Water Heater Corrosion Prevention

Commercial gas water heaters will have to be drained in order to check for interior rusting.

Water heater corrosion prevention. Most factory installed anodes are magnesium which can produce a sulfite reducing bacteria that makes your water smell like rotten eggs. Protecting hot water tanks and heaters from corrosion water quality varies across the uk and affects choice of hot water system as well as water heater maintenance. Newer water heaters remove air entirely from the tank and instead use an expansion tank placed over the main one to absorb the water pressure increases. For structures such as long pipelines where passive galvanic cathodic protection is not adequate an external dc electrical power source is used to provide suffic.

The life of your water heater rests in the anodes which work to prevent corrosion by allowing corrosion within the anode rod instead of the water heater unit if the rod is doing is job properly. The sacrificial anode rod. A simple visual check of the pipes and fitting at the top of your water heater should reveal any signs of corrosion. A water heater is designed to resist corrosion through a number of methods.

Inspect the anode rod yearly and replace it whenever necessary. Anode rods prevent corrosion in your water heater by sacrificing their metal in place of the heater s metal. Corrosion in your water heater. Here s how to prevent it heating elements.

If you can see corrosion at the connection between the steel and copper fittings this could be an indication that galvanic corrosion is occurring. For the protection against corrosion the manufacturer covers the metal tanks with the glass lining and by installing the anode rods. Following a basic water heater care plan can help prevent corrosion from shortening your water heater s lifespan. Turn the water and power to the water heater back on.

A pressure relief valve on the top of the tank allows for an air cushion without allowing air into the tank itself. Using a replacement anode made of zinc or aluminum will prevent this problem. Cathodic protection is a technique used to control the corrosion of a metal surface by making it the cathode of an electrochemical cell. Have galvanized pipe joints replaced with plastic lined nipples dielectric nipples to prevent galvanic corrosion between steel and copper connections.

A copper water pipe connected to the steel water heater dielectric fitting. However allowing air into the tank allowed for corrosion to begin. A simple method of protection connects the metal to be protected to a more easily corroded sacrificial metal to act as the anode. The sacrificial metal then corrodes instead of the protected metal.

The interior of its hot water tank is lined with glass. The water heater s electrical heating elements consist of a steel interior with a copper sheath.