Last month I went through salt water that was a little deeper than I expected. Salt water came inside the ute drenching the floors. I let it dry out and then vacuumed it all thoroughly. Should I be selling it because it's going to rust out? Or do I invest in that rust prevention stuff? I'm not sure if it is a gimmick. Cheers
Salt water
- Thread starter dusty87
- Start date
Help Support Nissan Navara Forum:
The problem with salt water is that it's a reasonable conductor.
Rust forms when an iron atom sheds an electron and binds with an oxygen atom - it's generally quite happy to do this. It's even happier to do this when there's an external conductor present like sodium ions in water (salt breaks down in water to sodium and chlorine ions), rendering the water conductive).
If you can remove all the salt, you've returned the vehicle back to its original state. Not that the interior of your car was unpainted (the metal needs to be exposed to be badly affected) but there are always little gaps that it could get into.
Those "electronic rust protection" boxes are moderately effective. They don't prevent rust - but they do slow it down. There's more reading on this subject by the very knowledgeable and experienced Collyn Rivers that you can find here.
I don't know that I'd panic. If it does start rusting, have the rust removed early before it becomes a problem.
Rust forms when an iron atom sheds an electron and binds with an oxygen atom - it's generally quite happy to do this. It's even happier to do this when there's an external conductor present like sodium ions in water (salt breaks down in water to sodium and chlorine ions), rendering the water conductive).
If you can remove all the salt, you've returned the vehicle back to its original state. Not that the interior of your car was unpainted (the metal needs to be exposed to be badly affected) but there are always little gaps that it could get into.
Those "electronic rust protection" boxes are moderately effective. They don't prevent rust - but they do slow it down. There's more reading on this subject by the very knowledgeable and experienced Collyn Rivers that you can find here.
I don't know that I'd panic. If it does start rusting, have the rust removed early before it becomes a problem.
4 naving
Member
Remove the seats. pull out the carpet. remove the bungs and wash it out and hose the carpet and dry. the underlay will hold salt and moisture so wash it or replace it... spray the floor with rp7 or simular then its good as new. also lanolin any electrical joins to prevent corrosion. If you drive on the beach regularly i wouldent bother but i would spray oil of some sort under body and if possible lift the edge of carpet near door trims and squirt in some rp7. has made some of my cars last over the years....
LLadnar
Member
If you want too spend the money and put up with the smell for a little while fish oil works better and last longer.
