Will fender flares make rust worse?

[Jared91]

Ive been wanting to add some flares on my 14 silverado but one of my rear fenders has developed some water bubbles under the paint and surface rust even tho it still feels solid would i be making it worse by putting a flare over it or would it help protect it? Id like to fix it but nobody does minor rust repair up my way anymore.

[CamGTP]

The rust starts from the inside. All you will be doing is hiding the rust and stopping water/salt/dirt from touching it on the outside.

 

It's honestly going to keep doing what it's already doing, slowly making more rust bubbles from the inside out. It'll likely be years before you'd ever see it expand above the fender flare.

[josney]

c'mon man, you are just hiding the rust instead of taking care of it. 

[CamGTP]

In his defense it's like $200 for fender flares or a few grand for new bed sides. He could save the money now and spend it later.

[KARNUT]

If it was me I’d spray rust inhibitor on it and cover it with the flare.