Our last trip was in June. Yesterday we drove to San Diego and set up camp for a two week stay. We ran the water and kept getting an odor that we thought was coming from our gray tanks. Closer inspection found the smell coming out of the water faucets. Never had any smells before this.
Looked up possible causes and found something about a bacteria and issues arising from the anode in the water heater.
What I did was, while hooked up to city water, get the water in the water heater hot and then turn the heater off. Next came a flush of the system by letting the water run in the faucets until the water cooled. The hot water tank was then drained and the anode replaced (it was new last Jan). A new city water filter was installed for good measure.
This procedure got rid of the rotten eggs smell and got the water system back to normal. In the future I'll make sure I run fresh water through the lines during extended times of non-use of the trailer.
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2014 Voltage 3600
2013 Chevy 3500 CC DRW
2019 RZR 1000XP Trails and Rocks Edition
Glad you got it all out. Now time for me fun camping! Enjoy your trip and thanks for sharing your solution.
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Chris & Donna
2014 Voltage Epic 3990, 600AH LifeBlue, 1895W Solar, 3K Magnum w/AGS, 3X Micro-Air ES
2018 RAM 3500 Laramie Sport Crew Cab 6.7 Cummins, AISIN 4X4 DRW 4.10 Long Bed Dually
Our last trip was in June. Yesterday we drove to San Diego and set up camp for a two week stay. We ran the water and kept getting an odor that we thought was coming from our gray tanks. Closer inspection found the smell coming out of the water faucets. Never had any smells before this.
Glad you got it worked out also.
Question: did you drain the tank after your last use in June? If not, while the anode might've been a contributing factor, I'm betting that was the main cause of your issue. Of course, I've been known to be wrong before.
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Tom
2013 VOLTAGE 3200 (EPIC I & II)
2014 Ford F-450 PLATINUM
2018 BMW R1200GS RALLYE
I have the same problem at our Georgia home. Since we are not there for a month or two at a time and it's not an option for me to drain the hot water heater when we leave, I found the best thing was to run the hot water (while it is not powered on) for 20 minutes at a time once a week, that way the water can't get "stale". When it comes to the RV and it is in storage, I always drain the water.
Had same issue. I am convinced it was "stale" water from not draining the tank.
First thought was the anode. But to my surprise I dont have an anode being an aluminum tank. So I ran water to flush the tank and pipes. Also a cup of vinegar to disinfect everything. Vinegar will not harm you, in fact it is a good health drink.....
I have had to use this twice. It works great to clean out the water heater.
Water Heater Tank Rinser
Catalog Item # 49070
See the video and you can see what comes out. I was parked in Minnesota next to a just purchased used RV. He complained of the smell. We used my flusher and cleaned the hot water tank then flushed the lines by running the hot water. He cycled the heater back on and 20 minutes later was taking a hot shower with no odor. You won't believe the amount or size of the rocks that come out. Reasonable price for the tool. I now do it annually when getting the trailer ready.
Funny, the guy I helped in Minnesota had just taken delivery of his used RV from Arizona. It was his shakedown run as he had a drive away service deliver it to him. He was using the park facilities for showers. When we pulled the anode out it smelled so bad we had to walk of for a minute and rinse the concrete below before we could continue. His tank flushed out with big rocks and took us 3 times to get it all out. A simple flush of the lines and he was done. Now I do it at least once a year but sometimes a couple of times just to make sure.
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