Leaky Hot Water Tank

[Shane826]

Nor should you, the lines are plastic and there’s a plastic bushing in the tank to connect the lines.

[DanSTL]

Thanks all for all the advice. Set for trip

-pressurized system without any issues
- confirmed only source of leak is the bottom of anode rod thread and surrounding flange which has rusted away giving water access to interior
-“rust at water supply lines “ - I should have said “where supply lines join water heater”
-based on all this rust , assume it’s still near end of life
-When I return will try to replace the rod as suggested by Bill (not sure if the circular piece pictures is supposed to help seal the rod ) until whole unit is replaced

[DanSTL]

First trip accomplished with no issues, and rod came out (with help of PB blaster and impact wrench). Next I’m going to flush and replace next and reassess.

Can I buy a replacement for the washer like ring that should help secure the replacement rod?

Can’t find it online anywhere but it wasn’t previously installed and think it might help.

[Shane826]

Mine doesn’t use a washer seal. Teflon tape on the threads and it seals up nicey nice.

[Bill]

Originally Posted by DanSTL

... rod came out with help of PB blaster ...

Be careful of using petroleum (oil) solvents and lubricants. If you get any inside the tank, the water will taste terrible, and the remaining oil will be really hard to get out.

Can I buy a replacement for the washer like ring that should help secure the replacement rod? ... Can’t find it online anywhere but it wasn’t previously installed.

If it wasn't previously installed, where did you find it?

(The washer picture)

I could be wrong, but the picture of the empty hole shows a bunch of white stuff that doesn't quite look like crumbly crystalline corrosion products. I would have expected the threads in the opening to be cleaner once you got the rod unscrewed. Is it a slather of the silicone sealant stuff that was in your post on the under-sink plumbing leak? If so, it seems the PO was a fan of using silicone sealer where is doesn't belong. As Shane said, teflon tape - 2 or 3 layers - is the only stuff you should use after you have removed all the sealant and cleaned up the threads down to bare metal. I believe that the instructions that came with the new rod say this.

Let us know what you find.

Bill

[DanSTL]

Aside from the leak which I hope will be resolved when I finish reconnecting the rod tomorrow, my problem seems to be the hole beneath the anode and flange. When I flushed the tank I had to position a bucket inside as a good 30% of the waterfall goes inside the trailer. Wonder if I should seal the opening with jbweld epoxy and keep using the water heater , assuming no other leaks found .



I found the washer just laying just behind the water heater door.


The white material was actually crystalline build but I managed to clean most of it and expose threads. Thanks for petroleum tips

[DanSTL]

Managed to clean it all out and get a new teflon taped rod in and no more leaking ! Even pressurized on city water and also heated water and seems other than a fair amount of rust and the gap exposed to the outside, it is good to go and may still have some life in it.

I will start shopping around for a replacement suburban just in case.

Thanks all for the help here!

[Bill]

The refrig has its own manual gas shutoff valve, so if the refrig continues to fail, you might look for that. But I don't think the water heater has a manual valve, so no magic answer there.

When you switch on the water heater at the sink apron, the red "Trying to Light" light should come on immediately. This doesn't depend on gas pressure or gas presence or pilot flame or anything else. The fact that it doesn't come on suggests to me that there may be no 12-volt DC power reaching the device. You might start by checking the 12vdc fuse feeding the water heater. The fuses are the little colored plastic things in the converter, not the big black things (circuit breakers).

I don't know the level of your trouble-shooting skills, but if the fuses are good, there is a diagram of the water heater control panel in the owner's manual (either in your blue binder or available on line). You might try to confirm the presence of 12-volt DC power.

Bill

[Bill]

This thread has wandered well off the original topic, which was rust and leaks around the anode rod. I split off the new stuff and moved it to the Appliance Forum, with a title like Appliance Electrical Weirdness.

https://www.trailmanorowners.com/for...ad.php?t=21693

Bill