SECTION 2
HOW YOUR WATER SOFTENER WORKS
2A. SOFT WATER SERVICE AND REGENERATION
SERVICE | REGENERATION |
When the softener is giving you soft water, it is called •Service". During service, hard water comes from the house main water pipe into the softener. Inside the softener resin tank is a bed made up of thousands of tiny, plastic resin beads (FIG. 4). As hard water passes through the bed, each bead attracts and holds the hardness minerals. This is called ion1exchanging. It is much like a magnet attracting and holding metals. Water without the hardness minerals (soft water) flows out of the softener and into the house soft water pipes.
After a period of time, the resin beads become coated with hardness minerals and they have to be cleaned. This cleaning is called regeneration or recharge. Regeneration is started at 2:00 a.m. by the electronic timer (see page 13). It takes place in
5 stages or cycles. These are:
1 | FILL | 4 | BACKWASH |
2 | BRINING | 5 | FAST RINSE |
3BRINE RINSE
FIG. 4 WATER FLOW THROUGH THE SOFTENER IN SERVICE
FILL: Salt, dissolved in water, is called brine. Brine is needed to clean the hardness minerals from the resin beads. To make the brine, water flows into the salt storage area during the fill stage as shown in FIG. 5. Fill cycle length depends on how much soft water making capacity you have used since the last regeneration. As you use more water, fill time increases so more brine is made. The greater amount of brine cleans more hardness minerals from the resin bed.
FIG. 5 WATER FLOW THROUGH THE
SOFTENER IN FILL
11
