Soft water
Let your house be free form limescale
Soft water
Let your house be free form limescale
Opens 09:00 - 17:00 - Monday to Thursday. -16:00 Friday
Salt Collection Box (Preorder required) - 07:00-19:00 Monday to Saturday.
How to turn a Softener on or off. By-passing a Softener.
In short: Turn the two blue valves leading to the water softener off, and open the third grey 'bypass valve'. This redirects water around the softener tank.
If your softener malfunctions, or you have a leak, you may need to turn it off. You may also need to isolate the electricity to an electric softener. A bypass valve is a valve which allows you to route the flow of water so that it 'skips' the water softener. If your water softener is in bypass or has the bypass valve open, you will not receive soft water throughout your home. We regularly see bypass valves left open after a boiler service or other plumbing works. Follow the hoses from the water softener back to the plumbing and check that the bypass valves are in the correct position. For installations carried out by us in the last 15 years or so we have used these types of valves:
Water Softener ON
The inlet and outlet are (blue levers) OPEN; the bypass (grey lever) is CLOSED. Switch ON transformer (if applicable).
Water Softener OFF
The inlet and outlet are (blue levers) CLOSED; the bypass (grey lever) is OPEN. Switch OFF transformer (if applicable).
15+ Year Old Installations
For installations over 15 years old, you may have a valve set that looks like the following. If you do, we strongly recommend getting these replaced due to natural decay!
Water Softener ON
The inlet and outlet valves are OPEN (the black line is inline with the pipe).
The bypass is SHUT (the black line is across the pipe).
Water Softener OFF
The inlet and outlet valves are SHUT (the black line is across the pipe).
The bypass is OPEN. (The black line is in line with the pipe).
We have seen bypass arrangements in all sorts of different types of plumbing valves, but the basic principle remains the same. Likewise, your electric softener may be 240V, so it may be just on a plug or fused spur. If the softener had been off, you may need to reset the time clock so it regenerates at the correct time of day. If you have an EcoWater Evolution softener, it'll reconnect to the internet and update automatically. If you are in any way unsure or would just like a refresher on how to, please do not hesitate to contact us.