🔍 Key Concepts

• Double-bottom construction on ships (inner vs. outer plating) • The meaning of tank top, outer bottom, and floors in ship structure • Location and function of sheer (shear) strake/plating on a hull

💭 Think About

• Visualize a cross‑section of a double‑bottom ship: which plate actually touches the sea water? • Which term is commonly used for the inner horizontal plating that forms the top of double‑bottom tanks inside the hull? • Where along the ship’s side would you expect something called sheer or shear plating to be located?

✅ Before You Answer

• Be clear which part of the double bottom is in contact with the water versus inside the ship forming a deck or tank top • Recall that floors on ships are usually transverse structural members, not the outer shell plating itself • Confirm where sheer/shear plating or sheer strake is normally found: near the deck edge or at the bottom of the hull?