Replace Water Heater Anode - PEP BB plumbing.sand.tiny.replaceanode

Just in time apparently...

My badge bit submission for replacing a water heater anode. This is for the RV trailer that we currently live in full time while seeking land.

Changing the anode rod on the water heater at our new house.  Our water was a little smelly when we turned the temperature down for child safety so this is the Zinc Aluminum type.

Also I didn't know if it would be the linked version or the solid bar version, so I had the saws on hand to do some cutting.  Luckily I didn't have to use them.

There are more pics here from my drain job if needed: https://permies.com/p/1291100

I finally got around to doing this job today.  Some learnings:

1.  Only drain a bit of water out of the water heater so its weight help resist your torque as you loosen the anode rod.
2.  Drain a bit more water out than you think.  When I put in the new (slightly bigger) rod, it pushed some water up out of the hole and made a mess.
3.  My new anode rod was 4" longer so I cut it off with a hacksaw in case it would be too long and be a pain in my backside.
4.  The anode rod was hidden below a cap on the water heater and then 3-4" of foam.  I had to cut out the foam with a steak knife.  I made a nice cylinder out of it so I could drop it back in afterwards.
5.  After 7 years of use, the anode rod was probably 75-80% still intact (surprisingly).  So I guess this next one may go 15 years before I change it.

Here is my anode replacement video.
My gas water heater was installed in 2012 so it was overdue!
So glad we were able to get this done.