Aluminum Anodes?

Aug 22, 2017
1,609
Hunter 26.5 West Palm Beach
...He said it was for the benefit of the bay as way too much magnesium was being deposited by zinc anodes....
If that is what he really said, then everything else he said would also be suspect in my mind.

Aluminum may work on some types of metals, but I would be surprised if it worked on all metals. For instance, should we replace the zincs on the aluminum lower units of our outboards with aluminum? If so, the alloy would need to be pretty darn different to give any benefit. I think that there may be more information that needs to be dug up here.
 

DougM

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Jul 24, 2005
2,242
Beneteau 323 Manistee, MI
I have not been able to locate a source for a magnesium anode (shaft collar) that would typically fit on the prop shaft of a Beneteau between the prop and the skeg. At least I didn’t see it in the Boatzincs list.
Another question: Why would a Worst Marine store located in the Great Lakes region stock only zinc anodes and not aluminum or Magnesium?
 

Gunni

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Mar 16, 2010
5,937
Beneteau 411 Oceanis Annapolis
West Marine stores are run by their resident managers. Ignorant manager, incorrect inventory.

As I walk the yard this time of year I see an ongoing disaster of sail drive corrosion damage. You guys with these new aluminum sail drive legs need to get on top of your corrosion mitigation plan or be prepared to pay the piper for new drive gear.
 

Gunni

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Mar 16, 2010
5,937
Beneteau 411 Oceanis Annapolis
Many Beneteau’s have a very limited clearance between the shaft skeg and the propeller, so they require a thin Beneteau - specific shaft anode that does not block raw-water flow through the cutlass bearing. The SBO store sells a zinc composition version.