Water Heater Question

[alexsbuddy]

It will probably be several weeks to a month in between camping trips and I was curious if I should empty the hot water heater in between trips. On one hand it is reassuring to know that it is filled with water in case the breaker gets accidently turned on (I keep the trailer plugged in at home). On the other hand I worry that the water may go stagnant and cause an issue with the heater. Any thoughts or opinions?

[Festus2]

This topic was recently discussed in another thread. It seemed that some folks drain after each trip while others, like myself, do not. You do raise a legitimate concern about the accidental turning on of the HW tank if it is empty but you can avoid doing that by turning the switch at the tank OFF and inserting the cotter pin or pull the fuse.

Another option is to use the HW tank occasionally and run some water through it so that the water in the tank is partially being replenished over a period of time.

If you knew that the water at your last campsite was heavy in mineral content, it might be a good idea to drain that out of the tank.

I just leave mine sitting and haven't had any issues with the tank.

[GaryWT]

It is one of those things that you are not wrong either way. If you leave water in it to protect it, just flush it before you use it if you want. Mine generally does not sit for more than a weekend so I don't worry about it.