Despite how disheartening this is, there are a few things you can do to help lengthen the life span of your tank.
- Store Chemicals Away from Tank
- Sediment
- High Water Pressure If you have extreme high water pressure you should call a plumber. Water pressure over 80 psi will not only raise the risk of tank failures, but also pipe and appliance damage.
House hold cleaners like bleach, ammonia and paint thinner all give off fumes. Even just a small amount mixing in the air reaching your tank's burner causes the fumes from the burner to become corrosive. This will definitely shorten the tank's life.
Fortunately, most new tanks are equipped with safety measures to prevent fumes from coming in contact with the burner's area. Despite this, it doesn't hurt to store caustic chemicals away from your tank.
Sediment mostly occurs in hard water areas. When the hard water is heated sediment is created.
Flushing out a tank will wash out most of the sediment. Unfortunately, hot water tanks are designed with a dome bottom, so it is not possible to flush out all the sediment.
Some people swear that a bent dip tube (the tube that puts cold water on the bottom of the tank) will swirl water around the bottom of the tank, thus flushing out all the hard to reach places. I have never witnessed a bent dip tube, so I can't speak to their effectiveness.
A licensed plumber will be able to place a gauge on your t and determine the water pressure of your plumbing system.
If it is too high they will be able to help you decide if a pressure-reduction valve or an expansion tank will help relieve extreme high pressure problems.