Whole House water filter system

[Rmk9785e]

The Flint, Michigan water problems are probably making everyone more cautious about the quality of their water supply. I started looking at the systems at my house. When I called the company whose name is on a sticker, I was told that I have a whole house water filter system and a water softener in addition to an under-sink 4 cartridge water filtering system.
This whole house system (photo attached) came with the house we bought 4 years ago. Beside these cylinders, there is also a black plastic drum with a cover which I suppose is for softener salt but there is no connection to that drum. Of course, the refrigerator has its own filter that we replace periodically.
Even though the label on these two tall cylinders says "Classic Water Treatment System", there is no part number on either. I'm told this company has gone out of business. So I'm seeking advice about what to do with these contraptions.
This system has been unplugged from power and its valve has been closed so the cold water supply must be bypassing it. We haven't had any noticeable problems with water hardness (laundry/soap use/cooking).
a- Is there any benefit to replacing its filter, plugging it in and turning it on?
b- If it filters water for the whole house, why should it be on a timer and not running all the time?
c- Where do I find any documentation to learn the part number of filters to be ordered and how to replace?

Secondly, the under-sink RO filter is a HydroTech SmartTap system with a test button/light. It always shows green (good) even though we haven't changed filters for 4 years. Does it really last that long or is the testing gizmo useless? I have downloaded the manual for it. The sanitation process is quite involved and I am wondering if it is worth keeping.

Thank you for your assistance.

 

[Reach4]

That softener controller looks like a Fleck 5600 Econominder. See http://www.softenerparts.com/Fleck_5600_Valve_and_Parts_s/30.htm
There is a link to the service manual on that page.
The tank to the left appears to only have a water in and water out, and no controls. Is that what you see? What does the label say?

What is the direction of flow? The flow of water through the softener is right to left as you face the unit.

The black horizontal tubing attached to the wall is probably the drain line.

 

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[Rmk9785e]

That softener controller looks like a Fleck 5600 Econominder. See http://www.softenerparts.com/Fleck_5600_Valve_and_Parts_s/30.htm
There is a link to the service manual on that page.
The tank to the left appears to only have a water in and water out, and no controls. Is that what you see? What does the label say?

What is the direction of flow? The flow of water through the softener is right to left as you face the unit.

The black horizontal tubing attached to the wall is probably the drain line.

Thank you for correctly identifying the Fleck 5600 Econominder as the water softener. Yes, there are no controls on the tank on the left and it looks like I may be able to open it by rotating is clockwise. Probably it has a filter cartridge in it which would make it the so called 'whole house filter'. The label on both is almost identical except for the serial number. It has a table of Flow Rate (9.0, 6.0, 5.0) and associated Pressure Loss (15.0, 10.7, 6.0) values. Direction of flow is from the 5600 to the other tank and from there to the house plumbing. I've included a photo from above.
What would make an ideal whole house water filtration system?

 

[Reach4]

Tell us about your water.

If city water, point to the water department website.

Regarding that mystery tank, you have a pair of unions. You could potentially wobble that away from the wall, and unscrew the top CCW. See what is inside. Could be granulated carbon. Could be calcite that is all consumed.

Since there is not control, maybe that is an upflow something or other. In that case you could put the softener in bypass, and consume 5 to 7 GPM of water that could backwash that media. On the other hand, it may be time to replace that media. GAC is good for about 3 to 5 years I think.

If the softener is not working well after you hook up the brine tank and regen a couple of times, it might need new resin. Measure the tanks. Is that softener 54 high (floor to where it meets the controller) x 10 diameter or what??

 

[blu325]

oopsy!! :/

 

[Rmk9785e]

Tell us about your water.

If city water, point to the water department website.

Regarding that mystery tank, you have a pair of unions. You could potentially wobble that away from the wall, and unscrew the top CCW. See what is inside. Could be granulated carbon. Could be calcite that is all consumed.

Since there is not control, maybe that is an upflow something or other. In that case you could put the softener in bypass, and consume 5 to 7 GPM of water that could backwash that media. On the other hand, it may be time to replace that media. GAC is good for about 3 to 5 years I think.

If the softener is not working well after you hook up the brine tank and regen a couple of times, it might need new resin. Measure the tanks. Is that softener 54 high (floor to where it meets the controller) x 10 diameter or what??

Please accept my apologies for late response.
The softener is 55" high x 9" diameter and the filter is 49" high x 8" diameter. Water flows from the softener to the filter tank and then to the house. Since the Softener has been in bypass mode for 6+ years, we're lucky we didn't have any known health problems with the filter being unattended.
The mystery was solved when I called the contractor who I learned was maintaining water systems in this home. It is a whole house water filter. The contractor said these are so old that they are not willing to maintain them anymore. They said the same about the RO system under the kitchen sink. I have replaced all cartridges in that system and properly pressured the storage tank.
I am concerned about our water passing through that un-maintained whole house filter and am thinking of removing it by putting together a bypass in its place. Here is the latest City Water Quality report from 2016.
Should I remove both tanks in the garage?
Should I install a whole house water filter system?
Your advice please!

 

[Reach4]

The thing with a red handle is a bypass for the softener, and it is in bypass.

You should have a softener. I don't know what the smaller tank is that follows the softener is. It could be GAC, but that would typically be before the softener.

I think you need a softener. Your hardness can go as high as 340 ppm (20 grains) even though the average is less. A 1.5 cubic ft softener, with 10% crosslinked resin, would be good for up to 3 people. If that is 3/4 plumbing (7/16 OD) you could use a Fleck 5600SXT controller with demand metering. You could test the water occasionally if you want to set the Hardness setting according to the seasonal change, or you could leave the setting for max.

I saw "hexavalent chromium". You are under the mcl, but I think your RO is a good idea. You should feed the RO unit with softened water.

I would get a new TDS meter for checking the RO. They are cheap.

I would put in a whole house cartridge filter. I like the Fleck Big Blue 20x4.5 housings. Change the cartridge once per year, unless it develops much pressure drop.

Somebody might suggest that you could move that small tank to before the new softener, and put new GAC in it. It is probably set up for upflow, and you could do a backwashing equivalent by running water at a high rate through the unit every few weeks. Or maybe you don't need it.

 

[Rmk9785e]

Thank you again for your prompt response. A few more questions:
Is there a site where I can learn about terms like 'regen' , 'backwash' and 'crosslinked resin' because I'm not familiar with water filteration/treatment technologies?
Are there other options for softening other than using salt? Are they better?
Is a water softener something a reasonably handy person can install himself?
If I wish to put a large enough system for future residents of this 4/5 bedroom home, what size system should I acquire?

 

[Reach4]

s there a site where I can learn about terms like 'regen' , 'backwash' and 'crosslinked resin' because I'm not familiar with water filteration/treatment technologies?

http://www.nasalt.com/media/filer_private/2011/04/11/website_water_softening_guide_opt.pdf seems like a good overview.

Are there other options for softening other than using salt? Are they better?

Yes. Definately not, presuming that effectiveness and cost are important.

 

[Rmk9785e]

Thank you for a great primer on water softening.
Would I be looking for a 3 Cu Ft water softener for double the number of residents?

 

[Reach4]

Thank you for a great primer on water softening.
Would I be looking for a 3 Cu Ft water softener for double the number of residents?

2-1/2 cubic ft seems to be often used when you want a big one. 13" x 54" 2.50 cu. ft. ( nominal 80,000 grains )

Even a 2 cuft softener would do OK, but it would not be as efficient. The rule of thumb is that the softener should regenerate normally once a week or longer. The reason is that when you regen, you leave about 1/2 day of capacity unused on average. So 0.5/7 (about 7%) is not so much. It is not a hard limit, but a good guide.

If the bigger water use was only periodic, then that would not be a big deal. In that case, a 1.5 would be good.

If you were to change your hardness setting with the seasons, using your own softness test, you could save salt too. Most of the time your water will be a mix rather than worst case, and during wetter times, the hardness will be lower.

 

[Rmk9785e]

I did something I should've done at the start. I tested water with my own kit from a faucet on the supply line about 30 days ago and again this week. Both times it is showing hardness of less than 3. I'm starting to question why the previous owner installed the softener in the first place.

 

[Rmk9785e]

Have been testing my water hardness and it has never gone above 4. I don't have any hard water stains on anything. We use the under-the-sink RO system for drinking and cooking.
I'm thinking of removing the softener that has been in bye-passed mode for 7 years and the filter that has not been maintained along with it.
Considering our city water quality report, do we even need a whole house filter for anything else? If we need one, which one should we buy?

 

[Rmk9785e]

I would put in a whole house cartridge filter. I like the Fleck Big Blue 20x4.5 housings. Change the cartridge once per year, unless it develops much pressure drop.

When a whole house cartridge filter is installed, should it be with 1 micron filter or 5 micron filter? Should the filter housing be transparent so one can visually determine if filter replacement is due or just get the blue housing and do it once a year?