anode ablation rate

[Bruce Wray]

My hopes for one last trip with the Egg Nest next week were tanked by a forecast for rain. (Oh well, we need it.) Anyway, I decided to go ahead and winterize the trailer. I was surprised when I pulled the anode out of the hot water heater tank by the amount of ablation that had occurred on it since we picked it up new in July. It's all concentrated in the 3/4" closest to the head, and I'd bet that area has lost 20% or more of it's mass. The water that was in it came from MacKerricher State Park in early October, and was pretty heavily chlorinated. I'm wondering if that could have upped the rate of ablation.

Since this is our first trailer, I have no frame of reference as to how long RV hot water tank anodes generally last. Anyone with more experience have any ideas and comments?

Thanks in advance,
Bruce

[Sandra L]

Wow.
I'd better check mine. I've had one last for a few years. However that was occasional seasonal usage. It is recommended that it be checked on an annual basis, and replaced when necessary. I wonder if one can be obtained at other than a place like Camping World?

[escape artist]

Hi: Bruce Wray... I plan on putting in a new anode rod in the spring. Our trailer was Mfg'd in July of '07. We use softened well water to fill the tanks at home so most of the minerals come from parks and campground hook ups. I have inspected the rod the last 2 years and you're right in that most of the corrosion of the rod is nearest the threads of the plug. I would rather replace it before it falls apart though. Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[gbaglo]

Mine appeared virtually new. However, we may turn the water heater on for maybe half an hour and then it's off the rest of the day. Takes about 20 minutes to get hot and stays hot for a long time. I haven't really monitored water quality, except that we dumped it after staying at a campground in Yakh, B.C.

baglo

[PGDriver]

Hi Bruce

You should get a couple of years off the rod.
They are cheap (under $20.00) and easy to replace.
look for the one that has the highest amount of magnesium
they will last the longest.

[JeffZ]

Wholey moley.. I didn't even know what "ablation" meant! much less if it was rated?

Eeek, you learn something every day..

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by JeffZ

Wholey moley.. I didn't even know what "ablation" meant! much less if it was rated?

Eeek, you learn something every day..

How 'bout me, do I looks smarter. I just learned a new word too.

[ronstew]

Fans of more recent Star Trek series will have heard mention of ablative armour without explanation. I learned what the term meant when I was at the Kennedy Space Center and saw a returned Apollo command module. The heat shield what made of a rubbery compound that melted and peeled of in globs as the capsule rentered the Earth's atmosphere. That way, the thermal energy was removed from the capsule.

Our anode was barely touched after a trip of two weeks and a trip of one weekend since July.

[escape artist]

Hi: All...So the "Ablation" rate depends on the mineral content of the water you put in the H/W heater and water tank. On a scale of 1-10 the Culligan Man said our well water was 22...hence the water softener!!! Water from other sources is a different matter. Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie p.s. Nice show Bruce.

[Bruce Wray]

I so rarely get to use a cool word like "ablation", I couldn't resist. I started with "corrosion", didn't think that was quite accurate, and I too remembered the Apollo capsules. Still not sure if it's the technically correct word to describe what's going on... cool word, though. Maybe "electrolytic ionization"?

Bruce

[escape artist]

Hi: Bruce Wray... I think ablation is the correct word. In surgery it means the removal of tissue. In space craft, the removal of heat. In hot water heaters, the removal of minerals. The rod is sacrificed to keep the minerals from corroding the tank itself. A sacrificial lamb of sorts.
I keep 2 dictionaries next to my Commodore 64. Whenever my children would ask me how to spell a word I always replied D I C T I O N A R Y!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[JeffZ]

Originally Posted by escape artist

I keep a 2 dictionaries next to my Commodore 64.
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

Is that a hat for sailing?

[escape artist]

Hi: JeffZ... Aye Aye Skipper!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie