We put a new water heater in our farm house in October. A few weeks after installation we started getting rotten-egg smelling water. We changed the anode rod to what we believed to be an aluminum anode rod. Water was good for a few days then started smelling again. We just took that rod out of the water heater and it is black. The first anode rod had white stuff and pits in it. How can we solve this problem?

Hey hey VRY...

Do you havew a water softener system in place... if so, that is probably compounding issues for you... let me know.

Check out this link... may help you:

Smelly water: What to do when the hot water heater stinks like rotten eggs

Pop back if you have any questions... OK?

MARK

We do have a water softener in place. The previous water heater was over 30 years old and everything else about the water system is the same. Why would the anode rod be black? Thanks for the above site though. I think I will look into an aluminum/zinc rod and possibly try the hydrogen peroxide bit. What about putting stuff into the water softener such as iron out?

Reread that entire page I posted... addresses the water softener issue.

First, try the hydrogen peroxide.

If that doesn't work then the POWERED ANODE ROD they talk about at the above link may be right for you... especially since you have a water softener system. It is very expensive... either use this rod or, at the price offered you may want to eliminate the rod entirely, although it will cut the life of the heater in half! Try the peroxide first...

Keep me posted.

MARK

We also have problems with smelly hot water. I tried the peroxide thing, but it did very little in our case, though it might do the trick for you. Far more effective for us has been the use of bleach. Turn off the power, drain out a few cups, then add a cup of bleach through the PRV valve opening. Let it sit an hour or so, then run hot water through all of your hot water faucets, washing machine, and so forth. Run hot water until it becomes cold. That shows you have pretty much emptied the bleached water out of the water heater. Turn the power back on, and see what you have. Works for us, at least for a few months, at which point I get to do it again. (<:

If you try changing the anode and get good results, please post that. I might try it myself if it works for you.

Are you on well water?

I live in a town that has, lets say, less than great water. If anyone installs an electric water heat the rotten egg smell is terrible. Everyone uses a gas water heater, with it there is no smell. I don't know why, that is just the way it is. Are you using an electric heater ? Our city mayor says the water does not cause the problem, I don't know, but that is our solution. Good luck.