Water Softeners - What are the differences in brands?

The question was about the Clack WS1 control board...

Is the board potted or not?

You pound your keyboard and spout your drivel and when confronted you DEMAND proof.

Who's wrong about the Clack WS1 control board, me or you? You're the Clack seller and you don't know what you're selling and you won't admit when you're wrong.

You are TOTALLY wrong, not partially wrong.

I know the difference between a naked board and a potted board, but you don't, and I didn't "build circuit boards at GE back in the mid to late 1960s".

Your reply is exactly as I expected... flip-flopping and backstroking. You should run for political office.

You constantly attack other's credibility when you have little to none of your own.

Yes, as I've already said, part of my statement was wrong, and it was incomplete. I have confused three boards by relying on memory concerning some things 2-4 years old. I will qualify future statements about potted boards.

If you can't figure out on your own what part, sorry, you're on your own.

You are wrong on a number of things you said and I have no need to say more about them here now than what I've said about those I have already mentioned. If you'd stop taking everything so personal, calm down and objectively look at what you said, you might see where you're wrong but I doubt that will happen. Oh well. And anyway, in no way would you ever admit you were wrong.

Again, how many control valves have you sold, and how long have you been selling them?

What part of the following quote from your post was partially wrong?



Not much ambiguity in that quote.



Making accurate and true statements would be an improvement.

You dish it out but you can't take it... you bring hypocrisy to a new level and sales practices to a new low... even for you.

I guess it doesn't matter how many valve someone sells, if he didn't understand the first one and continues to make claims about them that are false and has to wait till one of HIS customers has to point it out to him, then, well.... there are still some hurdles to jump, I'd say.

Now, I never sell softeners and send them off to remote locations and, just because I never hear a complaint from them and, thus, figure they are working, is no assurance that problems don't exist.. I worked for a stint in the Galveston/Beaumont, TX area and nearly every softener I replaced that was electric had significant corrosion due to moisture and salty air on its valve body and electrical components. Even the exchange tanks and galvanizes pressure tanks had signs of corrosion.

I suppose that is where I got my statement that these problem exist. Even Kinetico had experienced some weather problems under some extreme conditions.

I was surprised, too, when Gary stated that these circuit board are sealed from weather as I am looking at one right now that I sell and I am just scratching my head wondering who made his that would be so different from mine?

Anyway, I am sure Gary will come around and learn more about his products so as not to mislead future customers.

Andy Christensen, CWS-II

Oh, say HI to MotorHomeLurker for me.

This is good . . .




"MotorHomeLurker" ~ . . .Classic!

Andy, I'll put my knowledge of control valves and softeners up against yours any day. I will possibly make a mistake or two here or there and when realized or corrected, I admit the mistake and make it right.

Although I'm sure there are some of my customers that have a problem and haven't said anything yet, you do not know of the communications I have with my customers and if you did you wouldn't make such dumb accusations about me not knowing of customer problems.

You, as a salesman only, sold softeners in TX, then OH where you lived in your grandfather's house using his phone, and now you say you're in NE IN. All within your total of isn't it now 6 years in the business. You've just said you don't ship softeners/filters to far off places as I do; BTW, 15 so far this month (all in person, no sale off the web site). I can hardly see any difference except that I sell to independent self sufficent people that want to receive the shipped softener and rely on themselves for service. What do all your salesman only customers in those far flung areas do when they have a problem and you've left the area!

We both know you weren't replacing softeners or filters in TX with Clack control valves. And since you say they had metal valve bodies, I have an idea of what brands they were and how old they were. WOW, IIRC, Rainsoft's largest dealer is in Houston... his brother posted on my forum a few years ago. Tell me you were a Rainsoft salesman in TX before going to Kinetico!!!

Anyway, yes I too suppose that's where your corrosion statement came from but that experience has nothing to do with the question of installing today's Noryl control valves outside.

I have sold two controls with various version boards (at least 3-4 versions) that have potted parts. I do not have the exact board version that our good buddy's softener has that he has given to his buddy as a door stop for his shed in Edgewood NM. He has refused to post a picture of that but usually a door stop is outside right, and I see no corrosion on the top of his Clack WS-1 circuit board. Do you?

Another question, do you actually do or have you actually done softener/filter installation plumbing or does your comment about "replacing" mean you sold a softener/filter to "replace" one that was said to be corroded?

Accusations, what accusations? I didn't make any accusations toward you? My, aren't we being a little paranoid!

A DOORSTOP !! Wasn't that issue resolved a long time ago calling that a lot of hot air...but you are still using that as an argument!

My grandfather passed away in 1978 and I prefer you don't mention him again or try to dishonor him as it shows extremely low esteem on your part. What is your point except to take a cheap shot?

Rainsoft!!?? What are you talking about? Absolutely, you lack any grasp of reality while taking pot shots in the dark, Gary. Sad.

I am in the softener replacement business. I repair other companies' broken promises.

Andy Christensen, CWS-II

But Gary, you bellowed that you had the EXACT same board as I do... and don't call me your buddy.



Still waiting for that to happen.



Gary, didn't the the last picture you DEMANDED that I post teach you anything?
Cause... every picture tells a story, don't it? :wink:

Seems that you're still holding your own.

Yes he claims he gave it to his buddy for a door stop for his shed but... he's never posted any picture of that or of his garage where the softener had been installed originally; I have a picture of it there.


Strange.... in Jan/Feb 2006 when you called me about you being caught lying on forums where you posted as ChrisJ, I asked you why the different name on my caller ID and you said it was because you were living at your grandfather's house. Now you say he died in 1978. Are you really Andrew Christensen?


In my opinion you are a Kinetico salesman flitting from one place to another every couple years that has difficulty telling the truth and more than a little uninformed about other equipment than Kinetico's.

As an example, tell your good buddy here to take a picture and post it here of the other side of his circuit board. Also, ask him to step back for another pic showing the whole softener and its surroundings. I think we'd see it sitting just to the right of his water heater in his garage where he installed it in July 2004. And if it is being used as a door stop, why not a picture of the empty spot or whatever he has used the space for now?

Oh yes... since you have said you sell Clack control valves. What version of circuit board, and I don't mean just the board software version, and how many versions of the Clack WS-1 control do you sell?

No Gary, wrong again. If you search back through the posts I recall that I said 'I lent the Clack to my buddy and he's done with it so it's back doing doorstop duty'.

Mad Cow Gary or just more of your "(elective) selective memory"?



Still waiting for that to happen.

Seems that you're changed hands.

Yeah and you've lied and refused to take any responsibility for anything before but a single picture of it as a door stop or of your water heater in your garage with whatever is to the right of it will prove your claim.

Anyway, back to Clack WS-1 circuit boards and potting. They all are. Turn yours over and check it out. While you're there checking it out, take a picture of it from about 4 feet away showing its surroundings.

Is that how they did it at GE in the 60's? Pot only one side so the other can corrode or short out or were you using wire nuts on your circuit boards?

You demanded a picture. I posted a picture and proved you're wrong. You don't/won't admit you're wrong. It's getting tiring proving you're wrong on this point but it doesn't matter because everyone can plainly see a naked UNPOTTED board in the posted pic.

The circuit board in my Clack, is NOT potted on EITHER the component side, easily seen in the posted pic, OR on the soldered (back) side.

Clack knows it has unpotted boards in the field even though you don't.

I won't spend more time proving you're wrong on this point.

You remain, the fastest one handed typist on the forums.

That's right, the back of all Clack WS-1 boards is potted.

Now go take the picture of your board and prove me wrong.

That was your EXACT statement in your post...

These posted pictures (from http://www.able2know.org/forums/viewtopic.php?p=2954491#2954491) clearly show naked, un-potted diodes, capacitors, switches, an LED display, an IC, and pin headers for power connections and such. YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY and UNEQUIVOCALLY WRONG... case closed.

It's amazing to me how I have to continue to remind grown men how to act like adults.

Would you all like this topic locked? Hey, I can oblige. And you can all move to another topic, and snipe at one another there, and then I can tell you all to behave and then lock that one, too. And we can do that ten ways 'til Sunday if you like but personally I have other things to do with my time and can think of far more interesting games to play.

Or -- I dunno, wild concept, work with me people -- you could all cease from calling each other liars. You could cut out the huge bolded type and calm down and act like civilized human beings. You could act your ages and not your shoe sizes and give people the answers to the questions they've asked. And, if you disagreed with one another, you'd offer an opposing viewpoint or a counterargument or additional facts without lacing it with snide comments. You'd post to each other without dipping your pens (keyboards? mice?) in acid first.

I have warned you all before, and I am tired of warning because those warnings fall on deaf ears. Well, here's the last warning from me. Want to continue ramping up the nastiness level? Then start to see more locked and pulled topics. And maybe even see your posting privileges suspended. Because while I dislike doing such things I have no problem doing them if I have to.

And, by the way, if anyone thinks that I'm talking only about the other guy, I've got news for you: I'm talking about you, too.

It is the season to start acting better than you normally do. I suggest you all make an effort to do just that. Thank you.

Hey farefax, were you able to get the help you were looking for?

No seems the subject got lost so lost that I even forgot what I had asked. I need a good reliable water softner for a family of 4 but have 6 small show dogs that get baths every week they are all about 7 to 12 ilbs
I will be installing it myself and if I run into trouble will call a plumber.
I want to install under an eve of house in back rather than in the middle of yard. So I guess there is a housing for it? I think I had it narrowed down to a fleck 7000se or a 2510se. I wanted to also know if it is worth upgrading the resin? I want to be able to use I think it was potassium cloride, the one that will not hurt plants if you were to water them. No I am not going to water plants but will not put anything on my dogs that would kill plants. lol Yes paranoid. lol As far as ro I was just wondering how many stages does it need to be? 3or 4 or 5?????
Have been waiting for answers but they seemed to have lost there way and not really given any answers.

Drop me an email and I'll see if I can help without going off topic.

Farefax, why the 7000 or 2510? And which one of the two?

Do you know the negatives of using potassium chloride?

The 'extra' stages of an RO are disposable cartridges, usually used to 'polish' the water. Why do you need an RO?

My culligan system 23 is leaking from the valve body. It's at least 15+ years old. All these years I've never used the sliding valve to turn it back to city water (to fill my water jug) but 2 weeks ago i started using it. Maybe it's a coincidence that it just started leaking under the body? lol

when i called culligan, they said parts aren't available but they 'may' have some stuff in the warehouse. They were also kind enough to inform me the 90 trip charge would be credited if i bought a new gold series unit. The one that would replace this unit would cost 1900, include 2 free years of salt delivered, and require i buy a 60 dollar filter from them every year to maintain lifetime resin warranty.

Now i know i never replaced this resin, but up until a year or so ago the water was soft enough for me. Matter of fact, even if its poor state the resin must be doing something because now that i permanently bypass the tank the water is just horribly hard.

I think he said this unit is like a Mark? unit?

So is it true no parts are available for a system 23?

And can someone tell me why (even at greater expense) they cant just put another similar value body on this?

I'm almost tempted to pay the 90 for them to try to fix it but i worry they may just say cant be fixed and push the new one.

oh they also said they have a medallion for 1400 but it's not as good, no lifetime resin warranty etc.

He pushed the metering of these units vs my old timer. Well i only set it to charge 1x a week and was very happy with that level of charging. Now i worry if some meter says i need more often what will happen to salt usage.