- Sherryl Nens

How to preserve the life of your RV Water Heater

Much as in a bricks and sticks house, there is regular maintenance in an RV. We have to lube slides, change AC air filters, clean out the waste tanks and change the anode rod in the water heater. While you may have never heard of an anode rod, you will want to learn this simple maintenance job to preserve the life of your RV Water heater to keep those hot water showers coming!

What is an anode rod?

RV water heaters have a short metal rod made of a mix of magnesium and aluminum called an anode rod that helps protect the water heaters from corrosion. The anode rod prevents the hot water heating element and internal components from corroding by electronically attracting all the minerals, such as lime and calcium, to the anode rod and corroding itself. Thus it is a sacrificial anode rod, or as I like to think, a “Jesus” Rod.

When do you change an anode rod?

While some “sticks and bricks” water heaters also have an anode rod, they don’t need to be changed as often as they are much bigger in size and capacity. In addition, an RV water heater is typically between 10 – 20 gallons, thus making an RV Anode rod have a short lifespan. Most manufacturers recommend changing an RV anode rod once a year, depending on your usage and water quality. As full-time RVers, we change our rods about every six months as we experience a constant change in water quality during our travels.

If you notice your hot water doesn’t seem to last as long as it used to, this could be another indication it’s time to change the anode rod. And don’t forget to mark down the date of your anode change in your maintenance log to keep track of how long it has been since a change.

Tools needed to change the anode rod

Tools you will need to change the anode rod on your RV water heater

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How do I change the anode rod?

Step-by-Step Guide:

Before you start replacing the anode rod, there are a few simple safety steps to prevent scalding yourself with hot water. First, turn off the electricity and gas going to the water heater. Next, turn on a hot water faucet to drain all the hot water from the tank. Once the water’s drained, shut off the water supply to the tank.

Next, you need to locate the water heater and anode rod. The RV water heater door is typically on the driver’s side near the furnace. Open the RV heater door and take a look inside. Toward the bottom, you should see a hexagonal bolt – that’s the anode rod. Most anode rods are 1-1/16”, so it should be easy to remove with a socket wrench. Using your socket wrench, unscrew the rod and inspect it.

Remember, when you pull out the rod – water will come pouring out. This water won’t be hot, as we drained all the hot water. And since it is freshwater, it is okay to drain it on the ground. You may also see white shell-like flakes; this is sediment collected in the bottom of the water heater.

Next steps

Once the old rod is removed, it’s time to spray out the water heater. Sediment tends to settle at the bottom of the water tank. You want to get as much of this sediment out as you can. We use a spray wand specially made to spray out the RV water heaters. The spray wand has a slight bend which can help you sweep and pull out more sediment. Continue spraying and sweeping until you don’t see any more sediment come out of the water tank.

It’s time to insert the new anode rod. First, wrap the new threads with plumbers’ Teflon tape to prevent leaks. Next, hand tighten the new rod. Then use the socket wrench to finish tightening the new anode rod – be sure not to over-tighten it. NOTE: be careful to avoid cross-threading the anode rod – you don’t want to ruin your threads!

Once the rod is back in place, you will need to fill up the hot water tank by turning the water back on. We like to turn our outdoor shower nozzle to hot water and hold on in a steady stream. This is demanding hot water and will push the water through the tank to the hose. You can also hear the hot water heater tank filling up.

Once the nozzle sprays a full stream of water with little or no air, you know the hot water tank is full. It is now safe to turn on your water heater. Note: you can turn on both the electric and gas water heater switches for a faster heat up. Be sure to mark the date you replaced the anode rod in your maintenance log. That’s it; you’re done!

Simple RV maintenance

While you may have never heard of an anode rod (neither had we!), changing an anode rod is a simple DIY project that will preserve your water heater’s life and performance. And while we said it as the very last step – DON’T FORGET TO TURN BACK ON THE HOT WATER HEATER. (Someone, meaning me – Sherryl, did forget, and that meant hubby had a cold shower and not the nice hot long shower he expected.) Please watch our video first, and you will soon have the confidence to tackle this project and have many BRIGHT DAIS AHEAD!

We want to hear from you!

Let us know if you what mainteance you do on your RV? We want to learn or help along our way.

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