Water Softener Vent Question

Hello,
Softener is going in finished walk out basement with no floor drain. Builder installed wet bar with pump (that you can see in the pics) and this is where the softener will go. Question is what is the best way to drain the softener? Can it be tied into the vent/drain for the wet bar and then be pumped out or are there better options? Washing machine stand pipe is not a good option as it is two stories up. Just looking for some advice so I know what to expect when I call a plumber. Thanks in advance

It can be connected above the trap on the bar sink with a dishwasher wye, but eventually the pump will fail and you will have a flood.

Thanks for the input. If it's not a good idea to connect to the bar pump what are some other options? Just curious, how much water is typically discharged from a softener? Thanks

Judging by the tank, I'm guessing you're on a well. If so, are you also on a septic tank/field? Around here, we don't run our softener drains into the septic tank. We have separate grey water disposal systems. My softener drains into my sump pit for the perimeter drain. The perimeter drain system has enough storage capacity that in the event the sump pump failed, it would not flood from the amount of water used by the softener regen.

Check code in your area WRT where softeners can drain.

Back to the issue....all three of the white pipes connected to the sump..have sewer gas present in them, so you can't just open that up to tie in the softener. It must tie in above a trap, via an air break.

Agreed with person who said dont drain those into a septic field. As to how to connect to drain tho, Cut into the PVC above the tee where the bar sink ties in. (the dry vent section of the pipe).. Install another tee and a P trap. Add a hub drain to the P trap inlet (basically increase the size of the P trap inlet to make it kinda like a funnel) Drain the softener into this trap using an indirect connection method. This could be an air gap device, or simply making sure the discharge line from softener is held securely several inches ABOVE the hub drain and can not contact the drain under ANY circumstance. I would also want to be sure as to the volume of discharge from the softener. my experience is that they drain slowly and not in huge volumes.. but I have no idea what yours is gonna do. All that matters tho is that the discharge doesnt over run the pipe and the pump you are draining into.

liquidplumber said:

I would also want to be sure as to the volume of discharge from the softener. my experience is that they drain slowly and not in huge volumes.. but I have no idea what yours is gonna do. All that matters tho is that the discharge doesnt over run the pipe and the pump you are draining into.

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Backwash rate is controlled by the BWFC which varies by model, typically between 1.5 and 5 GPM. I'm not sure though if the fast-rinse-and-pack rate is faster than the backwash rate. One could always run it into a plastic rain barrel that can buffer any surge and then drains at whatever rate.

In my former home, the installer ran it into a 1-1/2" P-trap with a foot of standpipe. It was in a dirt floor crawlspace so an overflow would not have mattered but I don't think it ever overflowed. It did however drain to the septic tank.

The chloride from the drain can and will kill some vegetation that is not salt tolerant, so be careful where it ends up. In my case, it is diluted enough most of the time but during times of drought, the trees do show some browning on the leaves and a couple of them died because of it.

LLigetfa mentions a foot of standpipe on the trap, which is fine, but the important part is that if the sewer system backs up to overflow that the waste water can in no way contact the drain of the softener and possibly run sewer water into the softener. Thats why you have an air gap, or air gap device.
As for septic system, i am clearly not a septic expert, but I cant imagine that any of the salt or chlorine or any other chemicals are good for the bacterial process that must be maintained in order for septic system to work properly. Over time what happens is that the bacteria in the tank are killed or reduced in number to where they cant eat the solids that flow into the tank. the solids then flow out of the tanks and into the leach feild area and choke down the leach bed. The solids form a slick scum coat that your waste water cannot penetrate and leach back into the ground. The water then starts to come up in the yard. (yuck) cause it has no where else to go. your leach feild is ruined now and your screwed. But hey, you can have a glass of nice soft water while you write a check to the septic installer whos putting your new leach feild in...lol

Thank you for the replies but now I am more confused on the best options. My main question is if it is properly drained into the pump w/ a trap/staqndpipe is that o.k.? But I now fear that the pump fails at 0200 causing a mess, that's why I was asking how much water a softener actually drains. I turn on the wet bar sink full hot/cold and the pump has no problems keeping up with the discharge. As far as discharging softener into the septic, researching shows two different opinions. Many say its o.k. and many are set against it, both sides with data to support. Last question, why "wouldn't" the builder have put in a floor drain to the sump pit (12 feet away)? My hot water heater relief valve has nowhere to go and the furnace has a condensation pump with a hose plumbed outside. It's a new house, wouldn't a floor drain made things easy?

homerdog said:

Last question, why "wouldn't" the builder have put in a floor drain to the sump pit (12 feet away)? My hot water heater relief valve has nowhere to go and the furnace has a condensation pump with a hose plumbed outside. It's a new house, wouldn't a floor drain made things easy?

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Surely youre not serious when you ask why wouldnt the builder put something in?..... um Money maybe? lol.

Where I live you couldnt pipe a floor drain to a sump pit, the floor drain would have to be connected to the building drain which in your case would mean at a minimum adding a pump like you did for your bar sink. So again, added costs to the builder would stop that dead in its tracks.

In reading replies from other folks it would seem to me that there is a way to figure out what that softener is gonna dump by reading the manual or going online, and that seems logical to me. Also, knowing a little more about the pump and basin that the bar sink drains to might give a better idea as to whether it will handle the discharge.

Dont get frazzled, theres an answer to this stuff.