Don’t be a rotten egg: Flush your water tank in a few easy steps

Sulfur from the well had corroded the heating element inside this customer’s water heater. If you are experiencing this type of “rotten egg” odor when you use hot water, there are some steps you can take that may help keep you from needed a replacement.

1. You can have a professional replace the anode inside the tank. This is located on top of the water heater and is attached to a plug. The service professional will turn off the water, release the pressure, unscrew the anode and replace it with the new one. You should not simply have the anode taken out without a replacement, however, because this will decrease its lifespan.
2. You can also flush the water heater and disinfect it with a chlorine bleach solution. If done properly, this will kill the bacteria that are causing the odor. If it is not done properly, however, the problem will soon return.
3. Try increasing the temperature of your water to 160 degrees for seven or eight hours to destroy the bacteria. Then, flush the tank to remove the dead bacteria.

Call Jones today and we can either walk you through the steps of flushing your tank or send someone out to do it for you.