It is 06:30, the laundry is running two machines flat out, the crew are asleep on the other side of the bulkhead, and the tumble dryer lint filter has not been cleaned since the last charter. Two of those facts are a fire risk. The third is a noise complaint. The laundry is the busiest and most hazardous compartment in the interior.
Operating the machines onboard
- Load correctly: roughly three-quarters full, items loose, heavy and light items balanced. An unbalanced drum on a moving vessel hammers the mounts.
- Select the programme by the most delicate item in the load. Use the delicates/gentle cycle with a mesh bag for anything fine.
- Dose by load size and water hardness — use the machine's dosing guidance, not habit.
- Secure the door and the machine before getting under way. Machines are usually rated to run at sea, but confirm the boat's policy: many yachts do not run the laundry in heavy weather.
- Watch water and power: laundry is one of the biggest consumers of fresh water and generator load onboard. Coordinate with the engineer on heavy days.
Tumble drying
| Setting | Use |
|---|---|
| High heat | White cotton towels and bed linen only |
| Medium | Mixed cotton, robust colours |
| Low / delicate | Synthetics, sateen, blends, anything with elastane |
| Air / no heat | Refreshing, de-linting |
| Do not tumble | Wool, silk, viscose, most guest delicates — dry flat or hang |
- Do not over-dry. Over-drying shrinks cotton, sets creases (making ironing far harder), embrittles linen and destroys elastane. Remove linen slightly damp for ironing.
- Clean the lint filter after every load. Lint build-up is the single most common cause of laundry fires at sea, and it also cripples drying efficiency and dumps heat into the compartment.
- Check the dryer exhaust/condenser routinely and report restricted airflow.
Linen inventory and par levels
Par level = the number of complete sets the boat holds for each item, so that one set can be in use, one in the wash and one clean in the locker. A common working standard is three par for guest bed linen and towels (in use / in laundry / on the shelf), higher on long charters and on boats without shoreside laundry support.
- Count and record linen at the start and end of every charter.
- Track damaged and retired items; a stained or worn set is removed from the guest rotation and downgraded to crew or rag.
- Order replacements ahead of the season, not in the middle of it.
- Store clean linen dry, dark, and grouped as complete sets, labelled by cabin where the boat does this.
Onboard Notes
- Never leave a machine running unattended overnight, and never leave the laundry unattended with the dryer on if the boat's policy forbids it.
- The laundry gets hot and humid. Ventilate it or you will grow mould in the compartment you launder in.
- Noise travels through the hull. Know which cabins back onto the laundry and time your loads accordingly.
- If a machine trips a breaker, tell the engineer — do not simply reset it and carry on.