Electric water heater for full timers

[areyes03]

I have a 2016 Hearland Bighorn. I have decided to live in it full time and was wondering if it is safe to keep the electrical water heater on full time since I am living in it now? Can anyone give any advice or suggestions, as this is new to me? Thank you!

 

[MTPockets]

We were full time for nearly five years.. water heater was on the entire time.

 

[danemayer]

You should be fine leaving it on electric all the time. But if it's a Suburban unit, at least once per year, you need to check the condition of the anode rod and replace as necessary. Atwood/Dometic water heaters don't use anode rods. You may want to check out our owner-written Water Heater Usage Guide and other guides in this folder.

 

[MTPockets]

We were full time for nearly five years.. water heater was on the entire time.

I should add, I drained & flushed the tank and replaced the anode rod at least once per year.

 

[JohnDar]

The frequency of changing the anode rod is largely dependent on the quality of the water source. The higher the mineral content, the more frequently the anode will need changing. But do inspect it at least annually. If your anode rod deteriorates relatively quickly, you might want to check the heater element for encrustation, as well. Keep a spare on hand, but if the element passes conductivity testing and is coated with a crust of mineral deposits, immerse it (don't cover the threaded end and connections) in white vinegar for a couple of days and the crud will come off. It can then be saved as the "spare."

 

[utelectrode]

It is ok to keep the full time of electrical.

 

[wdk450]

You have both a temperature thermostat and a backup overtemperature thermostat on both the AC power and 12 vdc propane control circuitry in the water heater. 2 regulating and 2 overprotection thermostats. You then have the outside (small back rocker switch) AC power switch on the heater, along with the inside wall AC power switch, along with a circuit breaker on the AC power source for the water heater. Lots of protection.

My annual water heater flush-out includes inspecting (and replacing if needed) the anode rod, inspecting and using a wire wheel to remove scale on the electric heating element, and using a water pressure flush-out tool to flush out all tank scale as thoroughly as possible.