Cleaning Atwood water heater, can I just use gravity fill to pour vinegar in?

[Seacrazy]

Does anyone just use gravity fill to add the 5 gal vinegar followed by 5 gal of water ? And run pump?

My winterizer kit is not allowing me to pump into water tank, and pressure relief valve not easy to remove. So would be super easy to use gravity fill.

Any problem doing this way?

Jim
2001 Journey 36DL

[Morich]

I see nothing basic wrong with what you propose as all the parts of the water system as up to having vinegar run through, but assuming the main point is to remove any hard water deposits in the heater, the vinegar will have less effect if diluted.

So a s devil's advocate, I might propose a different way to consider but it requires some questions.

Does the pressure relief valve have a threaded outlet, so that one might connect a hose or tube there without a lot of trouble?
If true, would it work to get vinegar more directly into the heater if you connect a hose there, open the relief valve to let you pour vinegar into the hose and run into the heater.
I'm thinking of how we add chlorine by pouring it through a funnel into a hose and then
Letting it run into the fresh water tank.

Any number of things might blow this plan but the advantage would be that you could fill the tank by closing the bypass valves and get it filled with much stronger vinegar?

Use or reject as seems right!

[Ray,IN]

Originally Posted by Morich

I see nothing basic wrong with what you propose as all the parts of the water system as up to having vinegar run through, but assuming the main point is to remove any hard water deposits in the heater, the vinegar will have less effect if diluted.

So a s devil's advocate, I might propose a different way to consider but it requires some questions.

Does the pressure relief valve have a threaded outlet, so that one might connect a hose or tube there without a lot of trouble?
If true, would it work to get vinegar more directly into the heater if you connect a hose there, open the relief valve to let you pour vinegar into the hose and run into the heater.
I'm thinking of how we add chlorine by pouring it through a funnel into a hose and then
Letting it run into the fresh water tank.

Any number of things might blow this plan but the advantage would be that you could fill the tank by closing the bypass valves and get it filled with much stronger vinegar?

Use or reject as seems right!

Atwood says to use 2 part white vinegar 1 part water solution. Using the winterizing bypass connection fills the entire plumbing system less fresh water tank and will require additional solution.