EcoPure MW_MW25_450215A - Manual (Page 16)

...................................... AUTOMATIC WATER SOFTENER
GENERAL WATER SOFTENER MAINTENANCE
CHECKING THE SALT STORAGE LEVEL, AND REFILLING .......................................................................................
Brine (salt dissolved in water) is needed for each and
every regeneration. The water for making brine is
metered into the salt storage area by the softener
valve and timer. However, you need to ensure that the
tank has salt in it at all time.
NOTE: In humid areas, it is best to fill with less salt,
more often.
WHEN TO ADD SALT: Check the salt level a few
weeks after you install the softener and every week
after that. Add when the brine tank is from 1/3 to 1/2
full. Never allow the softener to use all the salt before
you add more. Without salt, you will soon have hard
water.
Use clean water softener salt only, at least 99.5%
pure. NUGGET, PELLET or coarse SOLAR salts are
recommended. Do not use rock, block, granulated,
and ice cream making salts. They contain dirt and
sediments, or mush and cake, and will create
maintenance problems.
NOTE: WATER SOFTENING SALT WITH IRON
REMOVING ADDITIVES: Some salts have an
additive to help the softener handle iron in the water
supply. Although this additive may help to keep the
softener resin clean, it may also release corrosive
fumes that weaken and shorten the life of some
softener parts.
BREAKING A SALT BRIDGE...............................................................................................
Sometimes, a hard crust or salt bridge forms in the salt
storage area. It is usually caused by high humidity or
the wrong kind of salt. When the salt bridges, an
empty space forms between the water and salt. Then
salt will not dissolve in the water to make brine.
If the brine tank is full of salt, it is hard to tell if you
have a salt bridge. Salt is loose on top, but the bridge
is under it. The following is the best way to check for a
salt bridge.
Salt should be loose all the way to the bottom of the
tank. Take a broom handle, or like tool, and carefully
push it down into the salt, working it up and down. If
the tool strikes a hard object (be sure it’s not the
bottom or sides of the tank), it’s most likely a salt
bridge. Carefully break the bridge with the tool. DO
NOT pound on the walls of the tank.
If the wrong kind of salt made the bridge, take it out.
Then fill the tank with nugget, pellet or coarse solar
salt only. In humid areas, it is best to fill with less salt,
more often.
CLEANING IRON OUT OF THE WATER SOFTENER………………………………………………………………………..
Your water softener takes hardness minerals (calcium
and magnesium) out of the water. Also, it can control
some (see specifications, page 4) “clear water” iron.
With clear water iron, water from a faucet is clear when
first put into a glass. After 15 to 30 minutes, the water
begins to cloud or turn rust colored. A water softener
WILL NOT remove any iron that makes the water
cloudy or rusty as it comes from the faucet (called red
water iron). To take red water iron out of water, or over
the maximum of clear water iron, an iron filter or other
equipment is needed. Your local dealer has trained
people to help you with iron water problems.
If your water supply has clear water iron, periodic resin
bed cleaning is needed. Clean the bed at least every 6
months, or more often if iron appears in the soft water
between treatments. Follow directions on the resin bed
cleaner container.
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