What product do members use to descale their water heaters. We have soft water so it's not something I normally do. But we go to sites with hard water so I suppose it could clog up
It really depends on how much you use your water heater. I use mine for over 6 months a year, often in hard water areas so I do descale every couple of years and a lot of cr*p does come out of the system after a good soak. I've used both white wine vinegar and Truma descaler and they both work. I have a feeling that limescale could be a good breeding ground for bacteria when the system is not being used and that combined with loss of efficiency and volume are the main reasons I descale. It's your choice and someone will always tell you that they know better.
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I use white vinegar or citric acid, I do it once a year before sterilising with Puriclean (I sterilise a couple of times a year), mine will be done tomorrow if its not raining too bad, thanks for the reminder
I get white vinegar for about £1.50 a gallon, or citric acid (duno the cost) from wilco, its used for descaling household irons.
truma recommend white wine vinegar....I have done ours regularly over the years as we visit hard water areas in Northumberland ...but despite this the scale finally ate the electric element in the water heater..so it was replaced last May ...Once removed I was amazed just how thick the scale had but up not only on the element but also in the base of the water tank itself ( its like large sealed kettle )
At the end of this years use and when the van goes back into the garage I will remove the element and give the water tank a good old scrape out and refit the element but need to source a replacement gasket first .
PS - Dont be tempted to use kettle de-scalers or Milton fluid / bleach type aggressive cleaners as they an damage the stainless steel water tank.
Quote: Originally posted by Paul_B on 24/7/2020
I use white vinegar or citric acid, I do it once a year before sterilising with Puriclean (I sterilise a couple of times a year), mine will be done tomorrow if its not raining too bad, thanks for the reminder
I get white vinegar for about £1.50 a gallon, or citric acid (duno the cost) from wilco, its used for descaling household irons.
can you let me know where you get the cheap white wine vinegar ( gallon ) as I can only find small bottles of Aldi cheap white wine vinegar at £1 each
I descaled my previous caravan's hot water tank with a product by Truma called Aquastar 1+2. When I flushed out the system afterwards I removed the filters on the end of the hot and cold water taps first to allow any bits to flow through and amazingly there were a few bits of green limescale that were evident in the washbasin. The product is not cheap to buy but in my view it did the job as required. If it's a product by a well known brand in the caravan industry you can rest assured it's safe and effective to use.
Its white vinegar not white wine vinegar that I use and I buy mine from a wholesale supplier, just check the acidity content of the vinegar and mix with water accordingly.
Its also good for cleaning the washing machine as well as softening towels.
Citric acid is also available from brewing supplies and chemists etc