How much salt to keep in the brine tank

[steppinthrax]

I just got my softener setup and I got a good deal on salt from the local hardware store. I went to fill my system and just filled the brine tank all the way to the top with salt.

I was later reading and found that most people suggest that the brine tank only be filled 1/2 to 3/4 full. Is this correct? If so why and does it affect the performance. This is a Fleck 5600sxt 48K system.

 

[Reach4]

Keep some salt above the water. You can fill it part way, or you can fill it up to the top of the brine well (the white thing that has the safety float inside.

I think keeping it lower until you are confident things are working has some merit if you would like to keep an eye on things for a bit.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[ditttohead]

Fill it to the .. snow-cone it if you want. It does not affect performance at all.

 

[steppinthrax]

Thanks, the one thing I noticed is I was reading that you should add about 1 gallon of water to the dry brine tank upon setup. I added 1 gallon and two 40 lb bags of salt. I entered in a regeneration mode, upon brine refill the level (water) was above the salt by about several inches. I then decided to add more salt. The issue is the additional salt added displaced the brine water and caused it to run out the overflow. So I guess my question is when do you "add" salt to prevent this.

 

[Reach4]

Thanks, the one thing I noticed is I was reading that you should add about 1 gallon of water to the dry brine tank upon setup. I added 1 gallon and two 40 lb bags of salt. I entered in a regeneration mode, upon brine refill the level (water) was above the salt by about several inches. I then decided to add more salt. The issue is the additional salt added displaced the brine water and caused it to run out the overflow. So I guess my question is when do you "add" salt to prevent this.

You have problems beyond when to add salt. The 5600 SXT controls the brine fill with time and a metering washer (BLFC). Tell us your settings, and in particular, tell us your BF setting. That is the most important.

Also give dimensions of your brine tank... round or rectangular. Top where the lid is, is how many inches by how many inches.

 

[steppinthrax]

Fleck 5600sxt 48K.

 

[steppinthrax]

I'm starting a seperate thread with my settings, so more to come.

 

[LLigetfa]

For the time being, I would not put in so much salt so as to hide the level and the overflow. You need to be able to observe the brine level until you get the settings right.