Anode rods generally can last about three to five years, but it really depends mostly on the quality of your water and how much water travels through your water heater. By checking the condition of your anode rod every 3 years, you can reduce the chances of a leak, improve the quality of your water, reduce water heater wear, and tear, and save a lot of money.
How Do Sacrificial Anode Rods Work?
The most important part of a water heater is the sacrificial anode rod. It takes on all the damage, so your tank and pipes don’t have to. Additionally, a healthy anode rod reduces the amount of sediment at the bottom of your tank which can raise energy bills.
Sacrificial anode rods come in one of three materials:
- Magnesium
- Aluminum
- Zinc
Since water wants to attack the steel-lined water tank and any metal pipes in your home, a more reactive (least noble) metal is chosen for the sacrificial rod.
The sacrificial anode rod will corrode away completely before the water begins to attack the steel water tank. As long as anode rods are regularly checked and replaced, your water heater tank will be protected from corrosion.
Top 10 reasons to replace your anode rod
- You want to extend the lifespan of your water heater. It will cost you much less to replace the anode rod than your water heater.
- Water heater pan has started to accumulate water.
- Water softeners can accelerate anode rod corrosion.
- Acidic water can accelerate anode rod corrosion.
- The water heater makes loud or multiple popping noises when heating up, signaling potential corrosion in your tank lining.
- It’s been 3 years since the last time you checked/replaced the anode rod.
- Faucet aerators appear to clog more frequently.
- You notice a slimy gel substance when cleaning the faucet aerator.
- Gritty, sandy, or bad-smelling water.
- High water heater bills. Old anode rods increase the sediment at the bottom of the tank which inhibits heat transfer.
Here's How to Maintain Your Tankless Water Heater
A tankless water heater is just what it sounds like — a hot water heater that lacks a tank and instead heats water at the time of use. Many people are making the transition to using them over large, tanked systems — and for good reason. Tankless water heaters offer numerous benefits to property owners. As noted by Home Depot, they are 24% to 34% more energy-efficient than traditional water heaters, which will save you money in the long run. In fact, you’ll never have to worry about running out of hot water either since they provide on-demand warmth. They are space-saving and overall dependable, too. The key is maintenance.
While a well-maintained water heater usually lasts around 10 years, a well-maintained tankless water heater can last 20 to 25 years. It doesn’t take much to maintain a tankless water heater, but there are some things you should do every year.
Of course, while routine maintenance ensures the system will continue to work well, experts suggest following a few key recommendations. “Even if your home uses the municipal water supply, your water will have some dissolved solids, such as calcium and other minerals. Unfortunately, these minerals tend to build up inside your water heater.
It’s not always easy to notice this happening initially, but there are a few changes you may observe. “As these minerals cake on the insides of your water heater, your water heater will work harder and less efficiently, and you will lower the expected lifespan of the machine. The good news is that you can avoid this by flushing the water heater once a year, and it only takes around an hour to do.
These step-by-step instructions for doing just that, in which you’ll need the following:
A 5-gallon bucket
3 gallons of vinegar
A submersible water pump
Two hoses (These should have been supplied with your water heater, but you can buy washing machine hoses from most hardware stores.)
Follow these steps:
Turn off the machine and shut off the power supply (whether it’s gas or electric).
Shut the isolation valves. There should be a blue inlet valve for cold water and a red outlet valve for hot water. These valves are shut when the handle is perpendicular to the pipe. If the handle is parallel to the pipe, then it’s still open. Make sure these valves are closed, or you’re going to have a bad time.
Connect the hoses to the water heater. There should be some caps that you can unscrew to remove, and the hoses should screw onto them. Then, connect the water pump to the other end of the hose that is connected to the inlet. Place the pump in the bucket and the other end of the outlet hose into the bucket. Then, empty the 3 gallons of vinegar into the bucket.
Open the valves for the flush ports. Near where the hoses connect to the water heater, there should be a valve on both the inlet and the outlet. Open both of these.
Turn on the pump and flush out everything. Once you turn on the pump, it will begin pumping vinegar through the water heater and back into the bucket. Let this run for about 45 minutes to an hour. Then, turn off the water pump.
Flush out the remaining vinegar from the water heater. To begin this step, place the flush valve outlet hose in the nearest floor drain. Open the cold-water inlet (but keep the hot water outlet closed). Water will enter the water heater and come out of the flush port and go down your drain. Run this for about five to 10 minutes to clear all the vinegar and stuff inside the water heater.
Close the flush port valves, disconnect the hoses, open the hot water outlet valve, restore energy, and turn the water heater back on.
Tankless water heaters are designed to minimize buildup, but you still need to play an active role in their overall maintenance. There’s a small water filter on your tankless water heater that is intended to prevent solids from entering the water heater and causing damage, if you’re unsure of its location, check the owner’s manual. Given enough time, this filter will become caked with debris, which will block water flow. Without proper attention, this could lead to a significant repair need.
To minimize this problem, keep the filter clear. To do so, do the following: While flushing out your water heater every year, it is strongly recommended that you clean the water filter. For most systems, this is fairly easy to do. Turn the power off and cut energy, then remove the lower panel. Take out the filter, clean it, and replace [it]. If there’s significant damage or build-up you cannot remove, you may need to replace the filter. Be sure to match the make and model when swapping them out.