There are certain tools in a toolbox you rely upon. A hammer so balanced you can drive nails with it all day. A crisp socket wrench. Screwdrivers that perfectly fit both your grip and the screw. Maybe a pair of pliers that feel like part of your hand. In the world of barges we view the humble YC barge the same way.
The “YC” is a designator for the Navy designed “open lighter”. This is a steel barge made to be adaptable for any number of jobs in the harbor. It is a design from 1958 which replaced smaller Navy open lighters. There have been literally hundreds of these barges built for both government and private use and clearly it is a design that works.
The YC barges commonly found are 110’ feet long and 34’ wide with a depth of 8 to 11’. They are made with 6 watertight buoyancy tanks accessed through manholes.
At Pacific Maritime Group we have used a YC barge for:
- The platform for our HORTON Dredge. This YC carries a Liebherr 944 excavator plus spuds and spud winches. It is a handy, productive material handler.
- Transport of yachts. The vessel rests securely on board.
- A Fireworks Platform. Every Fourth of July YC barges put on the show throughout Southern California
- Landing. In support of Navy vessels a YC barge provides a wide, safe place for ships to discharge crew and to receive visitors.
- Ship Husbandry Platform. Nearly every day, at both San Diego and Long Beach, a YC barge provides a stable platform for work on ship anchors, gangways or other shipboard items. Pressure washers and manlifts work from a YC deck to clean, paint or repair ship hulls.
- Dock Repair Platform. At roughly seven feet above the water a YC barge deck is perfect to reach dock fendering, platforms or piles. Forklifts and other equipment have room to do their work.
- Temporary storage. Equipment or materials can be placed aboard a stable YC barge and the barge moored close by for ready use.
- Tandem, triple or more. Because YC barges are so very similar to one another they can be lashed into pairs or triples or more for a larger platform. Stability only increases as the overall dimensions do.
- Media Platform. At hundred and ten feet long, the YC barge is perfect for advertising banners or media set development. It offers a highly visible means of getting the word out.
