Glass Lined vs SS Lined Water Heater

[Rain Dog]

My Raritan just stopped working. I am 95% sure it was my fault.

I have been very impressed with their support. Their owners manual gave a clear and comprehensive diagnostic procedure. That told me what part I needed (heat element). They sent me a new one for $35.

Not 100% sure how old the heater is, but I think about 15 years old. When I took it apart everything looked good.

I was very impressed and will be buying from them in the future.

 

[FF]

Just a note for folks with "BIG" solar , or wind power.

After the batts are 110% and the freezer is -5F and your ice cream is rock hard the HW resistance elements can be fed your excess 12 or 24v.

Sure its slow to heat but it will keep the tank warm , for your next HW demand.

There are HW elements built to give much greater heat from low DC voltages , but only larger tanks ( home 240V) have places to install 2 heating elements that would allow a very simple operation.

12V HW elements come from off grid sources.

 

[sunchaser]

Just a note for folks with "BIG" solar , or wind power.

After the batts are 110% and the freezer is -5F and your ice cream is rock hard the HW resistance elements can be fed your excess 12 or 24v.

Sure its slow to heat but it will keep the tank warm , for your next HW demand.

There are HW elements built to give much greater heat from low DC voltages , but only larger tanks ( home 240V) have places to install 2 heating elements that would allow a very simple operation.

12V HW elements come from off grid sources.

My grounding "antenna"from two different voltage sources are tingling.

 

[Searios]

Solaris

Check out Solaris water tanks, they are copper lined which reduces / prevents bacterial growth, some have 2 heating elements (could be DC or AC) so they can easily use any excess power from solar or wind, no anodes required.

They are UK manufactured and sold under the Solaris name by MarineTec

 

[FF]

Its big and upright but the Rheem Marathon 30,40 or 50 gallon have a plastic liner with a forever warranty.
Two std sized heater elements , so mix and match could customize a unit.

The off grid folks sell dual wall heat exchangers that utilize the over pressure port for access.

Not cheap, but forever seldom is.

https://www.rheem.com/product/marat...ater-with-limited-lifetime-warranty-mr30245c/

 

[sdowney717]

From our 12 gallon Raritan: new, after 3 years and I waited too long.

I did that one time, bought a Camco anode. After a few years pulled it out and it looked like those pictures. But then I thought where is all that stuff going coming off the rod?
Well it drops down as white sludge in the bottom of the tank and sits there building up forever. And then I thought am I drinking that stuff? So I never put in another one. My WH is a 12 gallon Attwood and is 20 yrs old and not leaking yet.

 

[Gordon J]

If it just...

Its big and upright but the Rheem Marathon 30,40 or 50 gallon have a plastic liner with a forever warranty.
Two std sized heater elements , so mix and match could customize a unit.

The off grid folks sell dual wall heat exchangers that utilize the over pressure port for access.

Not cheap, but forever seldom is.

https://www.rheem.com/product/marat...ater-with-limited-lifetime-warranty-mr30245c/

If it just had fittings for the engine antifreeze, it would be perfect,,, of course we would fave to shave 20 inches off the top...

 

[Bkay]

Well it drops down as white sludge in the bottom of the tank and sits there building up forever. And then I thought am I drinking that stuff?

If you don't flush it out at regular intervals and you don't filter downstream, then you ARE drinking it, but only if you drink hot water. I figure I'm only using hot water for hand washing and showers, so I'm not overly concerned with it.

 

[sdowney717]

If you don't flush it out at regular intervals and you don't filter downstream, then you ARE drinking it, but only if you drink hot water. I figure I'm only using hot water for hand washing and showers, so I'm not overly concerned with it.

Not easy to flush, those round tanks lay on their sides. The drain wont drain all the water. I have removed mine from its square sheet metal and the insulation and seen how they fit.

I have read posts where people cut them open, and they get filled with white jelly like substance.

 

[STB]

I've seen a few references to anodized stainless steel in this thread and others about water heaters on the forum.

I am very far from a chemist or metallurgist. I don't really understand how a ferrous metal can be anodized. Or, why one wants to anodize stainless steel, if one can.

What is the anode oxide? I thought stainless steel worked by forming a very thin protective surface layer of chromium oxide which to my knowledge isnt an anode. And that, additionally, some grades of stainless are alloyed with a small amount of moly to strengthen the austenitic matrix, making oxidative corrosion dramatically harder.

The upshot being that stainless steel doesn't need a sacrificial coating and that as long as there is oxygen in the water and it isnt crazy acidic the oxide coating is self repairing until it pits badly enough to not get oxygen.

It would seem to me that anodizing stainless steel would require some plating or vapor coating of aluminum or magnesium or some other sacrificial metal to subsequently be chemically oxidized. Or something.

And, that sounds more expensive than a good stainless, the point of which I thought to be that it is protected by relatively inert and self-repairing chromium oxide and, beyond that has a strong, hard to oxidize matrix.

I known that if flow rates arent consistently high enough, as is probably the case in many boats, sulfur-reducing bacteria can get a foothold and speed corrosion of lower grades of stainless -- but I thought preventing this was the point of the moly in superaustenitic 316 stainless steel.

What am I missing?

Many thanks!

 

[HopCar]

Gkesden, I think people are confusing anodizing with galvanizing. You’re right, ferrous metals can’t be anodized.

I’ve never heard of either anodizing or galvanizing stainless steel.

 

[STB]

Hi HopCar,

Thanks!

And, ouch! Using galvanized (carbon) steel for a water tank sounds to me like it should carry a "Bad day coming soon" warning label

 

[sdowney717]

I've seen a few references to anodized stainless steel in this thread and others about water heaters on the forum.

I am very far from a chemist or metallurgist. I don't really understand how a ferrous metal can be anodized. Or, why one wants to anodize stainless steel, if one can.

What is the anode oxide? I thought stainless steel worked by forming a very thin protective surface layer of chromium oxide which to my knowledge isnt an anode. And that, additionally, some grades of stainless are alloyed with a small amount of moly to strengthen the austenitic matrix, making oxidative corrosion dramatically harder.

The upshot being that stainless steel doesn't need a sacrificial coating and that as long as there is oxygen in the water and it isnt crazy acidic the oxide coating is self repairing until it pits badly enough to not get oxygen.

It would seem to me that anodizing stainless steel would require some plating or vapor coating of aluminum or magnesium or some other sacrificial metal to subsequently be chemically oxidized. Or something.

And, that sounds more expensive than a good stainless, the point of which I thought to be that it is protected by relatively inert and self-repairing chromium oxide and, beyond that has a strong, hard to oxidize matrix.

I known that if flow rates arent consistently high enough, as is probably the case in many boats, sulfur-reducing bacteria can get a foothold and speed corrosion of lower grades of stainless -- but I thought preventing this was the point of the moly in superaustenitic 316 stainless steel.

What am I missing?

Many thanks!

Likely the SS water heaters are 304?
Duplex SS is the most corrosion proof SS that I recall reading about.
https://www.imoa.info/molybdenum-uses/molybdenum-grade-stainless-steels/duplex-stainless-steel.php

 

[STB]

304 should still be fine for drinking water vs salt water, I'd think, no? And, still can't be anodized (by normal means or with any benefit) right?

 

[DDW]

If you wish to extend the life of your water heater, install an anode and anually remove it, plug the opening, empty the tank, fill it with Ridlyme, let it soak for a day, and then thoroughly rince it out before filling the water heater. Eliminating lime scale will keep your water heater like new. Oh, you will want to replace the old anode with a new anode.

Or, buy an Isotemp with a 316 tank, install it, and forget it.

 

[FF]

"If it just had fittings for the engine antifreeze, it would be perfect}


,Added expense,

"The off grid folks sell dual wall heat exchangers that utilize the over pressure port for access."

One advantage to these units is they are super insulated , so hot water made today will still be warm days later.

Their claim is they loose 5 deg F in 24 hours , so a tank heated to 175F (engine fed) should be fine , although an Anti Scald (not tempering) valve should be in the system .