Glossary
Terms & Glossaries of Shipping and Trading
Bilge Keels
A bilge keel is a nautical device used to reduce a ship's tendency to roll.
A bilge keel is a nautical device used to reduce a ship's tendency to roll. Bilge keels are employed in pairs (one for each side of the ship). A ship may have more than one bilge keel per side, but this is rare. Bilge keels increase hydrodynamic resistance to rolling, making the ship roll less.
