rainsoft system not using any salt

You have an obsolete Amazon Q softener and it sounds like it need all 5 O rings and
both shut off tabs replaced and lubed. I have never seen a manual for the board.

If you happen to be in NE Georgia I may be able to help you out.

the most common problem with not putting water into the brine tank is the poppet under the triguard not sealing properly and allowing the triguard to fill back up. if the triguard is full of water when it's not regenerating, then that's the problem. BTW, there are only 3 orings on the piston of the q2's. 5 seals on the newer composite heads

Joe,

There are 3 piston O rings and two tiny O rings on the brine injector.
The Tri-guard poppet is not the problem, old O rings are the problem.

I haven't run into a problem with the orings being the cause of the brine tank not filling. I have run into the orings being the cause of no brine draw. How can you say that what I said was not the problem? Do you know if his triguard is filling up in service mode? If it's not an "e" version, it doesn't have the brine draw before fill written into the program. The other problem that I've found is that the 1/4 gpm restrictor is clogged. If so it needs unplugged.
Joe

Don't forget about the shut off tabs that I mentioned earlier...

It's been my experience since 1988 that the O rings and shut off tabs are
the culprit so long as the valve motor is working and the pin is not sheared.

Check everything, but focus on the areas that I have mentioned.

maybe the brine tab, but it usually keeps filling the brine tank till it overflows. I don't know why you keep saying it's not the poppet and triguard ? please explain, I'd like to know.

Because it's not the poppet the Tri guard sits on.
All the poppet does is stop brine draw once the ball drops.

have to differ here, the ball stops the brine draw, the poppet stops the flow back up into the triguard, look at the manual that you wrote

are you that pissed at Rainsoft that you will actually give people incorrect info as to how to fix their systems?

The ball does both.
Water pressure pushes it up against the embedded O ring on the top of the Tri-guard.
Gravity drops the ball down on top of the tip of the poppet forcing it down, the poppet has it's own
tiny O ring that seals against the Tri-guard when it's up and releases the seal when it's forced down.

What is the extent of your experience with BrainSoft systems?

I realize I don't have the experience with Rainsoft that you do. Only 10 years, but , I do know that the ball doesn't hit the top of the poppet opening up the channel for a brine draw. The water flow through the injector creats a vacuum at the venturi drawing the poppet down and siphoning the water from the brine tank. On a q2, the poppet stops the flow of water back into the triguard.
The ball dropping creates a seal on the bottom of the triguard , with a little water, so that it doesn't keep sucking air. On the q2 version, the ball should remain at the bottom, on the AM series the ball should be at the top when the cycle is finnished. Q2 should have very little water in the brine tank and the am should have the brine tank ready for the next regen.

oh yeah, the ball shouldn't drop until the brine tank is empty, or as far down as the brine line is positioned.

Im sorry i did not reply i was looking in the wrong place for it.
what do the parts that you two are speaking of look like?
i decided to watch the system while it cycled. step 1 was about 10 minutes and no water came out of the hose. the clear plastic canister behind the control was a little over half full (or 2/5 empty if you look at things that way) before the time was up i decided to fill the tank myself to skip that cycle. when the next step started it did not take any water out; or any other steps, its still full.
I have switched the bypass until I can get it fixed.
i am in Michigan, any ideas of a repair service that will just fix it? I will not spend thousands of dollars that i do not have to replace a "lifetime guarantee" system. hey i saw the word "manual" in one of the replies, how does Mike get one? it would be much easier if I could know what the parts were and what they did.

I can email you an exploded view of the mechanical valve.
The piston, brine injector and shut off valves are the same for the AM & AQ.

I will point out the parts once you have the drawing in hand.

got the drawing, thanks!
so the o-rings are items 70,71 and74. can i use the drawing numbers as part numbers when i contact the dealer?
might i be able to get the parts from my plumber store?

it should be putting water into the brine tank on step one. it actually sounds like either the shear pin is sheared, or that the cam follower is cracked in half and not moving the piston . orings on the piston for both, is the cam follower still in one piece ? between the cams? silver looking thing that actually moves the piston? if so probably the shear pin needs replaced along with the orings on the piston

Joe, you seem to be pro-Rainsoft. i liked my system and would like to get it back to working order. when i calle the local service company they suggested i replace it. how do i get parts or a service person that will fix it? i am in Michigan.

call them back and tell them that you would be willing to pay for the service call, but that you can't see replacing it if it can be fixed. I't a lifetime warranty against defects, not gauranteed to never break. If the display is still lighting then "usually" the problem is in the moving parts, most of them covered under the warranty. If the display moves from one part of the cycle to the next, then my guess is the cam follower has cracked in half and is laying down between the cams. This is caused by the orings on the piston being stuck, same as the shear pin breaking. These parts are inexpensive and they should have the parts to fix it on a service call. Since you said "no water" running at any of the steps of the cycle, and "when the display moved to the next part" my bset guess is the cam follower and orings. I think that's what I read
Joe

All RainSoft controls built on brass valves became "defective" the same day BrainSoft made them obsolete.
Many of the repair parts are no longer in the distribution chain.

How does one apply a lifetime warranty against defects when the repair parts are no longer available?