Suburban Water heater

Disconnect your city water if it's connected. Otherwise open the hot water on a faucet to relieve pressure.

turn water off open faucets or drain water from your low point drains

Stand off to the side.

how does the pressure release valve work ?

am I supposed to open that ? does just air shoot out of there ?

Once you drop the pressure in the lines by shutting off the water supply and opening a hot or cold water tap, there should be no significant pressure in the water heater tank. Opening the pressure/temperature relief valve will let you check that the pressure has been removed, since nothing should come out of it if you did the other steps.

But the very best way is to just shut off the pumps, or the supply, let the taps drain out and shut them off, and do not open the safety valve on your water tank. Then take out the anode. Water will just gurgle out. Once you establish that, lift the tab on the safety relief valve and let it spray out at full volume. Helps clear any sediment in the tank.

In my humble opinion, the best way to remove the sediment (from the sacrificial anode rod) in a Suburban HWH is through the anode rod port with a jet stream of water from a garden hose stream concentrator (or your pressure washer) stuck in the anode rod port.

Better yet, get an Atwood HWH with no anode rod.

donn0128 wrote:
Stand off to the side.

That's my method.
With no water pressure I simply remove the anode and catch it in my hand.
After the water drains I stick a smaller piece of tubing into myshop vac's hose and seal it with one hand. The I stick the other end of the tube into the anode hole and suck out what ever debris is in the bottom.
Easy cheasy.

Get one of these.

jplante4 wrote:
Get one of these.

Do Not get one of these. It will not fit.