Problem changing anode rod

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by Portagie1968

Drain HWH in the winter, Leave the rod in finger tight, in the spring apply recotor seal ( the only thing I will use) tighten snuge, fill check for leaks and tighten a little more if needed. Tape forget it. Pipe dope forget it. Rector seal only.

Hmm. I only use Rector Seal for gas plumbing. Is it certified for potable water?

Not sure I see the benefit of leaving the rod loose all winter. A few drops of water freezing in the bottom won't hurt anything. Any overpressure will be released by the T&P valve.

Larry

[Portagie1968]

Originally Posted by Larry-NC

Hmm. I only use Rector Seal for gas plumbing. Is it certified for potable water?

Not sure I see the benefit of leaving the rod loose all winter. A few drops of water freezing in the bottom won't hurt anything. Any overpressure will be released by the T&P valve.

Larry

Why tighten. I just thread back in enough for some place to store.



RectorSeal® No. 5® pipe thread sealant is a soft-set, slow drying compound which seals, lubricates, and protects threaded pipe and fittings. It can be pressurized immediately for piping up through 2″ and 100 psi(for natural gas, air and water only) and is ideal for application with a wide variety of fluids and gases, including potable water applications. Recommended for use on threaded galvanized steel, iron, brass, copper, aluminum, stainless steel, polyethylene, fiberglass reinforced and PVC pipe.Not recommended for use with ABS,CPVC pipe or oxygen, chlorine and other oxidizers.
https://www.rectorseal.com/rectorseal-no-5/

[brian0830]

im a plumber by trade. find out manufacture. suburban or another brand. go to rv dealer with brand and size

[brian0830]

yes

[Iwannacamp]

I find it funny about the Rectorseal comments. Pipe/thread lubricants are about like TVs and oil preference...people have their choices/favorites. We sell the crap out of this


People come back and ask by name for it...it is also NSF certified.

Here are some torque specs. however I would not tighten all the way. YMMV

https://www.engineersedge.com/hardwa...tion_13424.htm

[Scrapper]

Originally Posted by Portagie1968

Drain HWH in the winter, Leave the rod in finger tight, in the spring apply recotor seal ( the only thing I will use) tighten snuge, fill check for leaks and tighten a little more if needed. Tape forget it. Pipe dope forget it. Rector seal only.

It's funny you say that. Rectorseal is a pipe dope made by RectorSeal LLC. They also make their own brand of teflon pipe tape.

[douglas c box]

Anode rods are inexpensive and very easy to change out. Simply unscrew with a 1 1/16" deep socket, pipe dope the replacement, and tighten it down snugly and you are done. Most recommend replacing every couple of seasons. How quick they are used up depends on the quality of water you most often have access to. Water with lots of iron for example eats up those rods pretty quickly. Here where we get freezing winters, you can examine the rod when you remove it to drain the water tank. Then replace with the same or new one come spring.

[hack522]

Originally Posted by Larry-NC

Funny that so many people mention flushing the WH and changing the anode rod in the spring.

When you bypass the WH in the fall, you can flush it and put the anode rod (original or replacement) back in. Then when spring comes, you don't have to do anything but twist the bypass valve(s). Not sure why people stretch this into two events.

Larry

That's pretty much what I do. I empty the HW during winterization a long with removal of the anode rod. I reinstall in the spring when readying for summer use.

[BLOODYBILL]

slightly different

tankless water heaters are very vunerable to hard water scale build up
now factory recommends installing a scale inhibitor filter directly before cold water enters the tankless and tiny water ways otherwise if not installed they will void any warranty claims
the one i use has a cartridge tube filled with silica droplets and install into the filter housing
the time to replace the cartridge is when it is close to empty,
one of these would also work on a standard rv water heater,
that is if you can find room for the add on

[Freetyme]

Originally Posted by dsm

I'm 20 months into RV trailer ownership. I have a Rockport Mini Lite. I'm replacing the anode rod. As you can see by the picture I have what I perceive to be a problem. I purchased a Camco 9.5" anode rod. This rod has 11 threads in it. The original rod has 8 threads. Even with this difference the rods are exactly the same length.

Upon inspection there was significant calcium buildup inside the housing for the rod. I deduced that the calcium buildup was the source of my problem. CLR has helped clean most of that up, but as you can see I cannot fully screw in the rod. This can't be normal, right? I have reached full resistance in torquing the rod into the position you see in the picture. Guidance, anyone?

Looks normal to me. I like to clean the threads with a brass brush before a wrap of teflon and also the tank threads. The vinegar trick works ok on the white crud, but as mentioned don't drain it near grass, oops killed it real good. I also learned the hard way to open the pressure relief before removing the anode plug, but sure I'm not the first to do that.

[vasnipe]

Please, watch how tight you get that new anode rod. If you over tighten in the Spring then come Fall and you go to winterize you just might be fussing at that gorilla who installed the thing.

Been there, done that, and that t-shirt sure is ugly.

[str8t six]

i dont use pipe sealant on mine and ive never had a problem with it leaking. just tighten it till its snug. i also drain mine after every trip.

[andymil]

We didn’t get out as much as we would have liked to last year, but I started draining the hot water tank after every trip.

[Rcpandr]

I just cut off the handle and chuck it in my drill to clean out the female threads.

[Teresa CAL]

Originally Posted by Rcpandr

Attachment 199022

I just cut off the handle and chuck it in my drill to clean out the female threads.

Good idea!

The videos I watched on you tube said to replace the rod EVERY year! If you’re full time, 2x per year.

[emjayuu]

Originally Posted by Teresa CAL

Good idea!



The videos I watched on you tube said to replace the rod EVERY year! If you’re full time, 2x per year.

Nope. Not me. I use the anode chart for replacement.

https://goo.gl/images/4i8FTw

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by Teresa CAL

Good idea!

The videos I watched on you tube said to replace the rod EVERY year! If you’re full time, 2x per year.

Thats crazy! I didn't have to change ours until 7 years after we bought it.
Maybe if you live where the water is bad,

[GL1800Rider]

Seeing all this makes me glad I don't have a Suburban anymore. Had to deal with that and the outside switch when I had my Flagstaff. All I have to do now with my Atwood (now Dometic) is drain mine and flush it out.

[aircommuter]

Just a note about teflon tape in general I always start back one thread from the end so a piece doesn’t shear off and go into whatever system you are working on. I have removed little pieces of the tape from valves and pressure regulators and flow control valves because they quit working.
This comes from fifty years of working on all different systems both liquid and gases.

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by aircommuter

Just a note about teflon tape in general I always start back one thread from the end so a piece doesn’t shear off and go into whatever system you are working on. I have removed little pieces of the tape from valves and pressure regulators and flow control valves because they quit working.
This comes from fifty years of working on all different systems both liquid and gases.

Agreed. And for the benefit of newbies, when you wrap that tape around the threaded plug, be sure to wrap it in the direction such that screwing it in tightens the Teflon tape and doesn't loosen it.

Larry