Freshwater Tank Smell

My two cents:

Using bleach to sanitize works, but the contact time depends on concentration. Bleach will corrode stainless steel, so I like to use an iodine based sanitizer. It is food grade, doesn't corrode, and has a contact time of 1 minute.
"B-T-F", which is manufactured by "National Chemicals Inc." of Winona, MN

Disclaimer: I do not currently own a boat. I brew beer, and I have used this product a bunch. Works for me, and I do not see why it wouldn't be a better choice for this application.
 
The usual amount of 5% Bleach is 1 teaspoon per 10 gallons of water or one oz per 60 gallons of water. I would disagree with routine use of higher amounts for routine water purification. The larger doses are appropiate for sanitizing--that is putting the chlorox into the water, allowing to stand for several hours, removing, and flushing the tank with fresh water several times.

I have been using this method for years, even with boats which have SS tanks with no problems. The key is the length of time.

Iodine has some advantages as a disenfectant, but I don't use it because, although, it appears safe for short and intermediate length use (3-6 months), but questions remain about its safety in long-term usage. It should not be used by persons with allergy to iodine, persons with active thyroid disease, or pregnant women.

Definately run the water out of the dock lines and hoses. We use a particulate filter at the point of filling up the boat's tanks. If we use a charcoal filter, we chlorinate the water. Otherwise we don't, unless it is suspicious. In that case we use a true sanitizing filter, which will filter out cysts. In our cruising boats we used a water maker to always have safe water.

We use a Brita filter for drinking water--that way the chlorine or other chemicals are mostly removed before ingestion.
 
Hydrogen Peroxide is an effervescent (bubbling) type of liquid when active and rapidly oxidizes organic material upon contact. However, it loses it's activity rapidly and the amount you would have to use to clean a 30 gallon tank thru filling would be unrealistic. If you could get enough in to give you the disinfectant action desired, the bubbles could cause problems in the pump. Also, strong oxidizing chemicals can damage flexible seals.

Bleach has oxidizing action to dissolve organic material and the Chlorine ions to provide prolonged antibacterial growth prevention
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As Dr. Bob warns, the repeat long exposure to high levels of bleach can damage metals. My experience with bleach in the TomCat tanks is that it gets neutralized pretty rapidly and you cannot detect any more than the chlorine in ordinary tap water at the tap. Bleach can actually sterilize a tank in a matter of minutes and prevent future growth of organisms with a fairly low level in the water.

We use Bleach in the dental office as an aid in performing root canal therapy in abscessed teeth. No only does bleach rapidly kill organisms, but it can also actuallly dissolve organic material rapidly. Bleach is cheaper than peroxide and less damaging to flexible seals. Peroxide has no residual anti-bacterial effect once the oxygen is released.

JOhn
 
Bleach is a very effective disinfectant and inexpensive, too!
Clorox states using less bleach per gallon of water than being discussed in this thread.

Q. Can Clorox® Regular-Bleach be used to disinfect water?

A. Yes. When boiling of water for 1 minute is not possible in an emergency situation, you can disinfect your drinking water with Clorox® Regular-Bleach as follows:

Remove suspended particles by filtering or letting particles settle to the bottom.
Pour off clear water into a clean container.
Add 8 drops of Clorox® Regular-Bleach (not scented or color-safe) to one gallon of water (2 drops to 1 quart). For cloudy water, use 16 drops per gallon of water (4 drops to 1 quart).
Allow the treated water to stand for 30 minutes. Water should have a slight bleach odor. If not, repeat and wait another 15 minutes. The treated water can then be made palatable by pouring it between clean containers several times.
 
Brent,

Yes, fairly clean water with little biologic material in it can be disinfected with such weak concentrations.

By the time your supply tank, lines and water heater stink, you have a pretty significant "biologic burden" (algae, bacteria, growing things) which cannot easily be "decanted" from the complicated plumbing system.

A brief periodic treatment with higher concentrations has worked well for decades for thousands of sea knowledgeable owners. The weaker concentrations can help maintain a tank/supply system after the mass bioburden has been cleared.

John
 
We expierienced the same problem with our 2006 25 CD. It was the hot water heater. If you don't use it and the water sits in the tank it develops the sulphur smell. If you aren't going to use it for extened periods of time you have to drain the tank.
 
A handy thing to have, which I have on my motorhome, is a water heater by-pass line and valve. You just turn the valve handle and no water goes into or out of the water tank. So, you drain it and bypass it if you don't need hot water.

You can buy the bypass kits at most RV suppliers and they are easy to install. If you want hot water, it only takes a second to just turn the valve.

You do have to be careful to lock or tape back the water heater electric or gas switch since you can burn the tank heater out by using the heater on an empty tank.

John
 
I flushed the the tank twice (using a new, dedicated hose) with a low level of Clorox over the weekend. I let the water stand in the system for 1-hour each time, and then I refilled the tank with a mix of fresh water and 2 teaspoons of Clorox. Seems to have worked so far. The water now has a slight chlorine smell, and I gather that's OK. I did not see access to an anode anywhere on the hot water heater (although I have not seen the manual for the unit, so it may be findable).
 
Brtent -
The water heater is a Seaward S-700. The documentation I have does not make any reference to the anode. I checked the Seaward website and found nothing there.
 
Yes. So far. I'm going to continue checking it regularly and will flush the system with Clorox as needed. Thanks again to everybody for the input.
 
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