Scouring the ocean floor for treasure and historical artifacts is exciting and time-consuming. With extensive stints at a site, sometimes months at a time, Amelia Research & Recovery needed a heavy-duty water maker that could perform in the harshest marine conditions.

For over seven years now, Amelia’s crew on Polly L, a unique lift boat, has relied on a SK Watermaker for all their fresh water needs. Launched in the spring of 2000, Polly L was designed and built to locate, study and salvage ancient cultural deposits in ocean sites with significant archeological and historical interest, such as known shipwrecks. The 60′ recovery barge uses hydraulic jacks to lift it above the water for a secure on-site work facility. A 3-level aluminum structure features all the comforts of home, including a modular, 1,200 gallon per day SK Watermakers unit for freshwater. In the last seven years, the crew has only had to perform routine maintenance and replace the watermaker’s filters. On their most recent trips, Polly L headed to E-89, Tiger Shores and the Jupiter Wreck.

At these sites, they found hundreds of pounds of marine-growth-encrusted artifacts and coins. Polly L’s last trip out was 96 days and they never brought water on board. Using their own excavator, Amelia Research & Recovery blast the wreck clear of sand. They dive into the sea with metal detectors and come back up with gold, diamonds, emeralds, silver and other rare artifacts. The Polly L’s on board systems net a standard in the industry. A 10 ton crane on the bow can lift heavy and deeply lodged objects, including cannon recovered from the Rosario, a ship out in a hurricane in 1715.

SK Watermakers offers high-quality stock watermaker units from 150 to 6,000 GPD and custom units to 10,000 GPD. Featuring heavy-duty construction and components, they have high-pressure fittings and stainless steel tubing.