Saltwater pools eat cheap floats for lunch

Yes, saltwater pools degrade pool floats faster than freshwater — but it’s not really corrosion, it’s salt and chlorine beating up the plastic until it cracks.

Salt doesn’t rust vinyl, but it does dry it out and make it brittle. And those salt crystals sit on the surface of the float, grinding into it every time you climb on or the water moves. On top of that, salt chlorine generators produce higher levels of free chlorine, which oxidizes the material over time. The seams and the air valve are usually the first to go.

What lasts: heavy-gauge vinyl, think 20-gauge or thicker, the stuff commercial rental places use. Marine-grade vinyl is even better if you want to spend the money. What dies fast: cheap clear