Maintenance tips for your water softener

When should you reorder salt ?

Lift the lid of your tank. Two signs are enough: if the level has dropped below halfway, or if you can see water above the salt, the time has come.

An empty tank for a few days damages nothing, but the water turns hard again immediately and scaling picks up where it left off. The common mistake is waiting until you can see the bottom: by then, regeneration has already been incomplete several times over. Get into the habit of looking once a month; it takes ten seconds.

What is a salt bridge, and how do you avoid it ?

A crust can form at the bottom of the tank with nothing to show for it. A pure salt that dissolves evenly goes a long way to prevent it.

Those crusts have a name: salt bridges. A solid layer forms with a void underneath. The tank looks full while the salt no longer touches the water, and regeneration runs dry with nothing to show for it. You notice when the water turns hard again, often weeks later. If you suspect a bridge, press gently with a broom handle: if it gives way all at once, that was it.

Does the brine tank need cleaning ?

Once a year is enough in most cases, and less often still with a very pure salt that leaves little residue.

The sediment that builds up at the bottom comes from the insolubles in the salt. At a purity above 99.6 % there is little of it, but there is some. An annual rinse stops that sediment from eventually interfering with the valve. It is also a chance to check that no salt bridge has formed. From 5 bags upwards we disinfect the softener at the delivery, which settles the matter with no extra call-out.

How do you find out your water hardness ?

In Belgium it varies a great deal from one town to the next. Your water company publishes it, and a test strip gives you the answer in a minute.

Hardness is measured in French degrees. Below 15 °f the water is soft, between 15 and 30 °f moderately hard, above 30 °f hard. The Brussels area usually sits in the upper band, which explains what we see our customers get through: 5 to 8 bags for a household of four. From 5 bags upwards we measure the hardness at the delivery and tell you whether your unit is set sensibly.

Looking after
your water softener

When should you reorder salt ?

What is a salt bridge, and how do you avoid it ?

Does the brine tank need cleaning ?

How do you find out your water hardness ?

Never run out
of salt

Just ask
us

When should you reorder salt ?

What is a salt bridge, and how do you avoid it ?

Does the brine tank need cleaning ?

How do you find out your water hardness ?

Never run outof salt

Just askus

Never run out
of salt

Just ask
us