Oooooh...another good thread.
My last unit a Lance TC had an Atwood with no anode rod, my present camper Palomino has a Suburban with an anode rod.
I drain mine prior to winterization and leave the anode rod out, all winter. In the spring, I flush the unit out with a spray nozzle and install a new anode and always a Suburban magnesium anode rod, never the cheaper Wally World aluminum rod. The purpose of the anode rod is to protect the tank from internal corrosion and that takes magnesium, not aluminum. Besides, the genuine rod is cheap. The HWH isn't cheap to replace. Some people use teflon pipe tape, I use copper Never-Sieze on the threads. Just my personal preference I guess.
