Fluid film all the way. If you want to get obsessive about it, hose it out every so often and oil the apron chain. You'd never do that if you spread every day, maybe not even every week? I use one once a year or three, so it gets hosed off, oiled and sits outside 363 days a year, it should outlive me. If the paint is solid, it's helping you. If the paint bubbles, it's promoting the rust underneath it, blast the loose stuff off with a pressure washer and oil it.