Whether it’s leisure travel or long-distance voyage,shipboard furniture will effect your voyage experience directly.High quality shipboard furniture not only provide comfortable seating experience,but also enhance ship’s overall beauty.After long-term exposure to wind and sun,old shipboard furniture inevitable to encounter issues such as fading and cracking.Replace furniture in time can make your ship take a new look.Even can greatly improve the ship’s resale value.
Whether you want a small scale boat makeover or plan to refinishing overall ship furniture,this blog will bring you advice and inspiration.
What is the obvious sings that mean need process furniture change?
Before start your ship interventions,we can first observe the marine furniture if occur these issues.Sch as appearance aging,structure damage,the comfort level decline and mildew.
① Appearance aging:Observing if there is any fading,cracking or peeling.Such as paint peeling off,UV fading exceeds 50% or obvious scratch.These signs will effect furniture overall beauty.
② Structure damage:Checking the frame of furniture if loose,is the screw corroded and is the wood rotting.These are all safety hazards.
③ Comfort level decline:Checking the soft pack furniture like sofas,chairs and mattresses’ filling whether collapse.And the fabric material whether sclerosis,long time seating whether easy tired.
④ Hygiene issues:If mildew occurs,the odor is difficult to remove,that is mean you should replace your furniture.Since this will greatly effect the user experience.
If appear these issues,it means need process ship cabin furniture upgrade.
Check the functionality of the furniture
After observing the furniture whether appear damage signs,we can consider whether the furniture functionality meets your ship’ need.This is also a key step in deciding whether to refurbish your ship’s furniture.
① Number of seats:Checking the number of seats if can meet the daily passenger demand.And consider whether add or optimize the layout.
② Storage space:Existing space whether have enough storage space to storage items like life-jacket,fishing gear and daily necessities.
③ Versatility:Consider whether need furniture which are foldable,detachable or expandable.Functional furniture can save ship space.
④ Ergonomic:If want process ship cabin furniture upgrade,need consider like the seat height,backrest angle whether meet ergonomic design.A chair/sofa which meet ergonomic design can provide comfort even for long periods of time seating.
By consider the functionality of furniture,we can judge whether need to process ship cabin furniture upgrade.Functionality furniture are like Pullman bed,sofa bed and writing desk with storage space,etc.
SYBC-02
SYRV-06
SYPMB-008
Choose suitable furniture material for marine furniture undertake
After deciding process ship cabin furniture upgrade,the next step is select furniture.How to select furniture?We can start with the material.The main part of marine furniture materials are surface material,base material and filling material.Here are some features for different materials including surface, base and filling material.
Surface material
Laminate is the finish of wooden furniture.
✓ Excellent waterproof performance,the surface can completely block the moisture penetration.
✓ Ultra high wear resistance,scratch resistance performance 5-8 times higher than solid wood.
✓ Around 20% lighter than solid wood,the thinnest can reach 3mm.
✓ Class A fireproof certification,low smoke and non-toxic.
Laminate is also a common material in ship.
Faux leather is commonly found in sofas,bed headboard and chairs,etc.
✓ Waterproof performance,which is crucial for marine environments.
✓ UV resistance,not easy to fade even under sunlight.
✓ Durable,can withstand the frequent daily use,not easy to tear or puncture.
✓ Faux leather is lighter and cheaper than genuine leather.
In a words,faux leather is very suitable for shipboard use.And the price is competitive.
Base material
“Marine grade” plywood is the base material of wooden furniture.
✓ Excellent waterproof performance,can be immersed in water for a long time without delamination(laboratory test:the structure remains intact after 72 hours of boiling water).
✓ High strength & stability,multi-layer cross-laminated structure,bending strength ≥50MPa.Compared with ordinary plywood,70% reduction in deformation.
✓ Mildew & corrosion resistant,the core board has no gaps,reducing moisture penetration and mold growth.Suitable for seawater environment (salt spray test 1000 hours without corrosion).
Meanwhile,marine plywood is lighter than solid wood,suitable for the vessel which need reduce weight.
Ordinary plywood can also use for shipboard,this is a more economical option.
Aluminum honeycomb panel is a lightweight material.
✓ Ultra-lightweight,70% lighter than solid wood and 90% lighter than steel.
✓ Very high specific strength,plane compressive strength greater than 1.2MPa.Bending rigidity is 5 times that of steel plates of the same weight.
✓ Excellent corrosion resistance,completely waterproof,no risk of mildew.
✓ Fireproof,class A non-combustible materials,IMO low smoke and non-toxic.
Aluminum honeycomb have many advantages,but worth pay attention is that the price is high.And if core layer damage requires overall replacement.
Aluminum alloy is also a common material in ship.
Although the initial cost is 3-5 times higher than ordinary steel,but aluminum alloy is more durable and lighter than steel.
Filling material
Shipboard like sofas,mattresses and headboard usually adopt sponge as filling material.
✓ Lightweight,density range 20-200kg per cubic meter,50%-80% lighter than traditional material such as cotton and palm fiber.
✓ High rebound & comfort.Slow rebound sponge has good pressure dispersion and is suitable for long-term riding.Meanwhile,it has strong support,long-term sitting without deformation.
✓ Closed-cell sponges(such as IXPE,EVA) absorb almost no water,suitable for humidity environment.Sponge which add antimicrobial agent can inhibit mold growth.
✓ Ordinary sponge usually has a low price.
Typically,service life of high density sponge is 3-5 years longer than ordinary sponge,and the price is more higher than ordinary sponge.
| Sponge type | Price rage($/m³) | Life expectancy |
| Ordinary sponge | 8-30 | 2-3 years |
| High rebound HR sponge | 45-88 | 5-8 years |
| Latex sponge | 118-220 | 10+ years |
Popular nautical furniture style and design
When processing ship cabin furniture upgrade,here are three main styles and designs:modern minimalism,nautical classic and modular smart.Each of these styles and designs has its own characteristics.
Modern minimalism
Modern minimalism mainly embody in clean lines,low profile design and neutral color.
Clean lines without complex carving,most is straight line and geometric shape.The design most is low profile design,like the seat height usually less 40cm,which can create a sense of open space.The color tone is mainly neutral (grey white/beige/matte black),partial embellishment with metallic color.Some classical elements such as floating instrument table (30-35cm far away from the deck).And carbon fiber or anodized aluminum frame.
Modern minimalism is suitable for sport yachts (like Sunseeker Predator series) and electric yachts (new energy ship type like X Shore).
Nautical classic
The cores of nautical classic are material,color and detail.
Common material like wood and 316 stainless steel hardware.Main color typically is RAL 9010 white and RAL 5012 deep blue.Secondary color usually is brass/rosewood (antique finish).Detail usually include knot element decoration,porthole-style round mirror/storage locker.Add leather inlay and teak carving,it can upgrade to a yacht club style.Adopt sky blue and sand,match mosaic collage,it can upgrade to a Mediterranean style.
Nautical classic is suitable for traditional sailing boat (like Hallberg-Rassy) and retro motorboat(like Riva Aquarama reprint).
Modular smart
Technical highlights of modular smart mainly are deformed structure and hidden storage.
Deformed structure such as sofa beds (a sofa can turn into a bed) and electric height adjustable table.Hidden storage such as a secret compartment under the deck.And bed with drawers,hollow footstool with storage space,even refrigerators built into the seats are also hidden storage.
Modular smart is suitable for expedition yacht (like Nordhavn 60) and party boat rental.
| Index | Modern Minimalism | Nautical Classic | Modular Smart |
| Space Utilization | ★★★☆☆ | ★★☆☆☆ | ★★★★★ |
| Maintenance Difficulty | ★★☆☆☆(easy to clean) | ★★★★☆(Teak oil maintenance required) | ★★★☆☆ |
| Style Timeliness | 5-8 years | 10 + years | Technology update required every 3-5 years |
In summary of ship cabin furniture upgrade
If process ship cabin furniture upgrade,there are some purchase decision advice.The vessel is over 15 years old,recommend choose nautical classic style to preserve value.If the vessel is less than 15 years old,according to the usage to judge choose which style/design.For rental/party,recommend choose modular and versatile.For cruise,recommend choose modern minimalism and classical elements.If for business reception,recommend choose high-end luxury style.Of course,this is just for your reference.And you know,specific situations require specific analysis.
