I installed the brass fitting and valve this afternoon. It went on just fine, no cross-threading. I didn't pressure test it however, because the trailer is winterized.

 

Is this the same drain plug that should contain the anode rod? I pull the anode rod every fall when winterizing and replace it with a brass pipe fitting I found at ACE Hardware. 1\2" Iron pipe size if I remember correctly.

 

The Atwood water heater that I have does not use an anode rod. Which may explain why I have so much crud that accumulates in the screen of my kitchen faucet. The flow was down to almost nothing, which initially made me think I had a frozen water line inside the trailer (the bathroom sink worked fine).

 

Here i was mentally following along thinking yours had an annode plug like mine at the drain.

 

The Atwood water heaters are aluminum inside and don't require an anode rod like the Suburban water heaters do.

Regular flushing of the water heater will remove a lot of the lime scale. I drain mine after each trip and you wouldn't believe the crud that comes out.

There's a lot of chatter on the RV Forums about mating dissimilar metals such as brass/aluminum together causing undue corrosion. Also the smaller valve will not allow the "crud" to escape as efficiently.

 

I haven't been draining mine often enough. When I de-winterize it I'll flush and de-scale it.

 

I tried that cheap Camco plug/valve and threw it away.... plugged up real quick and wouldn't drain the tank.

 

I have a similar one of these in my outback (the difference being mine has an Annode rod), and have for the last 4 years. No issues on my end, I love that it drains really easily.

I dont live in an area with hard water, our water is generally really good.