Stinky hot water

[john6206]

I’ve read threads about stinky hot water, I’m just checking to see if I understand them.

Stinky hot water, with no other obvious cause, is almost always an anode. Replace the anode and your problem is solved. The Seaward S-600 does not have an anode, BUT there is one on the market. You remove the drain and screw in the anode into that space.

My understanding is that this would be too late. The smell is the tank rotting, so an anode might have helped a few years ago, but not today.

Am I right so far?

not sure how old the tank is. The first two owners kept pretty good records, no records after that. It could be original to my 1995 boat.

Possible confounding factors:

Does it smell like sulphur?.
No, I can’t describe it. Just smells bad. Wife says it smells like the antifreeze we bled out of the lines in June, but I don’t think so.

This spring when commissioning the fresh water system I got frustrated by how often I was cleaning the screen (filter), so I just removed it, thinking all the gunk would come out through the faucet with the diffuser off. But I misread the system a bit, and realized that now all the gunk was going through the water pump, and then the water heater. Not sure how long until I realized my error and put the screen back, not sure how much gunk.

I thought maybe draining the water heater might help. when I open the drain I don’t get 6 gallons of water. I get maybe a quart. Not sure what to make of that. Yes I understand gravity! I’m keeping the hose below the level of the drain.

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

Did you vent the tank so it can drain fully?

 

[john6206]

@Don S/V ILLusion
Yes, I opened the tap.

 

[john6206]

Here’s a new symptom that might be conclusive.

When I fill the sink with cold water, the water is clear.

When I fill the sink with hot water there is a kind of sand or “dust” in the bottom of the sink.

I’m guessing this is the tank eating itself?

 

[JoeWhite]

My understanding is that the bad smell is due to not using the water that is in water heater for extended period of time , like 6 months.
I had that smell. I drained the water by removing the drain faucet and the heating element . Using srynge I removed the remaining water. I put back the element and the faucet and filled 3 gallons of fresh water that had 4 Oz of chlorox. Let it sit there for an hour then drained it. Repeated 3 times. The smell has gone away and stayed away. Mine does not have anode either. I was told it does not need it.
To prevent the smell I add one ounce of chlorox when I fill the water tank. And every 2 weeks I drain one gallon of water from the water heater.
If you have sediments in the tank, it is time to replace it. This is a good opportunity to flush the antifreeze.

 

[kloudie1]

Another thought.. If the fresh water you are using in the tank is kinda hard, minerals will build up on the heating elements and gradually fill the tank.. That will displace water and the tank will no longer hold the stated amount.. The "sand" that you are seeing could be the mineral deposits that are coming out of the tank. Unfortunately, there is no good/easy way to get the minerals out. The deposits can be dissolved with acid but would most likely perforate the tank. Sounds like new heater time, unfortunately.

 

[john6206]

That’s what I thought, thanks.

now I’m troubleshooting the fresh water pump.
might have to replace both.

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

@Don S/V ILLusion
Yes, I opened the tap.

Not sure what that means. For clarity, I’m assuming you vented the tank, not opened a faucet. Mutually exclusive things

 

[Foswick]

I opened this thread because the title happens to be my Chippendale's stage name.

But ...

First thing, to Don's point, simply opening the faucet won't do it because, presumably, you have a pump between the water tank and the faucet.

Aside from that, a few things to check in order:

1. Compare sources: Run the dock hose or your cold side straight from the tank. If only the water heater side stinks, the problem is in the heater.
2. Flush it out: Drain the water heater completely. Pay attention to what comes out first - any funk, rust, or cloudy stuff is a clue.
3. Sanitize: A flush with a mild bleach solution (or hydrogen peroxide, which leaves less taste) often clears up bacterial film or buildup. Rinse and refill.
4. Keep it in use: Heaters that sit unused are much more likely to smell than ones cycled regularly.

But ...

My hunch, here, is that you are not pre-filtering water that you put into your FW tank. Many people don't and they do just fine. We always do because we fill up all sorts of places and generally don't have a good idea about the quality of the water other than some reasonable expectations that it is potable. If you bring in untreated water, and the water is particularly hard, soft, or otherwise "enhanced", the water heater is a likely victim, eventually.

I wouldn't write the tank off, just yet. Yes, there is a good chance it is on its last few years, but it is not necessarily down for the count.

 

[Tally Ho]

I drain my tank annually by opening the drain cock and sticking the hose out of one of my scupper drain thru hulls (Mine exit above the water line). Then I use an air compressor with a blow gun attachment, and I blow compressed air into the potable water system via the line from the water tank. This helps push the water out. Alternately, I open the T&P valve on the water heater to let it vent (but it does more slowly). My water tank has a very small drain cock.

I bypass the water heater at the end of the season once it is drained, so I don’t introduce pink AF into the water heater.

In the spring, I undo the bypass, and commision the potable water system as usual. This includes a splash of 2 of bleach in my 30 gallon water tank.

I have had skanky water (both in the water tank, and especially from the water heater)…and I do believe is primarily from the water getting stale from not being used.

I would drain the fresh water tank and refill, then run the hot water (doesn’t need to be hot) to circulate the old water out of the water heater.

i removed one of my 30 gallon water tanks because it was not getting used enough, and in the hot summer, the water would get skanky. I now turn over and have to refill the lone30 gallon tank enough that it didnt get skanky this summer.

Greg