Water heater anode again - Escape Trailer Owners Community
Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×

Go Back   Escape Trailer Owners Community > Escape Tech > Escape Systems | Water, Waste, Charging & Propane
Click Here to Login
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 08-26-2016, 04:38 PM   #1
Senior Member
 
gbaglo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: North Vancouver, British Columbia
Trailer: 2009 Escape 17B 2020 Toyota Highlander XLE
Posts: 17,136
Water heater anode again

Figured after eight years, I really should change the anode in the water heater.
Went to the RV store and picked up one, pulled the old one and had to make a decision. Do I take the new one back and ask for a refund, or do I just go ahead and change it, even if it's probably good for another 10 years at the rate it is corroding.
Installed the new one.
Son-in-law can probably get a couple bucks for the old one on Craig's List.
Attached Thumbnails
Anode 09 2016.jpg  
__________________
What happens to the hole when the cheese is gone?
- Bertolt Brecht
gbaglo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-26-2016, 06:10 PM   #2
Senior Member
 
escape artist's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: St. Thomas not BVI., Ontario
Trailer: 2014 Escape 5.0TA / 2016 Ram Eco Diesel 4X4
Posts: 8,035
Quote:
Originally Posted by gbaglo View Post
Figured after eight years, I really should change the anode in the water heater.
Went to the RV store and picked up one, pulled the old one and had to make a decision. Do I take the new one back and ask for a refund, or do I just go ahead and change it, even if it's probably good for another 10 years at the rate it is corroding.
Installed the new one.
Son-in-law can probably get a couple bucks for the old one on Craig's List.
Hi: gbaglo... You could keep it for a spare... But why Eh? Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie
__________________
Quote Bugs Bunny..."Don't take life too seriously, none of us get out of it ALIVE"!!!
'16 Ram Eco D. 4X4 Laramie Longhorn CC & '14 Escape 5.0TA
St.Thomas (Not the Virgin Islands) Ontario
escape artist is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-26-2016, 06:17 PM   #3
Senior Member
 
Jim Bennett's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Calgary, Alberta
Trailer: 2017 Escape 5.0 TA
Posts: 15,532
You must have some good water around there. I know mine never wore like those of others have.
__________________
2017 Escape 5.0 TA
2015 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5L EcoBoost
2009 Escape 19 (previous)
“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” — Abraham Lincoln
Jim Bennett is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-26-2016, 09:22 PM   #4
Site Team
 
rbryan4's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Canyon Lake, Texas
Trailer: 2015 19 "Past Tents", 2021 F150 Lariat 2.7L EB
Posts: 10,222
Glenn, that anode looks like it's made of concrete instead of metal.
__________________
"You can't buy happiness, but you can buy an RV. And that is pretty close."
rbryan4 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-26-2016, 09:34 PM   #5
Senior Member
 
gbaglo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: North Vancouver, British Columbia
Trailer: 2009 Escape 17B 2020 Toyota Highlander XLE
Posts: 17,136
That's the original 2008 anode.
Easier to start the threads on the new one.
__________________
What happens to the hole when the cheese is gone?
- Bertolt Brecht
gbaglo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-26-2016, 11:56 PM   #6
Site Team
 
rbryan4's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Canyon Lake, Texas
Trailer: 2015 19 "Past Tents", 2021 F150 Lariat 2.7L EB
Posts: 10,222
Quote:
Originally Posted by gbaglo View Post
That's the original 2008 anode.
Easier to start the threads on the new one.
Must be nice. We've already replaced our anode once, and that was after only 9 months and maybe 4 camping trips. The water down here eats anodes for breakfast.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
__________________
"You can't buy happiness, but you can buy an RV. And that is pretty close."
rbryan4 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-27-2017, 08:06 PM   #7
Senior Member
 
AK snowbiker's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Alaska, Washington
Trailer: 2014 5.0 TA
Posts: 451
Winterizing

It's that time of year again. Drained the hot water tank prior to winterizing and after three seasons the anode is 2/3's gone. Was surprised that the Suburban water heaters use a aluminum anode. Our prior camper had a Atwood heater with a aluminum tank and used the magnesium anode. Scott

Scott and Lori
Fatbike season is fast approaching!
__________________
Scott and Lori
Aurora Borealis
2014 5.0 TA
AK snowbiker is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-27-2017, 08:52 PM   #8
Senior Member
 
float5's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Denison, Texas
Trailer: 2015 21'; 2011 19' sold; 4Runner; ph ninezero3 327-27ninefour
Posts: 5,136
Quote:
Originally Posted by rbryan4 View Post
Must be nice. We've already replaced our anode once, and that was after only 9 months and maybe 4 camping trips. The water down here eats anodes for breakfast.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
Hmmm. I wonder if we will have the same.
__________________
Cathy. Floating Cloud
"Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air.... "
Emerson
float5 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-27-2017, 09:18 PM   #9
Senior Member
 
Ron in BC's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: North Van., British Columbia
Trailer: 2014 Escape 19, sold; 2019 Escape 21, Sept. 2019
Posts: 8,743
Quote:
Originally Posted by float5 View Post
Hmmm. I wonder if we will have the same.

The water has a major effect on anode life. Around here we're lucky to be able to drink the water straight from the tap and enjoy it as well as use it to top up the battery.

Ron
Ron in BC is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-27-2017, 09:20 PM   #10
Senior Member
 
float5's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Denison, Texas
Trailer: 2015 21'; 2011 19' sold; 4Runner; ph ninezero3 327-27ninefour
Posts: 5,136
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron in BC View Post


The water has a major effect on anode life. Around here we're lucky to be able to drink the water straight from the tap and enjoy it as well as use it to top up the battery.

Ron

Should have picked some up when we were in BC!
__________________
Cathy. Floating Cloud
"Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air.... "
Emerson
float5 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-27-2017, 10:57 PM   #11
Senior Member
 
sumac.rhus's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Troy, Idaho
Trailer: August 2017 17b
Posts: 226
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron in BC View Post


The water has a major effect on anode life. Around here we're lucky to be able to drink the water straight from the tap and enjoy it as well as use it to top up the battery.

Ron
What elements in water tend to be hard on the anodes?
...know little, and curious...
sumac.rhus is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 12:08 AM   #12
Site Team
 
rbryan4's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Canyon Lake, Texas
Trailer: 2015 19 "Past Tents", 2021 F150 Lariat 2.7L EB
Posts: 10,222
Quote:
Originally Posted by sumac.rhus View Post
What elements in water tend to be hard on the anodes?
...know little, and curious...
Hard water will generally corrode an anode faster than soft.

Anodes will corrode (sacrifice themselves) no matter what kind of water you have however, because that's what they are designed to do. They are made of less noble metals than the steel in the tank. So, they corrode first, preventing corrosion of the steel in the process. Generally, an aluminum rod is best for hard water, and a magnesium is best for soft water. Some aluminum rods also contain about 10 percent zinc. These are designed to reduce the sulphur smell found in some water.

A magnesium rod will last longer than an aluminum one when used with softer water, but not so much when used with hard. Here in south Texas we have hard water because of the natural limestone in the water table. So, I use an aluminum rod. I don't have a precise figure, but I would guess that for someone living in a place like BC, their anode would last about 4 or 5 times longer than mine.

It's no biggie, because every time you drain and flush the water heater, you are also inspecting the anode. They're cheap, so replace it once the majority of it is gone.

There's another interesting thing about how the water affects the corrosion of an anode, but it's only a concern for a home water heater: a water softener will reduce the life of the anode in a home hot water heater by quite a bit. That's because the softener increases the sodium content in the water. Sacrificial metals deteriorate rapidly in water with a higher sodium content.
__________________
"You can't buy happiness, but you can buy an RV. And that is pretty close."
rbryan4 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 09:58 AM   #13
Senior Member
 
sumac.rhus's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Troy, Idaho
Trailer: August 2017 17b
Posts: 226
Thanks for the info!
sumac.rhus is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 11:36 AM   #14
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: Kamloops, British Columbia
Trailer: 2024 Bigfoot 21RB
Posts: 254
Magnesium has a greater electrochemical potential than aluminium and will oxidize at a greater rate regardless of water type acting as a sacrificial anode protecting the tank. Aluminium anodes are less costly and are usually what the tank will come with. A water tank is basically an electrolytic solution where electrons will flow through the water and oxidize metals that have a greater electrolytic potential. Without a sacrificial anode the tank will be oxidized. The more galvanic the electrode the less likely other metals in the tank will be corroded.
gharper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 04:42 PM   #15
Senior Member
 
LarryandLiz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Maple Ridge, BC, British Columbia
Trailer: 2014 17B;2012 Nissan Frontier SV 4
Posts: 701
I was at a Snowbird RV Show last year and bought an anode just because I was at an RV Show and felt like buying something. This spring I tried to put it into the hot water tank and it didn't go in all the way. I think anodes come in different lengths depending on the size of the hot water tank. Also it is aluminum (which I had no idea about when I impulse bought it) and we live in the Lower Mainland of BC where our water is super soft and about the best in the entire world. I don't think I really need to replace the original anode if Glenn's has lasted as long as his has.

Anybody want to buy my aluminum anode, cheap ?

Larry
LarryandLiz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 04:52 PM   #16
Senior Member
 
AK snowbiker's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Alaska, Washington
Trailer: 2014 5.0 TA
Posts: 451
Our old camper had an Atwood hot water heater with an aluminum tank so you HAD to use a magnesium rod. The Suburban tanks use an enameled steel tank so you can use either a aluminum or magnesium anode. The Camco replacement that I picked up specified a aluminum anode for the Suburban but looking at the FAQ’s for the Suburban you can use either. I’ll be switching back to the magnesium, seemed like we had a lot of debris in the bottom of the tank using the aluminum. Also, a magnesium infused shower sounds better to me than an aluminum infused shower. Scott

Scott and Lori
Fatbikes are FUN!
__________________
Scott and Lori
Aurora Borealis
2014 5.0 TA
AK snowbiker is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 05:00 PM   #17
Senior Member
 
Ron in BC's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: North Van., British Columbia
Trailer: 2014 Escape 19, sold; 2019 Escape 21, Sept. 2019
Posts: 8,743
Quote:
Originally Posted by LarryandLiz View Post
we live in the Lower Mainland of BC where our water is super soft and about the best in the entire world. I don't think I really need to replace the original anode if Glenn's has lasted as long as his has.

Larry
Gee, I modestly said our water was good, but OK, I can go along with best in the world. I remember, as a teenager, going to get a glass of tap water at my aunts place in San Francisco. She was agast and told me that they didn't drink water from the tap.

Although my tank gets our good water when I'm home, the vast majority of the water that's gone into it isn't our local good water and I haven't gotten quite the good anode life that Glenn has.


Ron
Ron in BC is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 05:45 PM   #18
Senior Member
 
LarryandLiz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Maple Ridge, BC, British Columbia
Trailer: 2014 17B;2012 Nissan Frontier SV 4
Posts: 701
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron in BC View Post
Gee, I modestly said our water was good, but OK, I can go along with best in the world. I remember, as a teenager, going to get a glass of tap water at my aunts place in San Francisco. She was agast and told me that they didn't drink water from the tap.

Although my tank gets our good water when I'm home, the vast majority of the water that's gone into it isn't our local good water and I haven't gotten quite the good anode life that Glenn has.


Ron
Well Ron, I did say "about the best in the world" but your right it really is the best in the world. And I remember something in the news a few years ago about how great the water in Chilliwack is. Real news not "fake new" I think it was something about the best water in the world.

Actually it was Clearbrook but a few years ago ther was something about Chilliwack. https://globalnews.ca/news/2547872/b...-in-the-world/
LarryandLiz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 05:51 PM   #19
Senior Member
 
cpaharley2008's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Central, Pennsylvania
Trailer: Escape#5 2022 E19
Posts: 26,268
When living in Maryland with a house on a well, it was 460 feet deep as I lived on the highest spot in the county. . The local well driller informed me that my water was coming from New York, 500 miles away. These people have maps of underground rivers/streams to tap into.
Chilliwack water more than likely comes from far away.
__________________
Jim
Sometime life gets in the way of living.......
cpaharley2008 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2017, 06:05 PM   #20
Senior Member
 
KarenH's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Bellingham and Glacier, Washington
Trailer: 2013 Escape 15A
Posts: 2,051
Send a message via Skype™ to KarenH
Quote:
Originally Posted by cpaharley2008 View Post
Chilliwack water more than likely comes from far away.
Or maybe just from the Fraser River?

Edited: Nope, from the Sardis-Vetter aquifer.
__________________
Karen Hulford
2013 Escape 15A, "Egbert"
'93 Ford 150 XLT or
'22 GMC Acadia Denali
KarenH is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off




» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Escape Trailer Industries or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:15 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright 2023 Social Knowledge, LLC All Rights Reserved.