I was fishing in an inlet for flounder, and I looked away for a second and my rod was floating away in the water. It was only submerged in water for about 15 seconds or so. The reel is a Zebco 808 saltfisher. any tips on how to clean??

Open it up, rinse it thoroughly.  

I recommend wiping down every part you can get to with Boeshield T-9.  

Clean and replace all the lube - the boeshield carrier is mineral spirits, and will remove the old lube.  

 

My Lamson LP fly reel has been in the salt 35 years, and that's everything I do for it.  

 

people were complaining decades ago about the friction-washer clutches not holding up in the salt - I have a spare and have never needed it.  

Ok, Thank you so much I'll try that out.