How to Remove a Bad Smell in an RV Water Heater

Water heaters may have an odor due to bacterial growth.

Bad smells in any water system typically come from bacteria. Some bacterial growth is harmless, while other bacteria may be hazardous to one's health. When you completely remove bacterial growth from your RV's water system, you should be rid of the bad smell, too. Once the system has been sanitized, you'll need to maintain it with periodic flushing and purification. Neither flushing or purification takes long to perform, and both should be part of a seasonal routine for your RV's water system.

Things You'll Need

• Garden hose
• Household chlorine bleach (non-scented)

Instructions

1. Connect the RV water system to a sanitary water source, using a garden hose. Turn the water on and pressurize the RV water system.

2. Access the water heater controls and increase the water temperature to 140 degrees F. The higher-temperature water will kill all forms of bacteria inside the water heater tank. Leave the temperature elevated for a few hours.

3. Turn the water heater off. Connect another garden hose to the lower drain spigot on the water heater tank. Run the garden hose to an area that will not be damaged by the hot water. Open the lower drain spigot valve and flush the hot water from the tank.

4. Close the lower water heater drain valve once the water is cold to the touch. Remove all pressure from the water system. Add 1/2 gallon of household chlorine bleach to the water system's main water tank. Consult the RV manufacturer's operational instructions for access to the main tank.

5. Pressurize the water system. Open all water faucets in the RV. Run the water until a strong scent of bleach is coming from the faucets. Close the faucets. Let the bleach sit in the plumbing system for at least 12 hours.

6. Flush the water system with clean sanitary water. Open the lower drain spigot on the water heater and flush it. Run water through the system until all odor of bleach has been removed.

Tips & Warnings

• Ensure that the hot water relief valve is in good working order and is connected to an outdoor pipe for the emergency release of high-pressure hot water.

• Change out the magnesium corrosion-prevention rod with an aluminum rod. This may entail removing the water heater from the RV in order to perform the replacement. Consult the manufacturer's operational and maintenance instructions for this process.

References

• Ohio State University: Hydrogen Sulfide in Drinking Water
• North Dakota State University: Chlorination