E4 shall be applied over the prime coat (or coats) to all surfaces inside and out except threaded surfaces.  This gray enamel coat shall preferably be applied at the manufacturer's plant  for those types of enclosures where subsequent brazing of terminal tubes or other work which would destroy this coat, will not be done on the enclosure by the installing yard.  For enclosures of a type requiring brazing of terminal tubes or other work which would destroy a major portion of the enamel coat if previously applied, the order shall specify that only the prime coat be applied by the installing activity after the enclosure has been prepared for installation.

After installation.  If any additional brazing or other work has been done on the enclosure after its installation such that the previous painting is damaged in a manner to result in possible corrosion, the affected areas shall be cleaned, primed, and given one coat of the gray enamel to restore the protective coating.  Otherwise, no additional painting is required for enclosures not exposed to the weather.  However, the compartment painting may be applied over the gray enamel if desired in order to avoid "masking" of these enclosures when accomplishing such painting.  Where the enclosures are installed in locations exposed to the weather, an additional finish coat as specified for the surfaces of the vessel in the area where installed shall be applied to the external surfaces over the light gray machinery enamel.

Interior communication and fire control equipment. - The requirements of this paragraph shall apply to switchboards and instruments used for interior communication and fire control applications under the cognizance of the Bureau of Ships:

Prior to installation this equipment is normally supplied to the installing activities in a finished state by the manufacturer and does not require additional painting.  In general, unless otherwise specified, the painting by the manufacturer shall be as follows:

Cleaning and priming in accordance with preceding paragraph 1.

One coat of alkyd resin base gray enamel in accordance with Navy Department Specification 52E4, except that it shall have a color rating of N-4.5 on the Munsell scale.

After installation only such painting as is necessary to restore any paint damaged in connection with the installation is required and shall be accomplished in the same manner specified for the painting prior to installation by removing the previous coats from the damaged areas and applying primer and finish paint as specified above.  Care should be taken to prevent damage to internal mechanisms when accomplishing the repainting.  Threaded type terminal tubes shall be installed in instruments on which the finish paint has been applied by the manufacturer in order to reduce the amount of repainting required in connection with the installation of terminal tubes.

Color Designations. - All emergency lighting fixtures both metal and phenolic shall be indicated by one coat of green enamel, Navy Department Specification 52P37, applied to the exterior surfaces over the gray enamel  in the case of metal fixtures or directly over the phenolic surfaces for molded fixtures.

All battle telephone jack boxes and telephone switchboxes shall be indicated by one coat of red paint on the cover.  This shall be an alkyd base paint, Navy Department Specification 52P31, applied either in lieu of or over  the gray enamel finish coat specified in paragraph 5.

SECTION 6-C.

Piping.

General. - Piping below the level of the floor plates shall not be painted, unless made of steel unprotected by galvanizing, in which case the piping shall be given two coats of zinc-chromate, formula 84, and a top coat of the same paint as the finish in the bilge.

All canvas pipe lagging shall be given one coat canvas preservative, Navy Department Specification 52C26 of a color as approved to suit the adjacent bulkheads or decks.

All cold bare pipe shall be finish painted to match adjacent bulkhead or decks.

Painting details for piping systems shall be included in painting schedule required by section 1-A, chapter 1.

Salt Water Piping. - The inside of all piping of the fire main proper, including branches to individual plugs, and all piping furnishing circulating water to major units of auxiliary machinery shall be coated with antifouling paint.  No copper-nickel piping or tinned copper piping on the suction and discharge sides of fire pumps and discharge piping from condensers shall be coated during the construction period.  When piping is coated the interior surface of valves, spools, manifolds, and fittings shall be included.  Seats and discs of valves shall not be coated.

Piping on submarines and miscellaneous small craft such as landing boats, crash boats, etc., is not to be coated.

Piping shall be treated with a priming coat of anticorrosive paint, formula 14, not thinned or heated, followed by the application of a coat of cold plastic antifouling paint, Mare Island formula 143E, not thinned, heated to 100 degrees F.

A description of a method of coating interior of piping with plastic antifouling paint will be furnished by the Bureau of Ships upon request.

Identification.- All piping within and outside of machinery spaces shall be painted like surroundings, and shall be lettered with stencils using black striping paint, formula 38, to indicate contents.

Lettering shall be 1 inch high, except on small size pipes (under 2 inches in diameter) where lettering shall be reduced proportionally to present a smart appearance.  Appropriate legends are described in appendix 10.

Gasoline piping shall be painted entirely red, formula 40, throughout the interior of the ship.  Piping on the exterior conveying gasoline shall be painted the same color as the surrounding structure.  Valves in gasoline lines, whether inside or outside of the vessel shall be painted red, and no other valves on the vessel shall be so painted.

 SECTION 6-D.

Gas Cylinders.

General. - Air flasks permanently installed shall be internally cleaned and coated with primer, formula 84 and painted to match the stowage compartment.

Commercial portable gas cylinders of 8 to 12 inch diameter, 30 or more inches long shall be painted for identification as shown in table III.  Smaller cylinders will have smaller neck bands in proportion to the size.  All carbon dioxide (CO2) cylinders used for fire extinguishers shall be painted red.  The identifying neck bands shall extend from the valve down to the body.

Smaller-sized cylinders shall be painted  the same color scheme as outlined in the table below except that the width of the neck bands shall be reduced in proportion to the size or length of the cylinder, and except that all carbon dioxide cylinders used as fire extinguishers shall be painted red.

Aviators' breathing oxygen cylinders for extra-dry oxygen, which are furnished in the smaller sizes, shall be painted green, formula 39, all over with the words "Aviators' Breathing Oxygen" stenciled in white paint, formula 6, lengthwise on the cylinder in letters at least 1 inch in height.

SECTION 6-E.

Miscellaneous Details.

Smoke Pipes and Uptakes. - The outside of smoke pipes and of heat-resisting paint ( Navy Department Specification 52P19) touched up as necessary to render paint intact after installation.  The outside of casing shall be primed with zinc-chromate formula, 84D and finished as described by camouflage instructions.

Gage Boards. - Faces of all gauge boards shall be sprayed with lacquer producing a dead black finish and shall not be polished.

SECTION 6-F.

Furniture.

Metal furniture shall be painted with a single coat of  french gray baking enamel.  A single coat of primer, formula 84, shall be applied for protection of parts which will become inaccessible after assembly.  If necessary for satisfactory adhesion of the finish coat, a thin priming  coat may be used.

The baking enamel shall have fire-retardant qualities in accordance with Navy Department Specification 52E4 or 52P22, and shall be properly tinted.

 

Table III.- Standard Colors for gas cylinders

Gas

Colors
Acetylene
Ammonia
Carbon Dioxide
Chlorine
Compressed Air
Dischlorodifluoromethane (F-12)
Helium
Hydrogen
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Propane and other fuel gas
Silicon tetrachloride
 

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