Water left in Suburban water heater - UPDATE!

[pasusan]

Do you leave water in your Suburban water heater? I did and I paid.

For years I have left the water in my Atwood WH (which is in our trailer) all season. I would drain the FW tank between trips, but left the WH alone.

This summer we haven't done a lot of camping - but we have taken a few day trips with our B - which has the hateful Suburban WH - and I do mean hateful. We went camping last week and the hot water coming out of the tap was brown - very brown. My dish rag went from white to brown and my Corian sink got stained. 😞 Drained the WH when we got home and actual flakes of rust came out. Yuck.

If I could replace that dirty thing with an Atwood, I would - but it won't fit.

So - what do you do when you've got one of these hateful tanks? Drain the WH after each trip? Do you put the Anode rod back in right away to keep oxygen out, or leave the hole open to air dry the tank till next trip?


***Edit - added an update to the end of the thread.

[Sjm9911]

I only drain my for winterizing also. I leave it full for a month at a time sitting. Never any rust. I belive the inside of the tanks are coated with a glass type substance , so nothing to rust there unless the coating is damaged. I think the anode rod protects the outsode of the tank from rusting out through the scre in metal fitings. So, ot woks by not rusting the tank from the outside in. Check the fitings going into the heater. Flush it good as you said and continue to use it, you could have pick up sediment from almost anywhere.

[dodge_guy]

I only drain our for the winter. it never sits long enough to get stagnant and rust. I also flush and sanitize the system in the middle of the summer.

[doxiemom11]

We are full-time and have an Atwood, but we still drain it at least annually to get the crud out. Lime and other mineral deposits. We use filters, but there's always still some in there. No rust ever though.

[olfarmer]

What was the water like where you last used it before the rust issue? It could be you were hooked up to a water source that was high in iron content. If it was it could turn to rust while setting in the water heater. I fill our water heater in the spring and don't drain it until I winterize it. I have never had it get rusty.

[pasusan]

OK - I said we got a new magnesium anode rod and were taking a trip...

Surprisingly - the water was not smelly or brown for the 5 nights we were out. When we got home I emptied the WH - the water came out clear and the rod has a bunch of black pitted spots on it - but not eaten up by any means. I sucked out the 2 or 3 cups of water from the bottom of the tank and re-installed the anode rod with vaseline on the threads.

We had planned on replacing the entire WH next spring, but think we'll see how things go!

(Still wishing it was an Atwood, but you get what you get and we just have to learn to live with it...)

Thanks to all who responded. 🙂

[Bobbo]

wopachop wrote:
Did the conversion 1 liter is 20,000 drops.

As a retired Pharmacist who did volume conversions for decades, I applaud you for getting that conversion right. However, I think that bsinmich was using hyperbole when he said "the few drops." It is certainly not enough water left in the tank to be a problem if it did freeze.

[StirCrazy]

i have only ever drained my Hw tank at the end of season, in over 20 years I have never had a problem like that or seen one. to rust your anode would have to be used up or the wrong type, or a brand with out an anode would have to have some sort of dammage to the protective coating or such. how old was this water heater? and what kind of water did you put in it? I could see brown from un treated water with a high algae content but the rust is what makes it harder to imagin

Steve

[2edgesword]

During the camping season we are camping every other week and the water heater is never drained.. The only time I drain the water heater is in preparation for winterizing. We've never had any issues with rust, at least not any visible in the water at the start of the next camping season.

[wopachop]

bsinmich wrote:
I never was concerned about the few drops of water left in thee bottom of the tank.

I sucked my tank dry. Then filled a 1L bottle with vinegar. Put a small hole in the cap and squirted it into my tank. Didnt even come up to the drain hole. Its not a few drops. Did the conversion 1 liter is 20,000 drops.

Just letting people know it might not evaporate out as quickly as we might think.

[bsinmich]

I never was concerned about the few drops of water left in thee bottom of the tank. Freezing does damage when the water expands and in the bottom of the tank there is no problem with expansion. There are also rods that are just coated with a thin cat of magnesium. They are cheaper. I didn't drain my tank after each trip and never had a smell problem. In the 6 years with my Road trek I never cooked or ate in it. So many nice restaurants and no dishes to do.

[wopachop]

pasusan wrote:
Thanks all for more info...

BB_TX - when winterizing I've been getting that last bottom water out with paper towels - slowly but surely - will look into that pump or see if we have something around that would work.

Shop vacs come in handy. I used a 2 foot piece of hose to vacuum out the propane heating section. Wiped the hose clean and then vacuumed out the water and white deposits in the water heater.

I have tried to use water pressure to push those white deposits out. Water pressure alone wont get them all. Proof is when i empty the shop vac. Its able to suck out debris that water pressure couldnt force out because the drain hole is too high on the tank.

[Old-Biscuit]

pasusan wrote:
Thanks all for more info...

BB_TX - when winterizing I've been getting that last bottom water out with paper towels - slowly but surely - will look into that pump or see if we have something around that would work.

Old-Biscuit - thanks for the pics - our anode rod is aluminum. Got a magnesium one on the way - we'll see how that goes for our next trip. And if the tank is ruined we'll get a new one next spring - doesn't look too difficult to replace. 😉

Unlike Atwood....Suburban does not have/sell replacement tanks
So New WHOLE water heater would be required

[pasusan]

Thanks all for more info...

BB_TX - when winterizing I've been getting that last bottom water out with paper towels - slowly but surely - will look into that pump or see if we have something around that would work.

Old-Biscuit - thanks for the pics - our anode rod is aluminum. Got a magnesium one on the way - we'll see how that goes for our next trip. And if the tank is ruined we'll get a new one next spring - doesn't look too difficult to replace. 😉

[wopachop]

Old-Biscuit wrote:

OEM Mag will have a teat on end of hex head (part #232767)

I know a way to remember that info.
Thats a MAGnificent teat!!!