Reply
Mon 17 Jul, 2006 01:11 pm
My rainsoft water softener ( mechanical type timer system with the brass valve head) suddenly stopped working and the water in the house got brown...I looked in the trouble shooting guide and it said it could be the salt valve or a clogged drain line (waste water line). The waste water line is fine, and I checked the brine pickup line...it may have been clogged, so I emptied all the salt out...cleaned the tank and brine pickup line. When I ran it through a cycle, the ball inside the clear triguard in the rear (salt valve ??) kept getting sucked to the bottom and nothing was happening.
If I understand the clear cylinder with the ball in it, it goes like this...the valve opens and sends clean water into the clear plastic tri guard...it sends the water to the brine tank to make brine...then the valve moves and water is forced into the other line going into the tri guard (this opening has a very tiny oriface...which I assume creates a vacume that should draw the brine solution up into the resin)...it keeps making a sucking sound and the ball pops back up off the bottom and suction is lost (no brine solution being picked up to the resin). I took the clear tri guard off and cleaned it...being careful not to lose the little stem with oring that sits on the bottom of it...and put it back on.
How much water should be in the brine tank when the cycle is done ?? ( it was half full of water) How can I tell if the tri guard is working correctly...last night I ran out of time to check it again. Thank you.
artie in miami
ps...I almost forgot
H2O man...I am also a Connecticut Yankee stuck down here in So. FLorida !! If my problem is the triguard (clear plastic with ball inside) is it possible to buy one of those ?? Where, and how much should I expect to pay ? I am not sure if that is the problem or not...as I described in the post, the ball gets sucked to the bottom (looks correct) then it suddenly makes a pop sound and the ball jumps off the bottom and suction is lost. Sounds like something is wrong with the brine line ?? I blew through it and it is clear...what would cause it to lose suction like that ?? a leak ??
thanks
artie in miami
Re: ps...I almost forgot
artie in miami wrote:H2O man...I am also a Connecticut Yankee stuck down here in So. FLorida !!
I lived in Miami/Kendall from '84 to '88
If you need a new tri-guard email me for additional information.
H2O man
Hey H2O man, I tried to "PM" you, and I got the message that I have not been a member long enough to send PM (private messages or emails) here is my email address
[email protected]
How can I tell if my triguard is shot and needs to be replaced...what would cause the ball to jump off the bottom seal and make a pop sound ? It kept doing this last night and I got too tired to continue...I work 2-10pm as an assistant principal in night school, maybe I can look at it in the morning. Any ideas ?? the round discs move and the Tshaped valve stem (between them) moves up and down as it should...I will try to cycle it tonight and see what happens. I took out the triguard and cleaned it...I was a chemist for 12 years at Univ of Miami and know a little bit about how the triguard works. One line sends water in through a small oriface and creates a vacume (hydroaspirator) and that draws the brine up into the resin. But I am not sure what would make the pop sound and cause the ball to come off it's seat ??? What can I try that will isolate the problem ?? Thanks in advance.
artie in miami
Stumble It!
Tweet This
Bookmark on Delicious
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace