We leave our rig connected from Mar-Nov, keep the filters changed and the anode rod looks good every Nov when we close up. I change mine when I open in Mar, mostly for piece of mind. The minimal cost and ease of swapping it out outweigh waiting until you need one.
25% used in about five month. We are using the original anode. The new one that we will install when old one is gone is magnesium. Wears out faster but saves washer/dishwasher etc more.
We are full timers two persons and are using a separate water softener.
We are "half-timers", found that the anode was mostly gone when I took it out in the spring, once a year is our schedule. Maybe the water in the south west US is resulting in more of it disappearing??
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2013 Redwood 36RL, 2011 F-450, Sat Internet, Sat TV
I have a whole house RO system which I believe will cause the anode to rot sooner as RO water tends to be acidic. That being said we replaced ours at 10 months and probably could've gotten another 3-6 months out of it if we punched it. We fulltime.
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2014 Redwood 38BR, Fulltiming
2013 Ford F-350 CCSB 6.7L 4x4 SRW, B&W Companion Hitch, Air Bags
We've lived full time in ours for 8 months.
After a while in the carolinas, we developed a rotten egg smell in the hot water that went Gents
We recently had a traveler installed on our 36RL. The wiring from the factory was poop so the unit was installed over the bedroom at the front of our unit.
We found a working cable running from the bedroom to the living area.
The satellite controller was installed in the cabinet in the bedroom, the signal cable was connected to the living area using the prewired cable provided by RW.
The wires were run up through the roof in the cabinet of the bedroom and the dish was installed at the front of the trailer.
We went with the Direct TV package and they provided the main receiver and two clients at no cost to us in exchange for a two year commitment. No additional wiring was required and the set in the bedroom, as well as the one outside work wirelessly with the clients. The pictures are excellent.
We chose to have the dish placed in a new location because the pre-installed cable was not the right one (length and number of conductors) and the coax cables going through the roof were rusting and appeared to be a potential for problems in the future.
We are happy with the install and the new addition folds down so that it did not add any additional height to the RW.
I would suggest that you check out the cables before you commit to a purchase of a satellite system. Remember, most of the carry out units have a total cable length requirement to work properly. That's usually 50 feet and includes the total of the cable supplied, and the wiring already installed in your trailer. You may find that the cable running from point A to point B has no function or is broken somehow.
Good luck!