Water heater configuration for SHTF

Got a new electric water heater.
Got the magnesium anode in.
I have only had the original presumably aluminum anode and heating element in a week or 2 and they are already are getting worked over.

 

Last drain out I removed the stupid cheap little plastic valve and installed a ball valve.
No more clogs.

 

I didn't know that any thing other than zinc was used for anodes .

 

After living in the new place for 9 months I am finally getting to know the water heater.
Good news is its not as old as I thought.
The anode had plenty of meat left on it. Pretty sure it's an aluminum anode.

I will save this one cut down the worn end, hit it with my needle descaler, wire wheel and save it for my rental house hot water heater.

Hot water heaters are expensive, I'm cheap and I hate water damage. Keeping the water heater in good to very good condition is advantageous.

In other news I bought a 20 gal hot water heater on fb yard sale for $100 it is like new. Put it in dry storage as an emergency replacement.

 

I dragged it out side and flushed it out with water and got enough scale deposits out to fill a gallon jug.

Doing preventive maintenance on a hot water heater is as about as interesting as watching paint dry. But this can make a hot water heater last 30+ years instead of 5 to 9 years. At $500 plus installation cost if you can't install it your self it seems worth it to me.
I can think of other stuff I would rather spend $500+ on.

I also found a melted thermal switch cover and burned wire in the hot water heater closet, from the last guy.

I amp clamped the hot water heater power wire and found it only draws 16 amps when the big element is on and 13 amps with the small element on.
It's on a 30 amp circuit fed from a square d QO panel. I will probably swap out that tandem 30 for a tandem 20.

 

Check your hot water heaters people. I think a bad hot water heater element may cause me to have to buy a new hot water heater.
This hot water heater is from like 2017 and I cleaned it out 3 years ago.
The hot water heater element went bad and electrolysis started happening between the exposed elements and the water, solidly rusted the screw in heater into place.

 

I think it is wise to consider any water in need of being treated and or filtered no matter where it comes from.
In the event things have gone really bad, not knowing what the conditions of the water was preceding the event,.
I had several tanks I filled with water knowing I can filter and treat it all no matter what it had been stored in.
It is good to know that issue of aluminum being used as an anode, however I am sure it can be removed, the question is how much energy it will take.

 

Our water heater using the hot water loop form the house heat system - no power needed for hot water.

50 gal capacity - which is moot, as we keep at least that much n 5 gal 'office cooler' jugs.


Our back up water source looks like this

 

https://www.plumbingsupply.com/unde...l options for,most common anode rod materials.

The following extracted from linked article. For those interested more information available at provided link.

Change your anode rod right away if any of the following apply to your situation:

The water heater makes loud or multiple popping noises when heating up.

The water heater is more than 5 years old and you've never changed it before.

You notice a slimy gel substance when cleaning out faucet aerators.

As aluminum anode rods corrode they can produce an aluminum oxide deposit normally found at the bottom of water heaters, but occasionally make it into the main water supply and into faucet aerators. The aluminum oxide forms a virtually odorless "gel" substance that can vary in texture from a firm somewhat sticky curd to a thick running slurry. The gel can be either milky or clear and is often mixed with other water heater deposits such as scale, rust, or tiny sediment particles.

Your hot water starts smelling like "rotten egg" odor.

Unpleasant taste or odor coming from your hot water outlets can be caused by natural occurring iron bacteria in the water. This condition is usually more common in private or municipal well systems. According to the Minnesota Department of Health (Iron Bacteria in Well Water) iron bacteria are not known to cause disease, but can cause unpleasant odor, stains and tastes in the water. Iron bacteria does not produce hydrogen sulfide, the "rotten egg" smell, but can cultivate an environment where sulfur bacteria can grow and produce hydrogen sulfide (the rotten egg smell). Certain water conditions will cause a reaction with magnesium or aluminum anode rods to produce a "rotten egg" smell. By replacing the magnesium or aluminum anode rod with a combination aluminum/zinc/tin anode rod you may help decrease this smell, but it may not eliminate it completely.

Your existing anode rod looks similar to this

Example of corroded anode rod



How Do I Choose the Right Replacement Anode Rod?

There are several options for replacing your anode rod, with magnesium, aluminum, or a combination of aluminum, zinc and tin being the most common anode rod materials. (Most water heaters come with an aluminum rod as standard equipment.) What rod you choose will depend on three things: your water quality, the location of the anode rod, and how easy it is to access the installation point.

Unless your water is exceptionally iron-laden, you should be fine with an aluminum or magnesium rod. Aluminum is the longest-lasting and least expensive option. Magnesium will corrode slightly faster than aluminum, but there are health benefits to drinking water with dissolved magnesium. If you do have water with a lot of iron bacteria that causes a "rotten egg" smell, we recommend choosing an aluminum/zinc/tin rod as it can help to control the growth of the iron bacteria.

As mentioned above, you might have a water heater with a separate inlet for the anode rod or your anode rod might be installed on the hot water outlet. Since most water heaters use a standard 3/4" NPT connection, you simply need to choose the type of installation you have. If you have a separate inlet for the anode rod, but can't get the old one out or the connections are too corroded to install the new one, you can always install the new on the hot water outlet.

 

How to Get Emergency Drinking Water from a Water Heater: 8 Steps.

Although it's considered safe to drink water from a water heater one might want to do more them rely on what type of anode rod is installed. It's recommended one purify and/or filter the water from a water heater. There's also the possibility of Legionella bacteria.

One would think if you're needing water from the water heater, you might have more problems than just needing water. Just saying.

Water from the water heater YUK

Not saying it isn't possible and if one's very desperate, it's a viable option.

Let Google be your friend if you're really needing this type of information. It boils down to more then changing out the anode rod.

 

Well I got it with a 38mm socket and an impact wrench.

For my hard water magnesium are lasting around 5 years.
I'm pretty sure I put a magnesium anode in this rental houses hot water heater.
After 3 years it looks fairly ate up.
If there's loud popping noises the hot water heater element are immersed in scale or you have arcing inside the hot water heater due to a bad element.