Some (possibly) useful tips to prolong muffler life:
1) Have a clean, dry garage with a cement floor you can to park the bike in over night. dirt floors hold moisture.
2) Avoid short trips of < 5 miles or 5 minutes, or if you must, periodically "lengthen" them by riding for longer intervals - the trick is to get the
whole exhaust system good and hot for long enough to boil out any water vapour from the exhaust stream or condensation
3) If riding back home in the rain, make sure that the bike's exhaust is good and hot when you shut it off, and park it in a dry place were it won't get rained on further
4) Periodically clean the exhaust system and check/ensure that any drain holes are not plugged up with dirt, tarmac, dead bugs, or squirrel entrails. Collections of dirt
in and around crevices/indentations in the pipes, crossovers, mufflers help to trap water and contribute to rusting.
Now that I have an LS with painted pipes, I don't use much of it anymore, but I had found some chrome polish that worked well on chrome exhausts and helped protect the finish without being affected by the high temps. Cannot find the stuff in the garage now... hmmm