Dark particles from hot water heater

Cant say for sure if this is it but at my work we have had a problem with a black gunk on the hot side. I called the water company they came out and tested to make sure but they said "yeah it is normal and well within the water specs" Turns out it is some sort of a benign bacteria that is in the water, and that it proliferates in warm/hot water. The black stuff is actually dead bacteria. It is only seen or noticed in low flow/use applications. Where it has a chance to build up. Well regardless of what the water company tells you nobody wants to see black particles, chunks or grey water coming out of the hot side of the faucet. So I called a water place like culligan. They came out and shocked the entire system with bleach. Flushed it did that a couple times to kill whatever was in the lines and water heaters. Then they put in a tank that we put x amount of bleach in and then fill it with water and it injects it into the water line via a flow meter. The tank is probably 75 gallons or so and we add one gallon of bleach to it when low refill with water. Have not had a problem with it since. Obviously you are not going to put a large tank like that in your rv. However there may be some other way to chlorinate the incoming water or at least to chlorinate the heck out of the system and flush a couple times to kill what is already in there.
Again may not be your issue but might be worth a call to your local culligan or other water treatment companies in your area.

Bacteria can grow on your anode rod too. Scrub with a wire brush and then put it in the oven at 250f for an hour.

74vette wrote:
Noticed small dark particles in the hot side of the faucet. No particles on the cold side. Water is filtered before entering the trailer. Removed anode rod from water heater and flushed tank. Good for one day then the particles returned this morning. I have a steel tank in a 2007 Komfort travel trailer. Anode rod is in good condition. Any input is appreciated.

Thanks

I clean my hot water tank each year, now I travel a lot 4-7 months volunteering and mixed water every where. My method of cleaning is this, Allow 8 hours to do this, after cooling down drain the hot water system. Then One gallon of WHITE Vinegar pour into the tank and fill with water making sure the faucets are running a LITTLE and shut off.

Turn on the heat, and allow to cook for 2 hours. Let cool down enough to drain out the tank approximately 3 hours, BE CAREFUL.HOT water.

Then have a 3/8" copper or aluminum pipe( should have mentioned this) attached to a water hose. bend it to fit inside the drain and flush the heck out of the tank. You may want to remove the pressure relief valve also to flush from the top. Let all this gunk flush into a bucket and ,, if you think it needs it 2 times then do it. Also while you are doing this run all the faucets clear. and you may also buy a littl insurance , buy buying and installing a new pop off valve plus a new anode rod and seal.
Good luck.

Update on water. After a little investigation, I found that the only place the black particles showed up was from the kitchen faucet, not the bath, or outside shower or inside shower. 4 hours ago I turned the water heater off. Now I see very few particles from the kitchen faucet on the hot water side. I dismantled the faucet and found no problems. Crazy that the particles show up on the hot water side of the kitched when warm and not when cooled off. I will fire up the heater again and see if they return. As always, any help is appreciated.

Thanks

After water warmed up, the particles came back. Go figure.....

What does your water treatment specialist say about the return of these particles?

It could be algae grown inside the hot water lines, I've seen that on a boat before. It's only flaking off in hot water because the tubing warms up, and little pieces lose their grip on the walls of the tubing. Bleach did nothing for my algae, had to rip the tubing out and replace it. It may have killed some of it but it always came back.

It could be liner for your hot water tank failing. Get your water guy to come back with an inspection camera and take a look inside the tank.

Maybe just send the water off to a lab for analysis. We're just taking shots in the dark here.

Moved from Forum Technical Support

Get a tank cleaning wand from CW and take the drain plug out of the water heater off and
after running the hot water out and flush out any junk out of the tank.

After some sluthing, I have found the cause. I realized that this problem started when I replaced the pressure regulator for the water supply. As stated, the debris was not present with cold water or at any other faucet. The black debris was also not present with a low flow with the hot water. I removed the spray head from the supply hose and turned the water on full. Large amounts of black material came from the hose. I found that the hose connecting the faucet base to the spray head is comming apart. The extra pressure from the pressure regulator change started the breakdown of the hose. (the new pressure regulator changed the water pressure from 30 to 50 psi) New parts on the way.

74 vette

thank you for posting the solution. many folks post odd problems on these forums, and then disappear, we never hear what the cause or solution was

glad to hear it's something simple :)