Tips for Maintaining Your Water Conditioning System in Columbia, TN

Hard water delivers high levels of calcium and magnesium, which over time can lead to a buildup of lime scale and make soap’s cleaning ability less potent. Some geographical areas in the United States have naturally harder water than other areas, so in those communities it becomes even more important for homeowners to consider the kind of water conditioning features they have on their properties.

Today’s water softeners are more durable than ever before, capable of lasting for many years without needing a whole lot of attention with regard to maintenance. Still, there are some regular checks you can make and some cleaning methods you can employ to make sure you get the most efficient and reliable operation possible out of your water softener.

With this in mind, here’s a quick overview of what proper water softener maintenance in Columbia, TN looks like.

Keep the brine tank in good condition

Once a month or so, you should check the salt levels in your brine tank. You should keep the tank at least half full at all times, and at least three inches above the water level. Make sure you’re adding the proper kind of salt—this information should be in your water softener’s owner’s manual. There are granular, block and tablet forms of salt, and not all kinds of salt can be used in all water softening systems.

While checking the salt levels, break up any solid salt bridges you see, and dissolve any mushy areas that might have piled up at the bottom of the base. This will help ensure more efficient operation.

Clean the tank on occasion

There are many water softeners that will operate without you needing to clean them for anywhere from five to 10 years. If you see your water starting to turn hard and maintaining the brine tank isn’t improving the water quality, then this is a sign that you probably need to clean the tank. Otherwise, if you have an old model that runs with electricity, you may need to clean it annually.

To clean, you’ll empty the tank, making sure to keep the salty wastewater away from plants. Remove the brine grid from the tank base, scrub out the tank with soapy water, then rinse. You can then clean with bleach, rinse again and refill the tank, then let it go back to its normal operation.

Other maintenance

There are a few other maintenance and general upkeep tasks you can perform to keep your water softener in good condition. Adjust the bypass valves to temporarily cut off water to the softener every now and then to make sure those valves stay in working condition. This prevents you from having to deal with a situation where you need to shut off water, but the valves are stuck because they’ve never been used.

You can flush out the system with a special water softener cleaner, available at hardware stores and home centers. When you clean the tank, it’s also a good idea to clean the valve between the brine tank and the resin tank.

For more information about maintaining a water conditioning system in Columbia, TN, contact Action Electric Motor & Pump Repair today.

Categorised in: Water Conditioning