Water Softeners and Air Filtration Systems - Water softener problem
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JudMc
02-22-05, 09:05 PM
We have a problem with our water softner. First, a description of the current problem: After recharging, the water is somewhere between completely hard and soft as it should be (i.e. it is doing some good, but not good enough). Then before it automatically recharges again, it seems to be completely hard. Now this is important: if I add a couple of gallons of water to the salt before a recharge, it is as soft as it should be.
It is a Sears Kenmore Genius+ and is 7 or 8 years old.
History: We got this house 2.5 years ago. After a few months, the softner wasn't working right. We cleaned out what seemed to be a salt bridge and a lot of sludge in the salt tank. It still didn't work. A repairman came out and replaced the little gasket, which was obviously falling apart. Then it seemed to work. Also, after this repair it started using a lot less salt than before. And before this repair, water was visible in the salt tank, but not after this repair. In addition, before the repair salt was piling up on the other end of the pipe that drains into a ditch. After the repair, the salt doesn't build up there.
Last summer after one of the hurricanes, our electricity was out for several
hours. Before that, the hardness setting would go up to 110, after the power outage it would only go up to 50. Before the outage, I had the hardness set at 70 or 75.
Somewhere along the line it got to where it wasn't giving really soft water (unless I added water to the salt), but I'm not sure when that occured. It certainly occured by last summer's power outage, but I don't know if it was before then.
I've checked the connections to the controler. I've opened the cap and checked the strainer.
What could be the problem, and can it be fixed?
PS: if it is only changing the controller or a part under the cap, I can do that. If it is much more involved than that, I doubt that I can do it myself. At this point, if there is a major repair/service call needed, I'm considering just buying a new one.
It is a Sears Kenmore Genius+ and is 7 or 8 years old.
History: We got this house 2.5 years ago. After a few months, the softner wasn't working right. We cleaned out what seemed to be a salt bridge and a lot of sludge in the salt tank. It still didn't work. A repairman came out and replaced the little gasket, which was obviously falling apart. Then it seemed to work. Also, after this repair it started using a lot less salt than before. And before this repair, water was visible in the salt tank, but not after this repair. In addition, before the repair salt was piling up on the other end of the pipe that drains into a ditch. After the repair, the salt doesn't build up there.
Last summer after one of the hurricanes, our electricity was out for several
hours. Before that, the hardness setting would go up to 110, after the power outage it would only go up to 50. Before the outage, I had the hardness set at 70 or 75.
Somewhere along the line it got to where it wasn't giving really soft water (unless I added water to the salt), but I'm not sure when that occured. It certainly occured by last summer's power outage, but I don't know if it was before then.
I've checked the connections to the controler. I've opened the cap and checked the strainer.
What could be the problem, and can it be fixed?
PS: if it is only changing the controller or a part under the cap, I can do that. If it is much more involved than that, I doubt that I can do it myself. At this point, if there is a major repair/service call needed, I'm considering just buying a new one.