Hello, having water softener problems and don't know what to do next. A quick, but long history - please bear with me.
Original softener that came with the house was a no name, separate bottle and brine tank.
Worked great for 10-12 years until the motor quit on the head. Replaced the unit with a GE Smartwater from the big box store. This one also worked great for about 9 years until the control panel quit working. I think the board corroded and the buttons no longer worked. Since it had been good, I replaced it with another GE Smartwater from the big box store. From day one, it put air in the lines after a recharge. Nice clean soft water, but lots of air. GE support was horrible, no help. Worked on the air check in the brine tank to make sure it was sealing, rechecked all connections, finally replaced the check/float assembly. No help, still got air. After fooling with it for a year, I got fed up and replaced it with a Water Boss 380 from another big box store. That was bigger mistake. The Water Boss, from day one, put rusty brown water into the system after a regeneration. Had to flush 20-30 gallons or more before it cleared up. Water was soft and clear after the flushing and stayed that way until the next regeneration cycle where it made a rusty mess again and had to be flushed. And, it also put air in the lines just like the GE. Very frustrated now, spent almost a year trying to resolve it. Nothing seemed to help. So, another big mistake, went to Lowes and bought a AO Smith softener. Did not realize until the top was off that the Water Boss and the AO Smith were the exact same unit in a different housing. After installing it, it works exactly like the Water Boss. Large amount of rusty water after the recharge, and air in the lines. Nice soft water, though. It's obvious that just stupidly throwing money at the problem isn't helping at all. Nothing in the water supply system has changed between the first and last softeners. There is a string type rust and sediment filter in the line before the softener and we use Morton regular and sometimes rust remover pellets. The filter has a clear housing, and watching while the regeneration is going I can see NO air bubbles coming in thru the supply line. Any help is appreciated.
Original softener that came with the house was a no name, separate bottle and brine tank.
Worked great for 10-12 years until the motor quit on the head. Replaced the unit with a GE Smartwater from the big box store. This one also worked great for about 9 years until the control panel quit working. I think the board corroded and the buttons no longer worked. Since it had been good, I replaced it with another GE Smartwater from the big box store. From day one, it put air in the lines after a recharge. Nice clean soft water, but lots of air. GE support was horrible, no help. Worked on the air check in the brine tank to make sure it was sealing, rechecked all connections, finally replaced the check/float assembly. No help, still got air. After fooling with it for a year, I got fed up and replaced it with a Water Boss 380 from another big box store. That was bigger mistake. The Water Boss, from day one, put rusty brown water into the system after a regeneration. Had to flush 20-30 gallons or more before it cleared up. Water was soft and clear after the flushing and stayed that way until the next regeneration cycle where it made a rusty mess again and had to be flushed. And, it also put air in the lines just like the GE. Very frustrated now, spent almost a year trying to resolve it. Nothing seemed to help. So, another big mistake, went to Lowes and bought a AO Smith softener. Did not realize until the top was off that the Water Boss and the AO Smith were the exact same unit in a different housing. After installing it, it works exactly like the Water Boss. Large amount of rusty water after the recharge, and air in the lines. Nice soft water, though. It's obvious that just stupidly throwing money at the problem isn't helping at all. Nothing in the water supply system has changed between the first and last softeners. There is a string type rust and sediment filter in the line before the softener and we use Morton regular and sometimes rust remover pellets. The filter has a clear housing, and watching while the regeneration is going I can see NO air bubbles coming in thru the supply line. Any help is appreciated.
