I’ve worked for two architectural metal firms, one in Las Vegas, the other outside of Atlanta. Both specialized in stainless steel. In Nevada, my answer would be: “what?!?” We never had any issues with any sort of rust on stainless, even with fairly terrible overall practices regarding cross-contamination. No one in that shop thought twice about spraying the sparks from the mild steel they were grinding right at a high dollar stainless part. Stuff just doesn’t really rust in the desert.
Forward to the other architectural shop in Atlanta. The owner was a psychopath, an addict and typically in over his head, especially with the warrantee he sold with our work. Despite rarely being able to form a coherent thought much of the time, he took cross-contamination and galvanic corrosion very seriously. Stainless and mild steel were kept as far apart as possible. There were stainless tools and other and not obeying those rules was a fireable offense.
In the layman’s, stainless steel isn’t meant to be interpreted as rust-proof. It’s stainLESS, not stainFREE. It oxidizes like most other metals... it just typically oxidizes in a less offensive manner than aluminum or mild steel. Layman’s again, but my understanding is that the higher chromium and nickel content that makes stainless steel stainless need some time to reform after any operation that “knocks them back”. If memory serves, the concept is known as passivation. Passivation can be accelerated chemically, but my best suggestion is this.
First off, lean on your contractor to lean on whatever sub he has picked and come to terms on a limited warrantee regarding workmanship and rust. They both may outright refuse, but you’ll never know if you don’t ask.
After that, it’s exterior trim, so it’ll be one of the last items to get installed no matter what, spend a few bucks on an acceptable and temporary railing for the safety of the workers while the house is under construction and you and family while the stainless is doing IT’s thing.
I would recommend you pull the trigger on the stainless work as early as possible and protect your investment by putting the stainless parts in a nice, climate-controlled storage unit until you just cannot stand the temporary stuff anymore. Let the stainless do it’s thing away from the salt air and humidity.
Lastly, make cleaning, protecting and sealing your railings part of your scheduled maintenance program. Clean the rails when you clean out the gutters, or something. I would also suggest a sealant of some sort to help the stainless oxide layer keep the rust off. I don’t know of anything material specific off-hand, personally I really like Johnson’s paste/floor wax for stuff like this. An application once or twice a year will probably tip your railings into near stainFREE territory.
Jeremy
That was sound advice.
StainLESS cladding in Hong Kong is
expected to "go brown". So it gets treated every now and then. It's a bizness.
So is washdown of our brazillions of square meters of fired through-body porcelain tile cladding on tall buildings. Last go, our complex, "Kornhill", Quarry Bay? The contractor took several years to complete. And had to replace over three hundred high-spec glass windows damaged by sloppy masking against the overspray of the hydrofluoric acid used from ground level to over 30 stories up to clean the tiles.
Bronze, and pre-browning, or pre verdi-gris and just get USED to it - or even Kawneer-style treated loominum extrusions - dirt-common on Hong Kong Island- rather than trying for a bright OR brushed silver or gold look, makes a lot more sense, waterside.
So do a select few hardwoods or highly waxy/resinous solid-heart-of softwoods. Eg; Teak. either varnished to a fare-thee-well. ELSE left to weather, much the same as weathered Cypress, Cedar, "etc".
If I had the scheckels to build waterside? Fuggabuncha metals. Take-on the maintenance. enjoy the fruit of it.
Teak, please! See Aberdeen Marina Club. "Royal" Hong Kong Yacht Club facilities. Even our ancient "Star Ferry" deck, trim, railings and the interior trim of our ancient electric rail trams operating mere feet above sea level, harbourside.
Same again Shanghai to Singapore. Sea and sea air are where we live, year round, and for a VERY long time, already.
Anyone who's opinion I actually GAVE a damn about (ME!) would be far the more impressed with pragmatic anodized loominum or fine woods than with cheap-arse cookie-cutter Stainless, anyway!
The rail of USS United States? Not teak. Aluminium, rather. 'Varnish" was a British thing! Septics are lazier!
