Is there any? Should it be drained every so often? Tell me what yall know.

I have never done a thing

Do you have hard water?

https://www.bhg.com/preventive-maintenance-on-a-hot-water-heater-8675833

That was a good question for you Rescue. I had never really thought about water heater maint.
never heard of anyone doing it.

You know someone is going to ask you if it is a hot water heater or a water heater … so I won’t. (j/k)

I don’t drain mine or do any other maintenance.

Some systems are an actual hot water heater. And they require ghastly amounts of maintenance. And I hope to NEVER have to work on (or even deal with) them the rest of my years.

I've replaced mine twice in 30 years. If you have excess calcium in your water drain them once a year.

Yes. It should be drained yearly and the “rod” that is in it should be checked every six months. As BB said, it mostly depends on your water “makeup.” Routine maintenance is pretty much key to everything.

Drain every few years- the most important things that never happen are checking replacing the anode and having a properly set expansion tank

If you saw the funk that builds up in a wh it would surprise you, its nasty stuff

Nothing to do in our for preventive maintenance for a Water heater. Waste of time to drain it or change the anode rod.

Check your anode rod every couple of years. If it's badly corroded (eaten away), replace it.

Drain your heater every couple of years and flush out any scale build-up.

A plumber I know said don't bother. He said the best bet is to buy a good unit and carry on. FWIW it is not a hot water heater. It is a water heater that puts out hot water.

Dave-O, I agree with you 100% and so glad to be retired now.
Being I was a little guy I got to go with the State Boiler Inspector and climb through that little 12" x16" Oval Manway to get into the Steam Drum. Then we would head to the bottom floor and into the Mud Drum we would go.
I have spent many an hour on a rolling gun resealing the tubes coming into the steam drum.

As for home water heaters, I have a 1 Year reminder in my phones calendar to remind me to drain both of ours. I usually get around 12 to 13 years on them. I really need to start replacing the anodes on a regular basis.

There are water heater things to do. We are on well water, and on occasion it’ll get skunky smelling. You can introduce a bleach mixture into the system to remove that odor, but it’s better to replace the anode with the proper one for your water quality. A couple of years ago I decided to again bleach our guest house water heater and system. That required removal of the anode, which is where the bleach mixture is introduced. I found there was no longer an anode. Totally eaten away or dissolved. If you find that has happened to your anode, all the dissolved garp is laying in the bottom of the water heater. Attach a hose and drain some of the water and garp. Then put in a fresh anode, and be sure it’s a segmented one.

If you are on city water, you won’t likely have the problem.

When your water heater is first used, it is a water heater. After that, it’s full of hot water and becomes a Hot Water Heater. That’s my take on it, but I am a ‘beans in chili’ guy.