Autotrol readysoft

[Mike Nadeau]

Hello,
I have aquired and installed an Autotrol Readysoft system. It has a 960/255 setup.
This is a twin tank setup. It consists of 2 sides each having 2 tanks joined in the middle. 4 tanks total. I replaced all the seals that needed replacing and the turbine meter. Everything seems to work perfectly. But I don't know what 2 of the tanks consist of. That being said I have the serial numbers on the to units and have no way to get any information. I want to make sure i have the correct settings for my resin bed size. Plus getting rustyish water for a few minutes after regeneration. My test strips seem to indicate 0 hardness so i assume it works. I'm also trying to figure out how to read the display.
Example: tank 1 reads 1374 and I take a 15 minute shower. The number only goes down a couple of digits. So is this in 5 gallon increments?
Also the injectors are grey and do not match any of the colors available?

 

[ditttohead]

You will need to post some pictures and give us some dimensions so we have a better idea of what you have.

If you are going to DIY, you need to get a real hardness test kit. Are you on your own well or are you on municipal water?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Mike Nadeau]

Municipal water, was told by water dept. 11 grains of hardness.

 

[ditttohead]

Run it until it dies (probably wont have to wait to long), then time to update. I may have the manuals for that system. I will check when I get to the office.

 

[Mike Nadeau]

Is there any way to figure out how many cubic feet of resin i have without tearing the tanks open?
Need to try and get rid of rust tinted water after regeneration.

 

[ditttohead]

I assume the resin is in the lower tanks. Do you have a tank size? We can estimate it from there. Any idea what is in the upper tanks? Could be carbon, calcite, iron reduction media etc.

If you are on municipal water then a simple acid stripping of the resin should help but... can you get acid through the upper tanks? We need to know what is in them to make that determination.

 

[Mike Nadeau]

The tanks are 16" diameter. The easiest way for me would be to disengage the tanks and seperate them to look.
While I'm in there can I empty the resin to clean the tank and bed?

 

[ditttohead]

I can only assume those tank adapters are not the ones we make. Most of the tank adapters being made only allow for a single riser tube, this make disassembly and maintenance a real problem. When you remove the valve then the top tank the riser tube goes all the way to the bottom, this makes a mess and you risk dropping media down the riser tube. our design splits the riser indie the adapter allowing for much easier removal and servicing.

Double check your measurements. Those do not look like 16" diameter tanks. More like 10" We need diameter or circumference and tank heights from the floor to the neck

 

[Mike Nadeau]

So sorry diameter is 10". Floor to neck is 35" on to bottom tanks. Tops are 10x18 or 10x18.5.
Top tanks are not the same woven fiber glass like the bottom. Dont know if that will tell anything.

 

[ditttohead]

The top tanks are a pressed fiber tank, this was how they were made a long time ago. Now we have standard tanks with top/bottom openings. When I was developing that design 20+ years ago those were our only realistic options. 10"x35" is typically going to hole no more than .75 ft3. of softening resin.

I would seriously consider updating your system to a modern design after you have a good water test done.

 

[Mike Nadeau]

Thank you for the information.
So with both tanks i can fugure on 1.5 ft3 of resin.
But since this system is softening my water, working shouldn't I just run it till it dies?
Do you think there is anyone i can contact to that my know what the upper tanks where filled with using the serial numbers?

 

[Reach4]

So with both tanks i can fugure on 1.5 ft3 of resin.

The top tanks are going to contain different media than the bottom tanks.

I suspect the lighter media would be in the wider diameter tanks, because the top and bottom tanks will get the same GPM of backwash, but will get a different GPM/sqft.

Softener resin is usually the lighter media.

 

[Mike Nadeau]

So you are thinking the top tanks have the resin?
All 4 tanks are the same diameter.

 

[Reach4]

So you are thinking the top tanks have the resin?

I have no relevant experience. Maybe there is a media lighter than softener resin, but I don't know one. I am not sure. I would think it is more likely, but I am not certain.

 

[Mike Nadeau]

So the calculation of resin media could be diffrent if the 18" tanks contain resin?

 

[Reach4]

Yes.

If the bottom tanks are 10 inch, the top tanks don't look like 18. Get a tape measure, measure the circumference, and divide by pi.

 

[Mike Nadeau]

No all 4 tanks are 10" diameter. The bottom 2 are 35" tall and the 2 top are 18 or 18 1/2.

 

[ditttohead]

In general the bottom tanks will be resin, the top tanks can be calcite, carbon, birm, MTM, greensand, Greensand +, Clinoptilolite, or a dozen other medias.

As stated earlier, run them until they die (it wont be long) and then update to a modern design. A simple carbon or catalytic carbon tank and a softener should do you just fine You do not need a twin alternating unless you have 12 people in the house.

 

[Mike Nadeau]

When i make the move. I can reuse one of the 255 valves and upgrade to a logix controller?

 

[Mike Nadeau]

How many grains do you figure this unit is?