BH 3260 elite water heater ON-OFF switch??

[etcmss]

i took my elite out of winter mode and when installing the water heater anode rod I found an ON-OOF switch inside the cover left side and don't know what it's for. anyone know its purpose? don't want to guess but maybe electric heater control. ours is a 12 gallon unit. (just took delivery and haven't used the hot water part yet.)
Gary

 

[Harry1]

Needs to turned on if you want to run on electric. This is the secondary 110 volt switch that needs to be on if your running from shore power and running your water heater on electric.

 

[danemayer]

Suburban puts a 2nd switch in the 110V path to the heating element so that you can protect the element against accidental burnout when the tank is empty.

After you drain the tank to winterize, if someone turns on the inside switch, and the outside switch is also on, you'll burn out the heating element very quickly. So when you winterize, it's a good practice to turn off the outside switch. After you refill the tank, then you turn that switch back on.

 

[JanAndBill]

FYI: make sure your water heater tank is full before you turn on the electric. Winterized mine this spring and forgot to turn the bypass valve back, so water didn't go into the tank. Turned on the electric and the element was gone in just a short time.