Staying In ’Toon: Pontooning In Saltwater?

For some of us, this time of year is about daydreaming, sunshine and warm water. Lucky for me I get to attend a few boat shows—some of which are in warm climates and others that aren’t. The cool thing about traveling to different areas of the country is seeing the different types of boats. Florida has a different style compared to Washington state. The St Pete Florida Boat Show is home for center-console fishing boats and catamaran sailboats, while boat shows in Seattle have dodgers, cabins and numerous tug boat styles.

What about pontoons? Well, they are everywhere. Being from the Midwest I’m guessing the pontoon is probably the biggest seller at any boat show. In fact, local boat shows are mostly pontoons or fishing boats. At those coastal areas, pontoons used to be something of a rarity…well, that is until of late.

Florida ‘Toons

Last year I started so see a few more pontoons at the coastal shows and this year I was surprised to see probably a dozen or more at the St Pete show. While most don’t think of pontoons as ocean-going boats, they are being used in the Intracoastal Waterway and some limited coastal areas. They are not really designed for the big swells and waves of the ocean, but they are being used in salt water.

Saltwater-Proof

Which brings up an interesting thought, how do you make a saltwater-proof pontoon boat when you are using aluminum for the tubes? And what makes a saltwater pontoon different than a freshwater one? Well, salt water!

Actually it’s metal corrosion and in particular galvanic corrosion which is basically when two dissimilar metals come in contact with an electrolyte solution (which can be salt water). As I mentioned before, I am not a scientist (although I did stay at a Holiday Inn) but basically the combination of metals and salt water create a reaction and the strongest metal wins. The weakest metal in the pontoon’s case can be the aluminum ‘toons, and they can be quickly damaged and even destroyed.

Salt water doesn’t stop with the aluminum. It corrodes the connections, structural members, and external fittings, it damages the fabric and carpets, and it corrodes the wires. Salt water in your engine’s cooling system corrodes and damages the internal passages.

So, what are some options other than the obvious, which is to stay away from salt water and the surrounding salty air?

Sacrificial Anodes

Make sure you have aluminum sacrificial anodes on your boat and drive units. Sacrificial anodes are designed to be the weaker metal that is eaten away. You have probably seen them or replaced them on your outboard. You can have systems wired to your boat to reduce the reactions of the metal and salt water.

If you leave your boat in a slip, make sure you have the bottom of the ‘toons coated with anti-fouling paint designed for aluminum to help reduce the corrosion. And probably the best thing to do is to flush the boat and engine system regularly with fresh water. Oh, and make sure you cover the boat; salt water and salt in the air gets in between the cushions and components on the deck and at the captain station. Always rinse the salt away and cover the boat.

There are other things many saltwater-classified pontoons have. Most are heavier built. Some have additional components to strengthen the tubes and the attachment points. Coastal waters, like huge lakes, can be very rough and hard on the construction. Small tubes and small boats probably need to stay away from coastal waters.

Fiberglass Editions

At the St Pete Boat Show I ran across a boat that was called a “saltwater pontoon.” I’m not sure it’s really a ‘toon. It seems to be a cross between a pontoon, deck boat and a catamaran.

The concept is pretty cool. The boat has two fiberglass pontoons attached to a fiberglass deck and a playpen made of fiberglass panels. It resembles a pontoon, but it also looks like a catamaran deck boat. The boat’s weight is not substantially more than a conventional pontoon, and the lack of metal component eliminates many of the saltwater problems.

Sure, you need sacrificial anodes on the engine, but you don’t have aluminum components bolted to aluminum with the risk of corrosion. Yes, you still need to flush the systems to remove salt residue and wash the surfaces down, but it really does lower the maintenance compared to a normal pontoon. But it also seems like it’s not much more than another runabout. Although it does have a head built into one of the pontoons and allows for stand up room. That’s pretty cool.