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Old 09-14-2014, 08:37 PM   #1
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Another fresh water tank sanitizing question

Newbie here. We recent got our new 17B (queue happy dance theme music 8)) and I thought I would run through the sanitizing procedure for the fresh water tank. I've followed the procedure in the manual, but one question I don't see answered is after I've flushed the bleach solution out do I also pull the anode rod in the HW tank to drain it - or does it also drain when I open the spigot on the side of the fresh water tank ?
I've been opening all the hot and cold water taps (including outside shower) when I'm draining, but is that also draining the HW tank ? Also, if I do have to pull the anode rod to drain the HW tank do I have to use some type of teflon tape or pipe dope on the threads before I screw it back in ?

Thanks!
Al
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Old 09-14-2014, 08:49 PM   #2
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The anode can be some trouble to get back in and, yes, you need Teflon tape on it. You only need to remove it once in a while to flush out the gunk that accumulates in the bottom. Or to empty for storage or winterizing. We don't want to bother with it unless we have to.
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Old 09-14-2014, 09:35 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by allan3089 View Post
but one question I don't see answered is after I've flushed the bleach solution out do I also pull the anode rod in the HW tank to drain it - or does it also drain when I open the spigot on the side of the fresh water tank ?
I've been opening all the hot and cold water taps (including outside shower) when I'm draining, but is that also draining the HW tank ? Also, if I do have to pull the anode rod to drain the HW tank do I have to use some type of teflon tape or pipe dope on the threads before I screw it back in ?

Thanks!
Al
Newbie reply here. For my 19' the HW tank will drain once the anode rod is removed. The HW tank will not drain by opening the spigot on the side of the fresh water tank.

The first time I removed my anode rod, it had some old teflon tape on it that needed replacement. I have since removed the anode rod many times, without having to replace my teflon tape. I find the anode rod a little cumbersome to replace because it seems tricky to start the threads. If I tilt the anode rod up slightly as I insert it, it seems to thread pretty readily.
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Old 09-15-2014, 02:35 PM   #4
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Shouldn't the water heater tank drain if you open the cold low-point plumbing drain? The 17B has a low-point drain, right?
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Old 09-15-2014, 02:50 PM   #5
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While the 17B does have a low point drain, I wouldn't depend on it to drain the water heater. Since my method of winterizing the trailer last year was to drive it to southwestern Arizona, it has been long enough since I drained the water heater that I don't remember how much water was left, although there was some. I do know I rinsed out quite a bit of chunks of minerals from the bottom. It is also a good idea to check the anode to determine if it needs to be replaced.
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Old 09-15-2014, 02:59 PM   #6
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Since my method of winterizing the trailer last year was to drive it to southwestern Arizona, it has been long enough since I drained the water heater that I don't remember how much water was left...


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Originally Posted by Vermilye View Post
While the 17B does have a low point drain, I wouldn't depend on it to drain the water heater.
... I don't remember how much water was left, although there was some. I do know I rinsed out quite a bit of chunks of minerals from the bottom.
I agree that on these water heaters with an anode and no drain valve, the anode would need to be removed to flush out solids. I was just thinking that if the point was to nearly empty the water, the low-point drain would work if the inlet fitting was low enough on the heater tank.

It looks like the inlet fitting might be too high on the tank - higher than the anode rod port - so reasonably complete draining may require pulling the anode.
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Old 09-16-2014, 12:18 AM   #7
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Thanks folks - really appreciate the responses. I think to be safe I'll pull the anode and let it drain too. I think the FW tank drain spout might be lower than the inlet, but draining the HW tank can't hurt and this way I'll find out for the future.

Cheers
Al
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