NOTICE: Beginning July 10th, 2008, this message board service will no longer be active or available for use.

The RVer's Open Forum / TECHNICAL RV HELP / Bad Smelling Hot Water

Wayne User ID: 8513683	Jan 2nd 9:23 AM I have a really bad smell from my hot water. I have to purify the system every time I go camping. Had water tested no problem. I drain the water from the heater when I get home. I have tried leaving water in heater. It makes not difference. It has no anode rod. Can any one help??
Mike Administrator	Jan 2nd 2:08 PM Wayne, The following information will give you some insight into your problem. *********************** From the Atwood service manual: FLUSHING YOUR WATER HEATER TO REMOVE UNPLEASANT ODOR Hydrogen Sulfide can result when the protective cladding on the interior of the tank is doing its' job by preventing corrosion and therefore premature tank failure. The electro galvanic action of the cladding material releases hydrogen from the water. If sulfur or any of its' combinations are present in the water the two will combine and produce hydrogen sulfide. This compound produces the "rotten egg odor". Hydrogen sulfide can also be present in your fresh water supply. It is the product of the decay of animal matter and as little as 1 mg/liter can cause a perceptible odor. Smell the water before starting the flushing procedure. If your fresh water has "rotten egg" odor you will need to find another source of fresh water before flushing and refilling the entire water storage system. * See Flushing Instructions and use four parts vinegar mixed with two parts water to flush tank. * The Atwood water heater is designed for Recreational Vehicles. * If you use your vehicle frequently or for long periods of time, flushing the water heater several times a year will prolong the life of the storage tank. *********************** And here's the correct way to disinfect you fresh water holding and delivery system. Using more than the EPA recommended amount of chloring bleach is wasteful (it won't do any better job than the correct amount) and it will harm both rubber and plastic/poly pipes and parts. Also, leaving the chloring mixtrure in longer than the recommend amount of time is bad (for the reasons listed above). *********** The following is provided courtesy of Everpure, Inc. from their booklet "What Every RV Owner Should Know About Water". HOW CAN SLIME, ALGAE, OILY TASTES, ODORS, ETC. BE REMOVED FROM A USED WATER SYSTEM? First, the system must be cleaned to get rid of clinging materials and sediment. To remove clinging oils, films and slime, the entire water system should be flushed using 4 teaspoons of household detergent for every 10 gallons of water. The soapy water should be run at full force through all of the outlets in the vehicle. This means opening the taps in the shower, the lavatory and the sinks. The water tank is then refilled with clear water and the entire system rinsed by running the clear water through all outlets. Merely filling and draining the water tank alone will not do a through job. (NOTE: Be sure to remove any faucet aerators and the shower head during the cleaning procedure. They may be reinstalled before disinfecting if desired.) After the system is relatively clean, it can be disinfected. Six ounces (2/3 of a cup) of liquid chlorine bleach (Clorox, Purex, etc.) should be added for each 10 gallons of water the tank will hold. This makes a very strong (200 parts per million) disinfectant solution as suggested by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. By half filling the tank, then adding the bleach and finally filling the tank to the top, a thorough mixture of chlorine and water is assured. Every water outlet in the vehicle should be individually opened to allow the chlorine solution to run through it until the chlorine smell is noticeable. This procedure is repeated at one hour intervals until the chlorine smell is immediately noticeable. For badly contaminated water systems this procedure may have to be repeated many times, until the smell of the protective chlorine is evident whenever the water is running. Next, the water tank is filled with fresh water and the entire system and all the faucets flushed thoroughly until the chlorine smell is gone. *************** Mike
Wayne User ID: 8513683	Jan 3rd 4:18 PM Thanks for your Help. I had not use vinegar or the detergent before. I will do all of these suggestion and see what happens.
Kirk User ID: 8318753	Mar 14th 9:05 AM This is one of the best posts on this subject that I have seen. As a fulltimer, I have the need to do these things and while I did have some information on the subject, this is the most complete that I have yet seen in a post. I clipped it and saved it and I thank Mike for the great information! Good travelin!................Kirk URL: www.1tree.net/adventure/
Randy User ID: 9913923	Mar 28th 6:11 PM I agree, terrific information and wish I'd had it last Summer when we had all the horrible odor problem in our hot water system. I did a lot of searching but never came across that info. I finally got rid of the odor (I think) after several applications of clorox bleach solution and letting it sit in the system for more than 24hrs at a time. The last time the solution had an extremely high concentration of clorox in it so now after reading your post I am worried that I may have done damage to the system. I also did away with the anode as it was deteorating at an alarming rate and always coated with a clear or slightly opaque slime with the consistancy of fresh caulking. Any ideas? Randy
Mike Administrator	Sep 22nd 10:37 AM http://www.cdc.gov/elcosh/docs/d0400/d000435/d000435.html
Wayne Wilson User ID: 2846584	Oct 12th 11:12 AM I followed the directions. Worked very well. NO MORE BAD SMELL Thanks!!!