Aluminum boat in brackish/saltwater

Anyone have an aluminum boat you use in saltwater regularly? I have a 16' Lowe aluminum fishing boat (basically a fancy Jon boat). If I could get in some back creeks on the Chesapeake Bay, it would open up my fishing universe immensely, but I've been hesitant to take it anywhere near the salt. I know I'm going to have to replace the trailer bunks with rollers to prevent the carpeting from holding saltwater against the hull, and I normally flush the motor and wash 'er down after every use even in freshwater, so that's not an issue. I plan to have this boat for a very long time and dont want to risk premature corrosion to the hull. What do you say? Bad idea or non-issue? If a non-issue, anything I should consider? Thanks!!

Pics of boat at the lake:

 

Once the oxide layer forms on the aluminum it should be fine. Plenty of Al parts on modern vehicles that withstand the shit they put on the roads in the winter up here.

 

Aluminum is used for construction of tons of ocean going fishing boats up here in Alaska. With a little extra care it will be fine.

 

Using it in salt water shouldn't be a big deal, leaving it docked in salt water could lead to problems. I have a 16' Lowe that I leave docked in a fresh water river and after the first season, I noticed some electrolosys starting. I knew I saw an anode on the boat somewhere and was surprised. When I looked again, the anode was bolted to the bottom of the motor bracket and the motor was mounted high (jet tunnel hull) and the bracket was not in the water! Doh! I now have another anode bolted to the hull.

I would also be wary about going to rollers on the trailer, they can distort the bottom of an aluminum boat because of the specific pressure points. I ended up putting some vinyl downspouts cut in half on my bunks to isolate the boat from the wood and allow it to stay dry and slide easier. You can get the downspout at Lowes for around $12. Just make sure you don't use pressure treated wood for the bunks, that will damage the aluminum.

 

Great info, thanks!!! I didn't think about the rollers distorting the hull.

 

I had a Boston whaler. They have very thin fiberglass hulls and are supposed to use bunk trailers. Previous owner had it o a roller trailer. There were dents and cracks at a few of the spots where it sat on the rollers.

 

My boat came with the roller trailer so it probably already has some denting. The rollers made it easy to unload, but lining up the rollers and chines was a pain while loading. The bunks line up the chines perfectly and it sits lower so I don't have to back into the water as far.

Here's a picture of it on the rollers and you can see the little white drip stains that are where the electrolosys had started. You can see the motor bracket it mounted so high it's out of the water and the anode at the bottom did nothing. I put another anode on the top of the tunnel so it's in the water.

 

AL in salt water is no big deal. Tons of boats in the northwest are aluminum.