Outdrives in Salt Water

If I lived somewhere where I could keep the boat in salt water 12 months or more without a haul, I admit that I would not have I/O. Considering that the boat is out for 6 months and there are essentially 2 dry service periods, the fall and spring, I'm fine with I/O. As an added precaution, I change anodes mid season and do regular in-water inspections and cleanings. In the fall, the drives get cleaned and serviced. In the spring they get cleaned again and painted. I think it would bug me if I couldn't scrub the barnacles off my shafts and props or see the bottom of my boat every 6 months.
 
My last few boats have all had bravo (lll) drives... and all of them sat in the salt pretty well the whole year. To keep them healthy I have to replace my anodes every 6 months and do any bottom / drive paint touch up then. This maintenance is something you have to stay on top of... or there are consequences. The props also get a calcium-like buildup on them that comes off with muriatic acid.
I've owned shaft drive boats in the past. I pulled them out a couple times a year too. I like to keep the hull and props squeaky clean. It's better fuel economy and speed for a couple hours work... totally worth the effort!
Having said that, my next boat will be a 330 / 340 and I'll be shopping for one with v-drives (less hassle and better resale).
 
fwebster said:
Well, I guess that means I don't know crap about corrosion in salt water, huh?

Here are 3 photos for you...........the first is when corrosion begins, the second is about 9 months in and the 3rd is about the point where it ends and you have to start writing big checks. Good luck with that outdrives salt water all year thing.
Click to expand...

I dated a girl that had that same hair style once. :smt119

But seriously, I just purchased a 2000 290 AJ with BIII's only because I am dry stacking the boat. I live 3 minutes from the dry stack facility where I'm keeping the boat so it does spend a substantial amount of time in the water (4 out of the last 5 days to be exact) and I have just ordered new anodes. I've already got my eyes on the mercathode system but will likely wait until I see the wear on these anodes before making a decision. I'll try to keep the forum posted on the results...in between trips of course!

Mike
Beaufort, NC
2000 AJ290
5.7's and BIII's
 
In our marina there is a 260 searay that hasn't moved in over 2 years. I was looking at it the other day outdrive is up and there is so much growth on it that you had a really hard time telling it was a bravo 3. Last winter he did not even put a bubbler in. He is trying to sell it. Should be real cheap.
 
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I've had my 300DA w/BRAVO IIs sitting in the Puget Sound saltwater since purchase without even a speck of corrosion. That being said, it's a PITA to keep up on the maintenance on these things. Even with proper paint I get a lot of grown (muscles and barnacles) that are a real ***** to get off, especially around the gimble.

Yes, I would prerfer inboards and look forward to the day that I have them.
 
Contrary to what you may believe, you can have a drive in salt water and not have it disintegrate to metal powder. I'll post pictures from my drives which have no corrosion on them after 6 seasons in salty water (we're right in the inlet in NJ - not brackish - ocean water!). You need to pay attention to the drive and do the preventative maintenance. You'll need the extra mercathode puck, check for galvonic action at the slip, buy an electrolysis anode to test with your multimeter, prime/paint the drives each year and replace the pins and anodes when needed (anodes every year). I just replaced my pins this month as the threads were rusty and not reliable. It's all PIA, yes... and no, my next boat will not have outdrives :)
 
Every one says "My next boat will not have outdrives".

But in reality, all boats represent compromises. How many under 30' cruisers out there are available with inboards or V drives? Name a *cruiser* with outboards.

In my case; I wanted a cuddy bigger than 25'. I understood that no matter what I bought. . .I was getting a boat with I/O's.

Of course, I could have upscaled to a 34' SunDancer to get Vdrives -> but a dancer like that would have been too expensive, and would not fit my usage like a 28' cuddy does.

For me; the real question is "Dry stack or no dry stack". This is not just an issue for the I/O drive, but also an issue for the exhaust system and the RWC engine. To be honest - I am FAR more worried about the exhaust system than I am worried about corrossion of the drives.

Will my next boat have I/O's? Depends what I need in my next boat. I probably would spring for a lift at the dock and I wouldn't worry about the drives. Or the exhaust.
 
JV II said:
If I lived somewhere where I could keep the boat in salt water 12 months or more without a haul, I admit that I would not have I/O. Considering that the boat is out for 6 months and there are essentially 2 dry service periods, the fall and spring, I'm fine with I/O. As an added precaution, I change anodes mid season and do regular in-water inspections and cleanings. In the fall, the drives get cleaned and serviced. In the spring they get cleaned again and painted. I think it would bug me if I couldn't scrub the barnacles off my shafts and props or see the bottom of my boat every 6 months.
Click to expand...

How much do you feel the sea core system helps?
 
xlover said:
How much do you feel the sea core system helps?
Click to expand...

I believe it helps quite a bit. I'll have a better idea after a few years. I have a few places where the paint chipped off, exposing the metal. The only difference is that this metal is hard anodized aluminum and therefore corrosion proof. On a normal BIII drive the exposed metal would corrode like a Chevy Nova. The white residue is sediment from the water.
outdrive3.jpg
 
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JV II said:
I believe it helps quite a bit. I'll have a better idea after a few years. I have a few places where the paint chipped off, exposing the metal. The only difference is that this metal is hard anodized aluminum and therefore corrosion proof. On a normal BIII drive the exposed metal would corrode like a Chevy Nova. The white residue is sediment from the water.
outdrive3.jpg
Click to expand...

Not trying to pick nits here, but...... Anodizing is a surface treatment. It is harder then the base aluminum, but then that is the nature of aluminum oxide. Anodizing is created by the forced oxidation of the aluminum surface by submerging the aluminum in acid and subjecting it to an electrical current. In a sense it is like reverse electro-plating the difference being that instead of combining molecules of one metal onto another, the current is run to deplete the base and force the combination of oxygen with the aluminum. Because aluminum oxide is porous, the next step is to seal, or dye then seal, the surface. That's how there are blue and red maglight flashlight bodies, and big ole Black BIII Seacore cases!

Henry
 
I keep my IO in salt water (proper salt, not brackish) 365 days of the year for the last 5 years, it comes out once per year to be antifouled and serviced and then goes back in a few days later.

Absolutely zero corrosion on my drive, quite a lot of growth by the end of the season, but that gets cleaned before the next season. change the anodes once per year, and all has been well.

My dad has also had IO boats for the last 25 years, all kept in salt, with no corrosion issues, as have several of my friends and lots of other people, I would guess that 75% of the boats where I am (mediteranean sea) are IO's, and I dont see many corroded drives.

Drives seem to corrode significantly more if you leave the boat hooked up to the marina electrical supply, so dont do that for long periods.

You've got to be dilligent with maintenance, and the most important thing is anodes, but to imply that drives just disolve if you put them in salt is wrong.

If you are not dilligent , then your drive will corrode, but the same will happen in fresh, not as quickly as salt, but it will happen.

To answer the original posters question. You can reduce the corrosion in salt or fresh water to zero by being dilligent. Salt water will corrode drives faster than fresh if you leave the drive unprotected, but a drive will corrode in either if left unprotected. Use outboards for the ultimate corrosion prevention and ease of maintenance.
 
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Here are the BIII outdrives of a 2004 280DA after 6 seasons in salt water. No corrosion. Lots of barnacles.
IMG00006-20101023-1437.jpg

Here are a pair of BIII's for a 2007 290DA after 3 seasons in salt water.
IMG00007-20101023-1438.jpg


No corrosion whatsoever. Look at the hubs adjacent to all that stainless steel in the props. Nothing.
 
Here is the paint chip on my SeaCore drive in 2009.
outdrive3.jpg


Here it is in 2010. It was never touched up and I lost some more paint as I regularly scrape barnacles. What you see is 4 weeks of growth.
IMG00003-20101023-1355.jpg

Note this is raw exposed anodized metal. Two seasons in salt water and no corrosion. It seems that the paint is just there to make it look pretty. Gone are the days of disassembly, sanding, priming, and painting the BIII?

Here is a close up of my SeaCore hub.
IMG00008-20101023-1438.jpg

Do you think they nailed the BIII formula after 2004? Is is possible they really did create a corrosion resistant drive with the Sea Core? I'll keep taking pictures after every season. Stay tuned.
 
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