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SECTION 2 HOWYOURWATERsO rENERWORKS
2B. SOFT WATER SERVICE AND REGENERATION
SERVICE
When the softener is givingyou soft water, it is
called "Service". During service, hard water
comes from the house main water pipe into the
softener. Inside the softener resin tank is a bed
made upofthousands oftiny,plastic resin beads
(FIG. 4). As hard water passes through the bed,
each bead attracts and holds the hardness
minerals. This is called ion-exchanging. It is
much like a magnet attracting and holding
metals. Water without the hardness minerals
(soft water) flows out ofthe softener and intothe
house soft water pipes.
After a period of time, the resin beads become
coated with hardness minerals and they have to
be cleaned. This cleaning is called regeneration
or recharge. Regeneration isstarted at 2:00 a.m.
by the electronic timer (see page 13). It takes
place in 5 stages or cycles. These are:
_1 FILL _ BACKWASH
BRINING 151 FAST RINSE
[_] BRINE RINSE
_WATER FLOW THROUGH THE
SOFTENER IN SERVICE
Hard Water
IN
OUT
Bed
Tank
REGENERATION
ITIFILL: Salt, dissolved in water, is called brine.
Brine is needed to clean the hardness minerals
from the resin beads. To make the brine, water
flows into the salt storage area during the fill
stage as shown in FIG. 5. Fill cycle length
depends on how much soft water making
capacity you have used since the last regenera-
tion. It fillslonger,the more water you have used,
and makes more brine. The greater amount of
brine cleans more hardness minerals from the
resin bed.
WATER FLOW THROUGH THE
)FTENER IN FILL
Hard Water
IN
Soft Water
OUt
Salt
a Tanl_
(salt not shown)
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