Powered Anode Rod Vs Magnesium

If you lot own a water heater, at that place’second a good take chances y'all gave a magnesium anode rod installed inward the tank. But every bit the fourth dimension to supercede it gets closer as well as closer, you may start to wonder if it wouldn’t live better to go a novel powered anode rod. However, getting the incorrect anode rod is nigh every bit bad equally getting none at all.

Let’sec await into these ii unlike types of anodes together with compare how they run, how costly they are, as well as what type of water they volition go best inward.

Powered anode rods accommodate to unlike water types, then they are ideal for hard, softened, or smelly H2O. They have a long lifespan as well as call for minimal maintenance, merely they are quite pricy. Magnesium rods only terminal three-5 years, but they work great with softened H2O and tin add together wellness benefits to it.

How Do They Work?

Anode rods are metal rods that sit inside your H2O heater tank inward social club to protect it from ions inwards the H2O that would otherwise cause it to corrode.

Although both powered as well as magnesium anodes rods serve this role, they take solely dissimilar ways to reach it.

Powered Anode Rod

These rods depend on electrical electric current, which flows through them in addition to produces impulses that repel corrosive elements from accumulating on the lining of the water heater tank.

Anaerobic bacteria, which atomic number 82 to the rotten egg smell inwards your H2O, are killed past these electrical impulses likewise.

Magnesium Anode Rod

Magnesium anode rods are measure sacrificial rods. Magnesium is a less-noble metallic that corrodes easier than steel in addition to atomic number 26 (which make upwards H2O heater tanks). That means that in club to protect the water heater from corrosion, these rods degrade themselves.

The anaerobic bacteria in the H2O function the electrons produced by this metal corrosion to grade hydrogen sulfide gas, which is responsible for that distinct rotten egg odor.

Powered Anode Rods Have a Longer Lifespan

The average life span of a magnesium anode can reach from 3 to 5 years. Its lifespan naturally depends on the quality of H2O that the rod is used inwards. If the rod is used in hard H2O, it volition degrade much quicker than it would in soft H2O.

However, powered rods make not corrode at all in addition to tin terminal for longer than vi years, oft equally long every bit twenty years regardless of the character of the H2O.

Cost Comparison

Powered anode rods tin live quite pricey as they tend to price between $100 to $250. However, they will only ask to live replaced every and so often.

The price of their electricity consumption shouldn’t live also high either every bit they tend to use exclusively a pocket-sized amount of electric current. For example, Corro-Protec rods _{^{(amazon link)}} are said to purpose x kWh per yr on average, making their running cost less than $two per twelvemonth.

But of class, their free energy consumption will ultimately depend on the exact model of the rod as well as the hardness of the water.

Magnesium anode rods can reach betwixt $xxx and $75, they are toll-effective inwards the brusque term of things, just y'all would necessitate to supersede them virtually every 3 years. This adds upward.

Need to Factor inwards the Cost of Replacements

The replacement of either of these anode rods does non have to live pricey every bit it tin can live done by you, the consumer.

The trickiest function of replacing anode rods is removing them if they are seized (this alone happens with sacrificial anodes) or trying to maneuver them about the H2O tank, every bit those are often establish installed inwards pocket-sized spaces.

Should yous decide to have a professional supervene upon the rods, it tin can cost about $250 to $300. Yikes!

The replacement procedure together with the price of replacement make not differ too much for these 2 anodes. However, continue inwards listen that magnesium rods demand to live replaced every few years, so the money you volition pass on this task volition quickly add upward.

What Type of Water Do They Work Best In?

Hard H2O has a high concentration of minerals such every bit calcium, magnesium, bicarbonates, and sulfates. In comparing, soft H2O has real few concentrations of the mentioned minerals.

Hard or smelly H2O would benefit more from a powered anode rod.

Softened water volition do good from using the standard sacrificial magnesium anode rod. Water softeners release a lot of ions into the water. The highly reactive nature of magnesium way that these rods are able to go along upwards with the number of ions introduce inwards softened water. The other side of this is that they will degrade much faster.

Powered anode rods, on the other mitt, are designed to be able to accommodate to dissimilar water types, as well as and so they are well able to hold these more than challenging environments.

Table Summary

	Powered Anode Rod	Magnesium Anode Rod
Cost	Expensive, ordinarily $100-$250.	Cost-effective – $75 average price.
Maintenance	No maintenance.	Need to replace every three years.
Lifespan	half dozen to xx years.	three to five years.
Works for hard H2O	Yes.	No, not stiff plenty.
Works for softened H2O	Yes, recommended.	Yes.
Works for smelly/well water	Yes, it eliminates the odour.	No.