Is your water softener making a whole bunch of noises that you are unfamiliar with? If this is the case, you should be aware that something may well be wrong with your unit.
So do water softeners make noise? Yes, water softeners make noise and can get loud when their component parts start wearing out. While not strictly noiseless, water softeners are not really supposed to function at an obnoxiously loud level.
If your water softener is currently operating at a volume that doesn’t sit well with you, it may be due to a number of causes. These could include, but may not be limited to, the following:
- Valves wearing out
- The alarm on the unit sending out a warning
- The motor of the unit beginning to show signs of wear and tear
- Valves beginning to stick
- Pistons starting to stick
- Gears wearing out or breaking
- Cracks appearing in the fittings
- Cracks appearing in the hoses
- The wrong amount of water pressure going into or out of the unit
If your system is beginning to show signs of wear or tear, it may well be making one or more of these noises. It’s a good idea to get your water softener checked out by an expert as soon as possible. A course of preventative maintenance at the right time can save you a great deal of time, energy, and money in the months to come.
Is Water Softener Regeneration Loud?
There is no reason that your water softener should ever run at an excessively loud or annoying volume. It is true that no such unit will ever be completely silent. After all, there are natural sounds that the unit will not be able to avoid making. These will be sounds from the motor, water running, gears turning, and other sources.
If your water softener unit is making an excessive amount of noise, it may be due to a serious malfunction. You will need to give your softener a good looking over to find the cause of the problem and quickly correct it.
Can a Water Softener Explode?
There are a number of factors that can cause your water softener to explode. Most of these will be due to the pressure valve being clogged up. If there is too much heat and pressure in your unit, it could explode. This could lead to serious injury and, at the very least, the total loss of the unit.
It’s a very good idea to perform maintenance checks on your water softener on a regular basis. The purpose of these checks should be to make sure that you are keeping a close eye on the amount of water, salt, heat, and pressure that reside within your unit. If any of these factors are out of proportion, clean out your unit immediately.
How To Fix a Loud Water Softener
It shouldn’t take a great deal of effort, time, or cash outlay to fix your loud water softener. Unless your unit is at the end of its life cycle, a repair should take an hour or so at the most. It’s a good idea to keep a sharp eye on the performance of your unit so that you can spot any potential issues and quickly neutralize them.
Clean Out the Salt Tank
You will first need to check that the salt in your tank has not formed a hard crusty layer. This salt damage can come as a result of adding too much salt or doing so on too many occasions. If there is a salt deposit, you can use a broomstick to break it up. You can then gather it up in a bag and get rid of it.
If there is any residue left over, you can use a vacuum to get rid of it. After the excess salt is out, clean the tank with soap and water. Repeat the operation until ass of the brine and resulting sediment have been cleaned out. After you have finished, a quick rinse will restore the tank to a pristine condition.
Clean Excess Iron Out of Your Resin Bed
You will need to make sure that the water in your tank does not contain an excessive amount of iron. If this is the case, the iron will eventually contaminate the resin bed. This is the area that removes hard water particles in order to replace them with fresh sodium.
If you have any problems with excess iron, you can use Iron-Out to clean out the system. Make sure to add the correct amount of this solution to the brine tank. After you have done so, you can run your water softener through its manual regeneration feature. This will rid the unit of any waste water that has been left over.
Performing this operation is easy. Just take off the cover from your control valve. You then need to locate the regeneration knob. Once you find it, you can then use a flat bladed screwdriver to push the knob down. You will then turn it counterclockwise to the setting that is marked “service.”
Clean Out Your Resin Tank Injector
The resin tank injector in your unit may occasionally get clogged up by sediment that is the residue of soiled salt. You can clean it out by using the bypass valve on your unit in order to shut off the flow of water. You can then relieve the pressure by setting your unit to run through its included manual regeneration cycle.
You will need to remove the caps that are located on either side of the head on your unit. Once you have done so, clean the injector that is located on the right side of the head. Then clean up the injector screen that is located on the left side. Once you have completed this task, your water softener should run smoothly with no noise.