Water Softeners and Air Filtration Systems - Re-Activating my old water softener
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gianni
02-18-06, 11:53 AM
hello,
I have an old kenmore water softener (probably 10 yrs old) that was sitting disconnected in my basement while renovating my home over the past year. The softener was left filled with water during that time.
I did not have money to buy a new softener, so I asked my plumber to reconnect the existing one.
1 quick question; how do i clean it? I drained the water (which just looked a little cloudy and was pretty salty) and have left it air dry. Is that sufficient? Or, does it need to be disinfected?
Thanks!
I have an old kenmore water softener (probably 10 yrs old) that was sitting disconnected in my basement while renovating my home over the past year. The softener was left filled with water during that time.
I did not have money to buy a new softener, so I asked my plumber to reconnect the existing one.
1 quick question; how do i clean it? I drained the water (which just looked a little cloudy and was pretty salty) and have left it air dry. Is that sufficient? Or, does it need to be disinfected?
Thanks!
justalurker
02-18-06, 12:05 PM
If it were me here's what I'd do ...
Once there's water flowing through the softener check carefully for leaks since it's been sitting for so long.
Sanitize the water softener. You can Google "sanitizing water softener" and get specific directions.
After sanitizing the softener and cleaning out the brine tank put salt or potassium in the brine tank to cover the water. Regenerate the softener and then regenerate it again immediately. That should get the resin back up to capacity and you should be OK.
If you have iron in the water then you'll want to use some "iron-out" or equivalent to clean the resin.
For normal use you can cut down on the possibility of salt mushing or bridging if you have just enough salt to cover the water in the brine tank. Since it's a pain to clean out the brine tank in your softener the less you have to do it the happier you'll be.
Have your water tested and then you're good to go.
Once there's water flowing through the softener check carefully for leaks since it's been sitting for so long.
Sanitize the water softener. You can Google "sanitizing water softener" and get specific directions.
After sanitizing the softener and cleaning out the brine tank put salt or potassium in the brine tank to cover the water. Regenerate the softener and then regenerate it again immediately. That should get the resin back up to capacity and you should be OK.
If you have iron in the water then you'll want to use some "iron-out" or equivalent to clean the resin.
For normal use you can cut down on the possibility of salt mushing or bridging if you have just enough salt to cover the water in the brine tank. Since it's a pain to clean out the brine tank in your softener the less you have to do it the happier you'll be.
Have your water tested and then you're good to go.
Art with Rayne
02-18-06, 07:43 PM
gianni,
If the unit has been idle for for that long, use care in restarting the unit. As Steve mentioned, it's important to sanitize the unit. Monitor the cycles while the unit is regenerating. If you have a soft water bib off the unit, draw water after the two regenerations at that location to test it. If not, try from the next nearest faucet. Good luck out there.
Art
If the unit has been idle for for that long, use care in restarting the unit. As Steve mentioned, it's important to sanitize the unit. Monitor the cycles while the unit is regenerating. If you have a soft water bib off the unit, draw water after the two regenerations at that location to test it. If not, try from the next nearest faucet. Good luck out there.
Art