Been there myself—galvanic corrosion is definitely sneaky stuff. Had a similar headache with aluminum flashing on a shed roof. Thought I'd save some time by just coating the steel screws with sealant... yeah, that lasted about as long as you'd expect. Ended up redoing it properly with stainless fasteners. Lesson learned: shortcuts usually mean doing it twice. Better to bite the bullet and do it right the first time.
Yeah, sealant alone rarely does the trick—learned that one pretty quick myself. I was skeptical about stainless fasteners at first (seemed a bit overkill for a small job), but after seeing how fast corrosion sets in... well, you made the right call. Sometimes shortcuts seem practical until reality kicks in. Good on you for biting the bullet and fixing it properly.
Sealant's definitely more of a band-aid than a solution, seen way too many quick fixes fail during inspections. Curious though, anyone tried aluminum-compatible coatings as an extra layer of protection? Heard mixed things, wondering if they're worth the hassle...
I've had decent luck with aluminum-compatible coatings, but they're definitely not a magic bullet. The key is prep—clean the flashing thoroughly, remove any oxidation, and rough it up lightly with sandpaper. Then apply a good primer specifically for aluminum before the coating. Did this on a client's roof about two years ago, and it's held up surprisingly well. Still, if the flashing's seriously damaged or corroded, you're probably better off replacing it altogether... coatings won't fix structural issues.
Have you checked how deep the corrosion actually goes? If it's just surface-level stuff, then yeah, sanding and coating might buy you some time. But if you're seeing pitting or holes starting to form, why mess around with coatings at all? At that point, isn't it quicker (and smarter) to just swap it out? I've seen too many quick fixes turn into callbacks down the road... and nobody likes climbing back up there twice.
