I've read a whole bunch of info on draining and flushing a hot water tank, but I have to do mine about 3 times a year. I have a 40 Gal Whirlpool HW tank, and a Sears Water Softening system. Both of these are hooked up and working properly. My question is, what kind of deposits am I getting in the bottom of my HW tank that is keeping it from performing correctly? When I clean it out, you cannot see any deposits, but when you feel the water coming out of the garden hose, you feel crystals that are small, squarish, and are transparent. Are these Salt/Sodium that is building up inside my water tank and how do I prevent them from happening? OH, I am hooked up to a city water supply and (as far as I know) everything else is working properly.

Your water softner could be breaking down and allowing resin to escape into your heater. You could also try an inline whole house filter.

Is there a way to tell?. the debris I find in the water is clear, and gelatin like. I always thought that the "resin" in the water softeners was brown, and more sturdy.

Yes, most all resin is brownish, so the filter may be an option. Do any neighbors report a similar issue?

I'll have to ask a few of my neighbors... But I don't think any of them are experiencing this problem.

Worth asking to eliminate the city water as the problem. Some whole house filter are easy to install. I have installed several of these bought at Home Depot GE Household Water Filtration, Whole House Water Filter System (http://www.geappliances.com/products/water/household_filtration.htm)

I've asked a couple neighbors, and they don't have this kind of problem... any ideas??

Get a coffee fiter and catch some cold water from your garden spigot, see any particles?