ELi5 Why are most of the boats and ships I see in dock white and not another color?

Question

Is it a cost issue or does a white watercraft have some advantage over ones that are different colors?

In: 2

Answer 1

White is the most reflective colour. It absorbs the least amount of heat allowing ships to use less air conditioning and therefore save on fuel. Military ships on the other hand tend to be painted grey, navy blue, or black depending on the country. This is done for camouflage in/on the water. Many of those ships don’t need to worry about using lots of AC because they are nuclear powered.