Softener sizing

[Toneloc]

Hi Guys:

I have done some searching in this forum and have learned a bit from previous discussion.

We are on well water with supply pressure 30-60 PSIG. Have lived in house 2.5 years, and had water tested twice through Penn State, with consistent results.

Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) 190 mg/L
Total Hardness of 167 mg/L or 10 gpg
Iron = .16 mg/l
Mn = < 0.01 mg/l
Ca = 47.4 mg/l
Mg = 12.5 mg/l
Total Alkalinity = 152.2 mg CaCO3/l

In general our water is very good, no issues with taste or smell.

The only issue we have is white hard deposits in items like dishwasher, shower heads, and sink sprayers.

Looking to address this issue with a water softener.

Me & Wife + 3 kids = 5 people.

Probably not quite at 70 gallons per person yet, but imagine our water usage will go up as my kids get older.

Ditto has me convinced on a down flush system for reliability.

I'm thinking the Fleck 5600SXT ....

How many CF system would you recommend at what backwash interval?

Thanks.
Tony

 

[Reach4]

You want 1.5 cubic ft of resin giving an expected regeneration interval of around 7 to 9 days at 11 grains including iron compensation. You want a "demand" softener, which means it has a meter. By monitoring the meter some, you might adjust what your reserve setting should be. You are thinking 350 reserve, but you may find that you actually use less than that per day.

I would want a #0 Injector - Red injector (Fleck parts 10913-0 and 10914-0 both), which is a little lower than the one they might provide if you did not bring it up. A #00 Injector - Violet would also be very good, but might call for a few more minutes of brine draw time. A #1 Injector - White is acceptable but not optimum. A #2 Injector - Blue is oversized in my opinion. If you get agreement for the injector of your choice, I would check inside.

5600SXT is good for 3/4 inch plumbing IMO, but there are newer ones that are readily available, but are behind the counter a bit. One of the advantages of the newer units is that they refill the brine tank with softened water. That means more years between cleanings of the brine tank. I opted for the 5810 SXT even though it cost more and I had to adapt to my 3/4 plumbing. It would startle you if you were near it when it starts to regen. The 5600sxt has a much more gradual start.

You would want to get a ResUP or ResCare dispenser, or use iron-treating salt I think. The inside of your toilet tanks is rust orange I presume. You also want gravel... 14 to 15 pounds.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Toneloc]

Thanks for the quick reply. We don't have much for iron issues, but read up on the gravel and sounds like no disadvantage. I can get a 20# pail for $20 @ my local plumbing supply house.

What are your thoughts on the brine tank sizing. My basement is finished (not by me) and they skimped on my utility room. The 14" x 14" square brine tank would fit nice.

If it's a major disadvantage, I could get creative and fit the 18" x 33" or 40"....just more work as I'd have to move a small wall and do some drywall work....

 

[Reach4]

If it's a major disadvantage, I could get creative and fit the 18" x 33" or 40"....just more work as I'd have to move a small wall and do some drywall work....

I think my nominal 15 x 17, which measures 14 x 16 without the lid, is plenty big, and takes up less floor space than many. On the other hand, you might have to fill that up 4 times per year, figuring you will use around 365 to 575 pounds of salt per year. I don't fill mine full up, so the structural advantage of a round tank is not important to me. See https://view.publitas.com/impact-water-products/2018-catalog-final/page/132 for a nice table of dimensions and capacities.

 

[Toneloc]

I ended up going with the 5810 SXT and the 15x17 as well. Have off next week, so hopefully will find time to get it installed.

I did a flow GPM check at my accumulator with my pump running and I was getting at least 15 GPM, so that made up my mind to go with the full 1" porting on the 5810...

Thanks for the help.

 

[PumpMd]

I did a flow GPM check at my accumulator with my pump running and I was getting at least 15 GPM, so that made up my mind to go with the full 1" porting on the 5810...

What are your flow rates on a 1" porting from a 5810 valve with 30psi?

Is your lower 30psi going to enough to work on your type of plumbing pipe after the softener? Is this in a basement going up 1-3 floors? Every 2.31' in elevation is 1psi Loss


Every plumber should have flow charts and friction loss charts. Not only on the type of pipe being used but also adding in any tee(s) or elbows in your plumbing run, so that you can calculate your PSI losses going to a fixture. Your fixture needs to be your flow restrictor (not your plumbing line till at the end of your run), so your not limited on how many things you want to run at the same time. Less stress on your plumbing lines due to the lower flow velocities inside your pipe till at the end of your run where it matters the most to speed things up for the fixture to get velocity. Every notice the noise from a faucet? The flow of water isn't that noisey, it's the flow of water hitting the ground or something else that is creating most of the noise. Put your thumb on the end of a garden hose to reduce your flow and your going to crate more flow velocity going out of the garden hose, the same thing as a faucet inside your house.

Your charts should be similar to my charts but you need to find one on your type of pipe being used. It's because of the ID sizes on different types of pipe.