I’ve seen the same thing with so-called “marine grade” hardware—sometimes it just doesn’t hold up, especially when you’re right on the coast. In my experience, galvanized fasteners tend to rust out faster than stainless, but even 316 stainless isn’t immune if salt sits on it long enough. I’ve tried nylon washers under metal hardware a few times. They do seem to help with isolating dissimilar metals and cutting down on crevice corrosion, but over time UV exposure can make them brittle. Haven’t seen a perfect solution yet... coastal weather just finds a way in.
Yeah, coastal weather is relentless... salt air just laughs at "marine grade" anything. I’ve had stainless hardware pit out in under two years on a balcony rail, and the so-called galvanized stuff basically turned orange before my eyes. Tried those plastic washers too, but after a couple summers they crumbled like crackers. Lately, I’ve been using a dab of lanolin grease on fasteners—messy, but it actually helps slow down the rust. Not perfect, but better than nothing.
- Had the same problem with "marine grade" stuff—turns out not all stainless is created equal.
- Tried lanolin too, but it gets everywhere...
- Lately, I've been using ceramic-coated screws for outdoor stuff. Still not perfect, but they've held up better than galvanized for me.
- Even then, I rinse things off after storms if I remember. Salt just finds a way in no matter what.
- Totally agree about "marine grade" not always being what it claims. I bought a pack of so-called stainless deck screws and half of them had rust spots after one winter.
- Lanolin sounded like a good idea until I realized it just made everything sticky... and then the sand stuck to that.
- Haven't tried ceramic-coated yet, but I might. Galvanized ones just don't last here—I'm a few blocks from the beach and even my grill tools rust if I forget them outside.
- Rinsing helps, but honestly, I forget more often than not. Sometimes I just accept that anything metal outside is on borrowed time.
- One thing I did was switch to composite decking and plastic hardware where I could. Not perfect, but at least the screws aren't the first thing to go.
- Still, it's wild how fast salt air gets into everything. Even the car's undercarriage started showing rust after just a couple years.
Sometimes I just accept that anything metal outside is on borrowed time.
Yeah, I feel this. I used to buy into all the “marine grade” hype too, but honestly, it’s a toss-up. I’ve had “stainless” screws rust out faster than the cheap ones from the hardware store. At this point, I just expect to replace stuff every couple years and try not to get too annoyed about it.
Switching to composite decking was a good call. I did the same after getting tired of sanding and sealing wood every year, only to have the fasteners go first anyway. Plastic hardware isn’t perfect (some of mine faded or cracked after a few summers), but at least it doesn’t leave rust streaks everywhere.
And yeah, rinsing things off sounds great in theory… but who actually keeps up with that? I’m lucky if I remember to bring in the tools before it rains, let alone give them a rinse. Salt air just wins in the end. At least you’re not alone in the struggle—pretty sure everyone near the coast is fighting the same losing battle.
