Inside Edge Home Inspections
  • Home
  • Services
  • Mike's Blog
  • Our Story
  • Credentials
    • Guarantees
  • Contact Information
  • What to Expect
    • Sample Report
  • Privacy Policy
Home Inspector Blog

Michael Burfitt

​Internachi certified professional inspector
Halifax, nova scotia

In (Anode) Rod We Trust

9/13/2021

Comments

 
As both an entrepreneur and a holder of a bachelor’s degree in Commerce, I like to view hiring an independent home inspector as a financial investment with a great return: our (low) upfront fees will usually save you significant amounts of money on home maintenance down the road. I know in my own home I have saved thousands in maintenance costs over the years with my understanding of complex building systems. Today I want to show you how, for about $40 and a decent breaker bar or torque wrench (or better yet a plumber!), you can significantly increase the life of your water heater, even more so if you live outside of an area supplied by Halifax Water that has hard water.
Picture
​This is an anode rod, sometimes known as a sacrificial anode and is the key to extending the life of your tank. As the name implies, it sacrifices itself to take most of the corrosion away from the tank liner. Without getting into the boring science of electron flow, both magnesium and aluminum lose electrons (i.e., corrode, rust) much faster than ferrous metals such as steel, which is what most tanks are constructed of. These should be checked every year after 3 years and replaced as needed. At approximately $40, it is a lot cheaper and easier to replace than a tank: replacing ours on short notice cost us a total of $1300 just 3 days after moving into our home, not including spending our very first weekend cleaning up the mess and dealing with no hot water for the entire day.

Another way to keep your tank running well into the future is to flush it once a year: simply hook up a garden hose and turn the tap after shutting off both the power and water supply to clear impurities that have settled and cause significant rust. As I have mentioned before, a burst water tank is a deeply unpleasant experience that can be minimized with regular maintenance. Be sure to read the manuals for all your home’s equipment and appliances: there are valuable tips that can both extend the life of and improve efficiency of your home’s components.
​
A home inspector will also look for other important safety features, such as a temperature/pressure relief valve and tube. While catastrophic tank failures are obviously rare, water heaters have an incredible amount of stored energy, and a failed tank can be shot up through the roof and into a neighbour’s yard like a rocket. Regular home maintenance can help insure you will never meet them in this way!
Comments

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021

    Categories

    All
    AED
    AFCI
    Air Conditioning
    Aluminum
    Anode Rod
    Ants
    Arcs
    Asbestos
    Attic
    Balcony
    Brick
    Building Inspector
    Carbon Monoxide
    Children
    Chimney
    Circuit Breakers
    CO Detectors
    Communication
    Contractors
    Cost
    Criticisms
    Current
    Deck
    Drains
    Drywall
    Eavestroughs
    EIFS
    Electrical
    ERV
    Exterior
    Failed Seals
    Female Inspectors
    Fiber Cement
    Fire Safety
    First Aid
    Flips
    Flooring
    Foundation
    Framing
    Fuses
    Garage
    GFCI
    Grow-Ops
    Heating
    Heat Pumps
    HGTV
    Hoarding
    HRV
    Humidity
    HVAC
    Ice Dams
    ICF
    Infrared
    Insulation
    Ionization
    Joe Mazza
    Kitchen
    Kitec
    Knob & Tube
    Lead
    Manufactured Houses
    Marijuana
    Masonry
    Meth
    Mike Holmes
    Mini Homes
    Misconceptions
    Mobile Homes
    Moisture
    Mold
    Newcomers
    Oil Tanks
    Open Concept
    Orangeburg
    Personal Decor
    Pests
    Photoelectric
    Plumbing
    Polybutylene
    Pressure
    Price
    Psychrometrics
    Radon
    Rain Gutters
    Real Estate Agents
    Regulations
    Resistance
    Roofing
    Safety
    Septic
    Sewer
    Sewer Scopes
    Sheds
    Shipping Containers
    Siding
    Smoke Detectors
    Staircases
    Stove
    Structure
    Stucco
    Temperature
    Termites
    Trailer Parks
    Trees
    Value
    Ventilation
    Vinyl
    Voltage
    Walls
    Wasps
    Water Heater
    WDOs
    Windows
    Wiring
    Wood

    RSS Feed

Picture
Inside Edge Home Inspections Ltd. 
Halifax, NS
(902) 209-9921
info@ieinspections.ca
Proudly Serving the HRM & Surrounding Areas
Picture
  • Home
  • Services
  • Mike's Blog
  • Our Story
  • Credentials
    • Guarantees
  • Contact Information
  • What to Expect
    • Sample Report
  • Privacy Policy