On Jun 10, 10:37 am, dpb wrote:
wrote:

...

And I guess that's the real question. How much longer will one get
from a tank if they do check and replace the anode when it's needed?
It would seem to make sense to me too. I started doing it on my
current water heater which is about 6-7 years old now. The original
anode is about 1/2 gone now. While it seems to make sense and I've
seen lots of opinions, I haven't actually seen any tests or studies
done. Has anyone else?

Far too many variables to be able to do any meaningful tests --
differences in tanks, anode design, water, usage, etc., etc., etc., ...

Best one could do would be a test under a given set of controlled
conditions for a given tank design, but that would have virtually no
value outside that test environment...

--


If that were the case, then no one would be able to test and evaluate
much of anything. Yet tests are routinely done on a wide variety of
products, aren't they? Consumer Reports, for example, tests
everything from dish washers to paint. And all those depend on a
multitude of factors that can vary widely.

If some simple tests showed that anode monitoring and replacement made
a substantial difference in longevity in a few different tanks and
environments, that would be a lot more substantial that it does work,
as opposed to peoples opinions.