RobNesius
New Member
Shortly after moving into my home I noticed my water softener wasn't using any salt. I looked all over for an indication of a brand to no avail, in part because I think the back of the box for the control surface is missing, but some web-searches have lead me to conclude it must be a fleck valve. It's a metered system and it's not digital - it has the complicated interlocking gears and turn-knob. I think it's the original softener system installed in the early 1990s.
I called the company on the installer-sticker and he confirmed all of the modes were working fine, and if I manually set it to recharge it will go through a cycle just fine - it just never starts recharging on its own. The service tech thought the problem might be a bad in-line flow-meter that spins as water goes by and slowly turns a little gear on the bottom-right of the front-panel. After unsuccessfully trying to sell me a new system he replaced that part and went on his merry way. Alas, I paid $175 for a visit and part that left the system as broken as it was before the guy showed up.
I've also noticed while walking by the unit when it's due to recharge that I hear a little buzzing sound from what I think is the electrical motor on back of the unit. And when I put my hand on it, it's very warm to the touch, which has me suspicious that little motor is trying to do some work and not having any luck. So it might be a bad motor? The only reason that seems slightly odd to me is that when I turn the unit to "recharge" it then cycles through the rest of the modes - I'm not sure if the motor moves the dial/gears at that point or not. If not, then a bad motor makes sense. If the motor is active in those other modes, then it doesn't make sense for the motor to be the problem with the system not starting at all.
Any thoughts/suggestions appreciated, including advice about whether or not I should just replace the system and get a new resin/charging tank, advice on where to order a replacement motor, or further diagnostic steps/questions.
I called the company on the installer-sticker and he confirmed all of the modes were working fine, and if I manually set it to recharge it will go through a cycle just fine - it just never starts recharging on its own. The service tech thought the problem might be a bad in-line flow-meter that spins as water goes by and slowly turns a little gear on the bottom-right of the front-panel. After unsuccessfully trying to sell me a new system he replaced that part and went on his merry way. Alas, I paid $175 for a visit and part that left the system as broken as it was before the guy showed up.
I've also noticed while walking by the unit when it's due to recharge that I hear a little buzzing sound from what I think is the electrical motor on back of the unit. And when I put my hand on it, it's very warm to the touch, which has me suspicious that little motor is trying to do some work and not having any luck. So it might be a bad motor? The only reason that seems slightly odd to me is that when I turn the unit to "recharge" it then cycles through the rest of the modes - I'm not sure if the motor moves the dial/gears at that point or not. If not, then a bad motor makes sense. If the motor is active in those other modes, then it doesn't make sense for the motor to be the problem with the system not starting at all.
Any thoughts/suggestions appreciated, including advice about whether or not I should just replace the system and get a new resin/charging tank, advice on where to order a replacement motor, or further diagnostic steps/questions.
