On Dec 7, 4:59 pm, Doug Lassiter wrote:
see here for PM ideas...

http://waterheaterrescue.com/pages/W...gevity/water-h...

Ah. I hadn't seen *that* particular page in the "rescue" site.
Especially useful. But one must take pause with words like "Now the
fun begins. On some tanks, the hex head of the anode is exposed and in
sight, such as in this picture. On others, it's hidden sometimes under
a sheetmetal top that's foamed into place."

So WHY can't Whirlpool just tell me where it is???

As it turns out, now that I've climbed up to have a look on the far
side of the hot water closet, that plastic cap is glued down with some
white material. Not at all easy to get out, and certainly not obvious
what's underneath it, except for lot of that white stuff. There is
also (hadn't seen it before I climbed up to look) a sheet metal
section ~2x2 inch, of the top of the heater that has perf marks around
it. In principle, it looks like it could get pried up.

I may just have to call the Whirlpool help line, where I'm afraid I'll
get someone who doesn't have a clue about these anodes.

Doug

The best way to extend the life of the heater is to keep the
temperature control set as low as you can and still take a warm enough
shower.

Mark