When doing rust removal via elctrolysis, large surface area of your sacrificial anode will make a HUGE difference in how your rig works. Sure you can use rebar, but there's another source that's lurking in your shed...
Fight the urge! Fight it! I know it's hard!! I can sense you looking around for metal items to cut up. With great cutting power come great responsibility. Cut wisely, plasma ninja! Haha!
Ha! I cut up an old satellite dish the other day to make some more anodes that would last longer than just a day. Burned the paint off with my HGP, which worked way better than I thought it would. I've used a couple so far and they last WAAAAY longer.