Hmmmm......I'm starting to think it might be a Penn problem peculiar to the Sand People
Of course, using my rod as a wading staff will occasionally lead to a dunking
followed by a thorough rinse, check & cleaning before I go out again.
But as a rockhopper, basic washer maintainance (see above) and an occasional check of the innards with a shot of Superlube does me fine.
The SS series isn't exactly noted for being waterproof - get some Superlube and give the gears a good packing (not overpacked which creates it own set of problems) - the procedure isn't a lot more complicated than unscrewing the side plate.
Oh yeah - the other thing I do is polish the brass of the drag knob and main shaft with Flitz and then coat with Formula 2001 car polish which has urethane in it - that may help ya, hopefully.