Best Grade Of Stainless Steel For Saltwater

304 is the most popular stainless steel alloy available on the market.

Best grade of stainless steel for saltwater.

Ss316 is often used for building nuclear reprocessing plants. 304 is commonly used in kitchen equipment storage tanks. Most watches that are made of stainless steel are made of this grade. It is an austenite steel meaning that it is non magnetic in nature.

This grade is the most commonly used for coastal applications. This alloy was first developed by firth brown steels nearly a century ago. Marine grade stainless steel is a misunderstood description. The problem is it s susceptible to corrosion from saline environments like the coast.

Stainless steel has many different grades and lower grades are not suitable for marine applications. It s better to use high grade super duplex stainless steels like dp3w which has pren pitting resistant equivalent number more than 37 are the best. There is no industry recognized definition for a marine grade stainless steel though it is routinely used by many end users. The 316 types are used widely in marine applications but their corrosion resistance in contact with seawater is limited and they cannot be considered corrosion proof under all situations.

Rolex is an exception in that they use type 904l. 18 10 stainless often corresponds to this. Clinton offers sae 304 stainless steel which can also be found under the name a2 stainless steel or 18 8 stainless steel. Also known as marine grade stainless steel due to its increased resistance to chloride corrosion compared to type 304.

Meanwhile 304 stainless steel is the overall most popular grade regardless of application type. The 304 option has proven to be resistant to corrosion and oxidation and offers a variety of appearances and finishes. It has more molybdenum than other austenitic stainless steels which helps it to resist pitting and other corrosive effects of salt water. 316 stainless steel is composed of 2 to 3 molybdenum boosting its corrosion resistance.

304 stainless steel is made up of low carbon and chromium nickel content which makes it extremely versatile and widely used out of all the stainless steel options.