Water softener problem

money_savy

Hi,
I had a new water softener installed by a qualified plumber a month back.
The softener has been installed to the mains from where the water gets sent over to the tank located in the attic. I can see the salt being used on a regular basis but I can't see any difference in the softness of the water. The pressure of the water is good enough. I called the service engineer and he said the softener has been installed correctly but I couldn't see it making any difference.

Would anybody there be able to help please as I am totally stuck and don't know what to do :huh:

Avoriaz

There could be a number of causes. Perhaps the water is soft and you just can't tell.

Do you have a water hardness testing kit? If not get one and test the incoming mains unsoftened water and the softened water and see if there is a difference.

It takes a while for all the water in a loft storage tank to be softened but that is usually several days to a week depending on rate of usage. A month is a long time unless you use very little water. The water in the tank starts off hard and, as you use it, it is replaced by soft water until it is all soft.

There should be a bypass valve installed. Has that been left open accidentally? It should be closed for normal operation. You should have three valves. One to let hard water into the softener, one to let soft water out of the softener and the third is the bypass, to be used only if there is a problem with the softener. The first two should be open and the bypass closed.

money_savy

thanks Avoriaz...How do I test the hardness when the incoming mains and outgoing are connected using pipes?

Hoof_Hearted

Compare the kitchen tap (from the mains) with a bathroom tap (softened) and you will see if it is working. I know in some soft water areas the water feels slightly oily but this is not the case with our water softener output. The only way to see if it is working is to get a testing kit. £2.19 from Screwfix.

Avoriaz

money_savy wrote: »

thanks Avoriaz...How do I test the hardness when the incoming mains and outgoing are connected using pipes?

If the softener has been properly installed, there should be one tap, usually the cold kitchen sink tap or a separate drinking water tap, that is supplied from the incoming hard water mains before the softener.

If your plumber hasn't done that then he is not really competent to install a softener.

Some people are sensitive to the extra sodium content in softened water and should not drink it or cook with it. It is also considered by some to be advisable not to make baby formula milk with soft water.

If you have an outside or garden tap, then that too should be hard water as using soft water in the garden is wasteful.

If you take and post a few pictures of the softener, the pipework around it and the kitchen sink, we can have a look and comment on the installation.