I have read a few articles on the matter. I just want to clear up something...I have read that the water-tight doors stopped water from rising. However, they were not placed high enough....which caused a problem. My question is that I see how underwater the water-tight doors would close in the cargo holds, boiler rooms, engine rooms....But what about when that compartment fills? Would it not just rise to G Deck where it could spread. Unless the bulkheads had open and closing doors that are water-tight? If anyone knows, please let me know. Thanks.

Mac, I was hoping someone else could explain this to you, because I'm not really sure of the answer.

I think there were watertight doors above the waterline, such as on F Deck for example.

On Marconigraph.com, in the article: James Cameron’s Titanic Expedition 2001: What We Saw On and Inside the Wreck



"These lowest of the first-class public rooms, on F Deck, were, as I said, high on our list of priorities to explore. I had surveyed the portholes to the Swimming Bath from Mir 2 and found a few of them to be almost entirely clear of rusticles. If an ROV could get in there, we would pour as much additional light in through the unobscured ports as we could from Mir 2. Our access to this room, however, was in question as there is a watertight door between it and the first-class stairs and between it and the Turkish Bath, both of which we expected to be closed".

However, I do not think I have ever seen a picture of a watertight door other than the ones in the boiler rooms.

I see what you mean MGY.....my thought is if they didn't go till the forecastle.....how could anyone think it unsinkable? Maybe i am looking too into it.

Unless I am thinking water could spread through vents...etc. How did they expect them to all be blocked off also?

I would not think the vents would matter until you would get to the top deck, by which time, the ship would have most of her critical forward compartments flooded anyway.

I guess the real thing to remember, is the ice cube tray idea.

Yes, the bulkheads are sound, but they are not topped off with a watertight top.

So, if enough damage underwater is letting in water to bring the bow down by the head, that equalibrium will be broken ( I think it was anything over 3 of the first five being damaged) and the ship will fill compartment by compartment until she can float no more.

Then, as the ship really starts to dip and her superstructure goes under, you have every orafice such as vents, windows, and staircase shafts letting water in.

I thought it was the first four flooded....but obviously that doesn't matter. MGY, it makes plenty sense what you are saying. Everything was water-tight upward until they stopped...However, her bow would go under creating a disaster, causing all that to flood regardless. Thanks for the response!

Hi

i see if i can help you here. Firstly with the olympic class liners the bulkheads wasent toped meaning once water reached a certain hight the water was able to flow freely into the nexts compartement. in comparason the watertight doors did they jo the design had many floor's in the design

secondly vents werent watertight neither. I have seen a picture of the watertight doors aswell but never the ones on the upper decks. Aswell the damage receive to the titanic is said to be that of a fumb but in diffrent compartmens because of failed rivets.

There is far more they could of created in the olympic class and they didnt the bulkheads could of gone higher but the highest ive read was only as high as e deck a few feet above the waterline. and some below the forcast deck.

the lusitania had far more safety features as they had an inner skin. aswell the water tight bulkheads went higher but we all know what happand there

hope this is off help

Mac G, you're right about the first four compartments being flooded before there was a serious problem. And I'm not sure, but I think I have a theory about the compartments and how they operated. I think it had to do with more of a weight/balance ratio. For instance, if the first two or three compartments were damaged, the weight of the rest of Titanic would hold the bow up enough, despite the weight of the water, to keep the "ice cube tray" effect from happening. Not to mention, Titanic also had pumps to help handle any excess water that might pass through vents and whatnot. Once 5 compartments were compromised (possibly 6 if you take into account the water rising from the floor in Boiler Room 4), the weight ratio was more than Titanic could handle, and we all know what happened from there. Again, this is just a theory.

There are a few scenerios, I cannot remember the exact figures.

Ok, it was something like any thee of the first five could be damaged,

or all four from the beginning of the bow aft could be flooded completely,

or any ajacent two compartments in any other part of the ship could be flooded.

Can anyone add more to this? It's been a while since I read about this topic.

hi MGY i help you here

titanic can stay alfot with any two comaprtmenst floded and cary on sailing she can saty afloat with any four but she ant move too much weight. She can't stay afloat with five comaprtments flodded the weight ration is too much and as a compartment fills it drags the bow down deeper causing water to spill other the bulkheads into boiler room bulkhead number six and because the engine rrom is a massive whole for a few decks this fills rather rapid casuing the events to get quicker.

as the head gets lower the presure on the structuire gets worst and this is when rivets begine to fail. bulkheads end up giveing way to the huge pressure and then she starts to sink faster and faster and faster and then she will go.

the titanic by rights shouldnt have snapped in half but this was beacuse of a design floor. called the expansion joint between funnel number 3 and four which on the britannic the titanic's sister ship she is a whloe ship her expansion joint was changed right at the start after the titanic incident as harland and wolff relized they weas something wrong with the expansion joint as it was crudly built and had a major design floor.

the cunard pari didnt have expansion joint. I still dont kno wwhy the olympic class liners had such an old system as you dont see expansion joints on any new ship's. The titanic had many design floors for one they didnt cap the top of the bulkheads to make them completly water tight meaning once the water get to a certain point it is able to flow over into the next bulkhead and major floor in the design.

i hope i have been a masive help on this topic thank you