Emptying water softener salt storage tank

[DFMeer]

Unbeknownst to me, my softener stopped working sometime in the last 4 months, and was not able to remove all the water from the salt storage tank. Therefore, about the bottom 18 inches of salt has turned to mush. I would like to clean out the tank and rinse it with hot water to dissolve any remaining mush.

Are there any recommendations as to how to do that or not do that? I think I've got everything else working, but don't want to start it up for fear of the mush clogging things up again.

The softener is a Kenmore, about 6 years old.

Thanks for the help!

[Gary Slusser]

If it sucks brine out of the tank, then you wouldn't have to get rid of the "mush". I think it isn't sucking brine though.

To learn more aobut your softener's operation, check out:
http://www.kenmorewater.com/animations/animations.html

Gary
Quality Water Associates

[DFMeer]

Thanks for the feedback, Gary. In trying to restore the vacuum, I've taken apart and cleaned/lubricated (non-petroleum) the nozzle/venturi assembly three times and still am not successful.

The last time I found some greenish, rubbery gunk accumulating at the gasket and completely filling the cone screen. I removed it from the screen, but am wondering if that is gasket adhesive, or just an accumulation of bad things from the water.

Should I completely remove all the gunk so the gasket is moving freely?

Thanks for the great forum!

[Gary Slusser]

Sorry, I don't work on your brand but the troubleshooting animation in the link above should tell you just what to do. Especially check out the disc and figure 8 gasket, it sounds as if you may need a new one of each along with the other parts in the kit.

For your brand, six years is on the far side of it's service free life... For a replacement softener, look for one with the Clack WS-1 or Fleck 7000SE control valve.

Gary
Quality Water Associates

[SteveW]

Follow Gary's advice -- either replace with one of the recommended units, or go to the Kenmore site he cited and go through the animations. That's what I did to fix my 9 year old Kenmore softener. Ended up replacing both the venturi gasket and the rotor disc.

You will also need to clean out all the mushy salt. You can scoop out as much as you can manually, and use a wet/dry vac to get a fair amount out as well. You can also pour a few gallons of warm water in the tank to help dissolve it before you suck it out.

[FJK]

Following Steve W 's advice on replacing the rotor disc & seal, I think I have a functioning system now. I also have excessive water in the brine tank. After reading this post & going to the Kenmore website, I can see how to get rid of the excess water. Obviously fix the water softner so it will pull brine. Then manually cycle the water softner to the brine position. Once it is in the brine position, unplug the transformer from the wall outliet, Now the softner will stay in the brine cycle. Keep it there until it removes all water from the brine tank. The Kenmore website suggests 30 minutes. Then plug the unit back in (electrically) and you are done.

[SteveW]

Good!

I thought the Kenmore site idea of unplugging the transformer was a really smart one-- I wouldn't have thought of that!