Rainsoft Problems

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Hey all-

I am very frustrated with my Rainsoft system at the moment.

It isn't using any salt at all and all of our dishes look like crap. I would actually venture to say that the water is harder now than BEFORE we even bought the stupid system. I've left two voice mail messages with our local dealer and had no response.

We are on well water. We've owned the system for a little over two years. We seem to have had problems with it since the beginning.

What can I do to troubleshoot the system myself? I'm a computer programmer, not a handyman! It isn't using any salt at all. What does that mean?

I really appreciate any advice or ideas you guys have!

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What control valve do you have? How old is the system? Can you post or email a clear picture of the control valve?

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Thanks H20-Man,

The system is just two years old. We're the original fools... uh, I meant owners who bought the system.

Here are a couple of pictures. Tell me if you need a picture of something else, I can try to squeeze back there a little further!

Thanks again, (p.s. sorry the pictures are so big...)

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OK, it's a Gold Series. It is not bypassed, so you need to look at the brass brine line fitting on the valve.
Gently unscrew and remove the brine line and then remove the second part of the brass fitting from the valve.
There is a flow regulator inside. It's a black rubber button with a tiny hole in the middle held in place by a white plastic sleeve.
Pull the sleeve out with needle nose pliers and clean the button.
Do this over a towel so that you don't loose ant dropped items. Reassemble and reinstall.

Check the brine line connection on the brine tank side. You can remove the float assembly and make sure it is clean.
The end of the line must be cut square and pushed all the way into the slip fitting.

Try what I've listed above and see what happens.

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Thanks again, H2O man.

I was able to clean out the flow control ring on the valve side of the brine line. However I am not quite sure the best way of disconnecting the brine line on the tank side, nor do I see how to pull out the float assembly. So hopefully it was the flow control ring. If not, I'll look at it again tomorrow night. I'm not sure if I'll have to wait for regeneration to see if that fixed anything, but I should be able to tell tomorrow morning either way.

Cheers!
Andrew

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There are a number of other causes for not using salt. Have you checked for a salt bridge, or are you using block salt?

Your control valve is probably a Fleck ProFlo/5000. If you don't have a manual go to
www.fleckcontrols.com and find the manual for it. In the back is a troubleshooting section.

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AndrewGerdel wrote:

Thanks again, H2O man.

I was able to clean out the flow control ring on the valve side of the brine line. However I am not quite sure the best way of disconnecting the brine line on the tank side, nor do I see how to pull out the float assembly. So hopefully it was the flow control ring.
If not, I'll look at it again tomorrow night. I'm not sure if I'll have to wait for regeneration to see if that fixed anything, but I should be able to tell tomorrow morning either way.

Cheers!
Andrew

You're welcome Andrew!

You may in fact need to dump and rinse the brine tank, but we will cross that bridge when we get there.

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H2OMAN

Is that right? 5000 grains at two pound of salt? Not a very efficient unit, is it? I thought they did better than that.

Andy Christensen, CWS-II

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Andy CWS wrote:

H2OMAN

Is that right? 5000 grains at two pound of salt? Not a very efficient unit, is it? I thought they did better than that.

Andy Christensen, CWS-II

It is correct Shocked

Just one of the many reasons I suggest people avoid RainSoft products.

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AndrewGerdel, the salt dose, and thereby the capacity, is adjustable and that means the salt efficiency is too. Proof of that is the two different salt doses and capacities with different salt efficiencies.

In other words, it is not the brand of softener that establishes salt efficiency.

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Impressed
Wow, you guys certainly know your water softeners!

Sorry for the delay in my response. H20Man's original idea of cleaning out the brine line certainly seemed to help a LOT! The dishes are starting to come out a lot cleaner and the water is much softer. Thank you all very much for your help, this is a great group.

I will read through the manual on the valve as well.

Thanks everybody!
Andrew

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The brand of softener certainly can determine the salt efficiencies. That is why third-party, non-profit verifiying agencies like NSF, UL, WQA, etc., test monitor, evaluate and record results of exhausting testing to determine numerouis parameters of softener (and other water treatment equipment) capacities.

Now the same softener can adjust salt dosage, that's true. But salt dosages can be set so low that they stop becoming effective.

Timer systems are infamously innefficient as their regenerations are a guessing game. Brands that use fine mesh resin may have high efficiencies (higher than 5000 grains per pound of salt). Packed bed softeners are also very efficient, with some limitations.

Andy Christensen, CWS-II

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AndrewGerdel wrote:

sorry the pictures are so big...)

You're a computer programer and you can't re-size the pics to an acceptable size? Shocked

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Andy CWS wrote:

The brand of softener certainly can determine the salt efficiencies. That is why third-party, non-profit verifiying agencies like NSF, UL, WQA, etc., test monitor, evaluate and record results of exhausting testing to determine numerouis parameters of softener (and other water treatment equipment) capacities.

They only do testing on equipment from the companies wanting to submit it for testing but...

What you are saying about softeners is like saying that the brand of car/PU/SUV dictates fuel efficiency. Yet even though the government supposedly sets and records fuel efficiency, that does not mean you will get that efficiency with all the models in that brand or the individual vehicle you drive.

Outside the lab in the real world, the person's right foot and the maintenance done on the vehicle controls the fuel efficiency. That includes how much or little air is in the tires etc..

All softeners have a means to set the salt dose and a given volume of resin. They can not operate otherwise. The volume of salt in a given volume and type of resin, that controls the K grains of capacity of the softener; as you admit below.

Thereby the salt efficiency is not based on the brand name of the softener, or the brand of control valve on it, or the brand of the tank the resin is in or, if the softener has been through a certification program at the NSF, WQA etc. etc..

Andy CWS wrote:

Now the same softener can adjust salt dosage, that's true. But salt dosages can be set so low that they stop becoming effective.

The softener with variable brining adjusts the lbs of salt used per regeneration, all other softeners can not but, maybe you meant that all softeners have an adjustable salt dose setting; whic his true.

A softener with variable brining will be programmed to the same number of lbs and K of capacity as the identical softener without the variable brining feature but... the variable brined softener will regenerate much more frequently and usually use the same or more total salt when compared to the other softener with one regeneration only every 7-9 days. A variable brined softener will use more water than the non variable brined softener and the salt may be the same for both types of softeners.

Also, are you saying that at a certain number of lbs or below a certain number of lbs, that salt does not regenerate any of the bed? If so what number for what volume and type of resin?

Andy CWS wrote:

Timer systems are infamously innefficient as their regenerations are a guessing game. Brands that use fine mesh resin may have high efficiencies (higher than 5000 grains per pound of salt). Packed bed softeners are also very efficient, with some limitations.

You forgot SST-60 resin, which has better efficiency than fine mesh.

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Re: Impressed

AndrewGerdel wrote:

Wow, you guys certainly know your water softeners!
H20Man's original idea of cleaning out the brine line certainly seemed to help a LOT!
The dishes are starting to come out a lot cleaner and the water is much softer. Thank you all very much for your help, this is a great group.

I will read through the manual on the valve as well.

Thanks everybody!
Andrew

Hey Andrew,

I'm glad my idea helped you out. Let me know if you require further assistance.
_________________
If you pay <$700 including UPS delivery for your H2O system - you're not getting professional installation or service.
Caveat Emptor: You get what you pay for - You don't get what you don't pay for.

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All Softeners are equal....NOT
I am NOT saying that different brands DICTATE efficiencies. Anything can be programmed to be wasteful.

Yes, Gary, different brands of cars/trucks/SUVs WILL have different fuel efficiencies. Only a fool says all cars have the same fuel efficiencies even with all other things being equal. I can't believe you could make such a comment!!!

Amazing!

Different brands of sfteners can have very different efficiencies. I see it everyday when we replace units that used 4-6 bags a month and when I check back the biggest comments are on how now they use 1-2 bags per month. Even when their old units were set up properly by their previous dealers.

It is just nuts to say that all softeners are equal. Whew! Who are you trying to kid? Anyway, seems it is no use discussing this with you when you have such hairbrained comparisons.

Oh, by the way, one of our sales staff just bought a new car that get 47 miles to the gallon in the city. How's yours doing? But I guess they all do that, right?

Andy Christensen, CWS-II

H2)man, would you say all softeners have the same efficiencies? Anyone else, please chime in. Tell me what is Gary's agenda here? Nuff said.

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Re: All Softeners are equal....NOT

Andy CWS wrote:

H2)man, would you say all softeners have the same efficiencies? Anyone else, please chime in. Tell me what is Gary's agenda here? Nuff said.

I have no clue what his agenda is except to sell, sell, sell while attempting to discredit everyone and everything outside of his tiny world.

NO - all softeners are not created equal - they all have different efficiencies.

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Let's try this again:

Andy CWS wrote:

The brand of softener certainly can determine the salt efficiencies.

Now the same softener can adjust salt dosage, that's true. But salt dosages can be set so low that they stop becoming effective.

Andy Christensen, CWS-II

IMO that's the same as saying: The brand of car/PU/SUV certainly can determine the fuel efficiencies. Now the same car/PU/SUV can adjust fuel uses, that's true. But fuel uses can be set so low that they stop becoming effective.

I don't agree that the brand of softener can determine salt efficiencies for a softener anymore than I believe that a brand of vehicle can determine the fuel efficiency of a vehicle.

I also disagree with a salt dose being set so low that it stops regenerating any resin.

That is like saying gasoline will stop burning before it's all burned out of a tank/bucket/jar/pan or off of a floor etc.. I know better.

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Gentlemen,

Once again, I have been asked to intervene in one of your arguments.

And once again, I have to say, I neither know nor do I care to learn, which product is better. Salespeople argue over price, efficiency, design, delivery, materials, manufacturing and about a thousand other things, and it's competition, not sniping. Yet you do all manage to get a few zingers in there just the same. As if it were irresistible to all of you.

Well, like I've said before, I'm tired of it. You may not realize it, but this site is far, far larger than your squabbles and it's even larger than this forum. There are almost 80,000 other members on this site. They have needs, too.

You will conform to our Terms of Service, whether that is in reference to how you treat each other or in reference to whether you attempt to promote your own site(s) here. This is not optional. It is not me asking you. It is me telling you how it's going to be. Because if you do not, then I will start by pulling PM privileges. And no, my authority does not end there, if you persist in this little war.

Once again, I humbly apologize to the consumer who came here only seeking information. You deserve information, not an inside look into the salespersons' personality conflicts.

This topic is locked until further notice.

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My system wont quit running HELP I hate this RAINSOFT System

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