Sea chests are the underwater intake boxes fitted into a vessel's hull that allow seawater to flow in for cooling the engine, ballast operations, firefighting systems, and other onboard systems that require a continuous supply of seawater. Because they are permanently submerged and constantly exposed to the flow of warm, nutrient-rich Red Sea water, sea chests accumulate heavy marine growth — barnacles, calcareous deposits, algae, and biofouling — at a rate that progressively restricts water flow through the grating and into the intake system. A heavily fouled sea chest reduces cooling water flow to the engine and auxiliary systems, increases the risk of overheating, reduces pump efficiency, and in severe cases can cause complete blockage of the intake grating — leading to unplanned machinery shutdowns and costly port delays. Classification societies and engine manufacturers both recommend regular sea chest cleaning as part of a vessel's planned maintenance program. Sealion's commercial diving team carried out sea chest cleaning on this vessel while afloat at Aqaba, with no requirement for dry docking. The before-and-after photographs from this operation tell the story clearly — the before images show sea chest gratings heavily encrusted with barnacles and thick calcareous marine growth covering every bar of the grating and the surrounding hull plating, while the after images show the same gratings fully cleared, with each bar of the grating clean and fully open, and the surrounding hull plating descaled and restored. The cleaning was performed using specialist underwater tools and techniques that remove marine growth without damaging the grating bars or the surrounding hull coating, ensuring the sea chest is returned to full flow capacity and the hull coating integrity is preserved. Full photographic documentation was provided to the vessel master for the vessel's maintenance records.

• Sea chest gratings fully cleared of heavy barnacle and calcareous marine growth buildup
• Cleaning performed underwater with vessel afloat — no dry docking required
• Specialist tools used to remove marine growth without damage to grating bars or hull coating
• Surrounding hull plating descaled and restored alongside the sea chest cleaning scope
• Full before-and-after photographic documentation provided to vessel master for maintenance records
• Sea chest restored to full flow capacity — cooling water intake performance fully recovered