Kenmore no brine draw

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olgt

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Interesting idea about "the hole behind the injector throat and nozzle" - I'll check it out, if I can find it ;-).

Here is my dilemma. Our local Sears in Minnesota does not seem to have any o-rings in stock so I have to wait for the shipment to come. For that reason I hesitated to remove the main valve assembly so far. I've done it before once so I know how to do it however is there any chance I can remove it w/out changing any o-rings? Or in order to look inside I have to have all kinds of o-rings prepared just to put in back together w/out any new leaks?

in re: second reply:
In terms of the drain, isn't the same drain line used by all of the cycles? I can see water flowing through very well in the wash and rinse cycles. The brine line is certainly a suspect but if it was blocked then turning bypass on and off wouldn't change the suction, would it? It does in my case.
 

Mialynette2003

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With a restricted drain, the backwash and fast rinse will pass because of the force behind the flow. With the brine draw, there is very little force so the water may cause back pressure and stop drawing. IMO, if the unit draws for awhile and then stops, there is nothing wrong with the valve or the venturi. The only time I have seen a unit draw then stop is when the drain is restricted. When you put it in bypass the drain relieves the pressure so when you put it back in service it starts to draw. Is the drain line run over head? If so, it will cause the same thing sometimes.
 

olgt

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I see - great point! I was just under impression that the backwash and fast rinse will flush anything from there. I have another line I can use so it will be a simple test to do. My drain line goes straight down from the valve and is attached to another drain pipe that runs to the drain at an angle. I'll definitely post my findings here. Thanks again!
 

olgt

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Checked the drain line: still no suction after a period of time

Checked the drain line by connecting the clear line to the drain hose adapter and confirming the steady flow to the drain. Still the same issue - good suction after bypass is activated and then deactivated right away, then gradual decrease with no suction in 30 mins or so.

Should I check the drain flow control now? If so how do I do that and what should I be looking for?

Also, question for Akpsdvan: where is the " hole behind the injector throat and nozzle that was loaded up with iron" located exactly? Does it apply to Kenmore?

Thanks again,
Paul
 

olgt

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olgt

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I've disconnected the hose adapter from the valve cover and it all looked alright to me. Should I try cleaning inside of the valve cover somehow?
 

Mialynette2003

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When you say it stops drawing after 30 min, do you have the brine line disconnected? In 22+ years, I have never heard or seen a unit stop drawing like you say unless the brine water is gone. Once it does stop do you get water dribbling out on the venturi?
 

olgt

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Thanks again for looking into this issue!

I have my brine line in a separate bucket with the salt so I can check the suction by hand. After I activate and deactivate the bypass in the brine mode I can feel a good suction at the end of the brine line. It then gradually decreases until no suction can be felt after about 30 mins. When the suction stops I can activate and deactivate the bypass again and have brine sucked in for another half an hour or so.

The brine line end is under the water and no water is dripping from the venture or the valve assembly. Also the water flow to the drain is about the same after suction stops. I assume it's the clean water from the house water pipe that enters the softener and venturi to create suction.

The only thing that I can think of is that some hole that the brine is supposed to be sucked through under pressure created by the incoming water is plugged and that causes hard water from the water pipe (instead of the brine) to go through the softener instead.

Other possibility is the brine line that is connected to the venturi. When suction at the end of the brine line stopped I've disconnected the brine line from the venturi and I felt some suction there. Whether it was enough suction to pull the brine up I'm not sure. But how would the bypass trick change things if the brine line was plugged? And why would it take 30 mins?

I appreciate your advice!

Thanks again,
Paul

P.S. I've found this link that has some info most of which was already covered in this thread but not all: http://www.softenerparts.com/kb_results.asp?ID=36
 
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olgt

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Suction restored after venturi gasket is replaced

I'd like to post an update on my adventure. I've decided to order the seal kit and the venturi gasket from http://www.softenerparts.com/kb_results.asp?ID=36. I then compared the new venturi gasket with the old one - here are the pictures of the old one : https://picasaweb.google.com/115737...erVenturiGasket?authkey=Gv1sRgCK3AqO_d39b9gAE. I did not really see any major differences aside from the inprint of the venturi on the old gasket. Other than that it was not worn, cracked, or "dried out". However when I replaced the gasket that made a huge difference - the brine suction increased dramatically and the suction level stayed the same through out the whole brine cycle. I guess I have underestimated the wear of the gasket and how it should look. I did not use the seal kit yet.

I have another question. I've removed the flow plug from the venturi (.15 gpm) as was suggested in this and a number of other posts. My kenmore 275 softener stays in the brine mode for 133 minutes. If the brine is sucked out faster than in 133 minutes then the brine float will go down and the float seal will stop the brine suction ensuring that the 3 inches of water remains in the brine tank. What is the ideal scenario? Does it matter if the brine is sucked through the resin faster or slower? Could it affect the quality of the resin cleanup in the brine cycle? In other words, should I try putting the venturi flow plug back or not?

Thanks again,
Paul
 

lemsworth

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I had low/weak suction from the venturi nozzle on my Whirlpool (similar model to many GE, Kenmore, Sears) which was causing high water in my brine tank. I took apart the venturi and the entire control valve on the top of the resin tank and cleaned them thoroughly. My gaskets looked good, and I could not figure out what the problem was. Finally ran some Iron-out through the system, and it went right back to working perfectly.


Checked the drain line by connecting the clear line to the drain hose adapter and confirming the steady flow to the drain. Still the same issue - good suction after bypass is activated and then deactivated right away, then gradual decrease with no suction in 30 mins or so.

Should I check the drain flow control now? If so how do I do that and what should I be looking for?

Also, question for Akpsdvan: where is the " hole behind the injector throat and nozzle that was loaded up with iron" located exactly? Does it apply to Kenmore?

Thanks again,
Paul
 

allstarme

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New to this forum. First post.

I'm at a total loss. I've taken the entire valve assembly apart, cleaned all parts (soaked most of them in iron out), replaced every single o-ring. Replaced the Venturi gasket. Meticulously put the whole thing back together (I'm an architect, so i'm confident in my ability to follow the schematics and assemble the parts correctly).

I'm still not getting any suction whatsoever.

I've checked the drain line (have a clear hose running straight down to the drain so I can see it flowing, drain flow plug is clean).

I've run it with every combination of Venturi flow plug in/out. (My model has two, one .3gpm, one .1 gpm).

Still no suction.

I tried taking the bribe assembly apart, blowing through the line to ensure it was clear, and then placed the end of the hose in a bucket of clean water. Still no suction.

I'm out of ideas. Anyone have any insight for me?

Cheers,
Jake
 
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