Backflush Issue - Help Needed

[whi52873]

I have a Culligan Water Softener and a Water-Right Calcium/Iron filter, both set to backflush automatically at 2 a.m. when needed. The issue is that every time they backflush, I wake up with no water in the house. I’m guessing that during the backflush, it’s using all the water in the house pipes, but that’s just my assumption. To get the water back on, I have to go outside, manually flip the pressure switch, and then everything works fine—until it backflushes again.

My current well system is setup like this:

• Submersible well pump, pumping into a storage tank
• Submersible pump in the storage tank (33 GPM, 1 HP)
• Pressure switch/gauge/pressure tank
• Water-Right Calcium/Iron Filter
• Culligan Water Softener

I had a low-pressure switch (the kind with the lever on the side) but replaced it last night with a Guardian CP Control. The pressure is set at 40/60, and I’ve confirmed the pressure in my tank is 38 PSI when the system is drained.

The system hasn’t backflushed since I installed the new pressure switch, so I don’t know if that will resolve the issue. But I have a feeling there might be another underlying problem.

Any idea what’s causing this or how to fix it? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Reach4]

I don't know your Guardian CP Control. Apparently the display would say E2 when you have a low pressure problem. Since the pump restarts an hour later, I guess you would have to be watching to see that.

https://assets.freshwatersystems.com/images/rf64tgrtd5knp5plevox/guardian-cp-manual.pdf indicates you could maybe raise the cut-in pressure from 40 to 42, so the pump starts sooner.

You can alternatively reduce your air precharge. Maybe 36 or 37 PSI. That would work with the lever switch, even.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Bannerman]

both set to backflush automatically at 2 a.m. when needed.

Both devices should not be set to cycle at the same time, as the softener could be attempting to regenerate while the backwashing filter unit is undergoing a backwash cycle, whereby both units would be competing for the water supplied from the cistern pump.

Depending on the time you normally depart for bed, after which is when little further water use will normally occur, you might program the filter unit to Backwash starting at 1am. As a filter BW cycle will typically be completed in less than 30-minutes, the Regen Time setting for the softener could remain programmed to start at 2am, with little concern with both cycling at the same time. A softener regeneration will often occur over approx 90+ minutes, but will normally require a significantly lower flow rate than needed to backwash/rapid rinse filtration media.

Water-Right Calcium/Iron Filter

Two very different processes for one filter unit to perform. Acid Neutralization (pH increase typically utilizing calcium carbonate) should be performed prior to any iron reduction media.

In reviewing the WR website (WR owned by AO Smith), I did not observe any units with that name. What is the actual model name for that unit?

 

[whi52873]

Both devices should not be set to cycle at the same time, as the softener could be attempting to regenerate while the backwashing filter unit is undergoing a backwash cycle, whereby both units would be competing for the water supplied from the cistern pump.

Depending on the time you normally depart for bed, after which is when little further water use will normally occur, you might program the filter unit to Backwash starting at 1am. As a filter BW cycle will typically be completed in less than 30-minutes, the Regen Time setting for the softener could remain programmed to start at 2am, with little concern with both cycling at the same time. A softener regeneration will often occur over approx 90+ minutes, but will normally require a significantly lower flow rate than needed to backwash/rapid rinse filtration media.


Two very different processes for one filter unit to perform. Acid Neutralization (pH increase typically utilizing calcium carbonate) should be performed prior to any iron reduction media.

In reviewing the WR website (WR owned by AO Smith), I did not observe any units with that name. What is the actual model name for that unit?

I am probably wrong in saying it is a calcium AND Iron filter. The previous homeowners probably said it was either a calcium or iron filter and I interpreted it as iron/calcium. I don't know much about how any of this works to be honest.

My Culligan Water Softener:
• Control, H/E Softener, Downflow 24VAC 50/60 Hz or 28VDC; 21.6 W (Model: 01023111)
• Tank Only - QH, 9x48, ACME, 1" Man, Port, 1.0 CF

My Iron or Calcium Filter:
• Water-Right Water Conditioner
• Model: IMS-1354-00-01-00-00-00-00
• Continuous Flow 22 GPM, 15 PSI

 

[Reach4]

• Water-Right Water Conditioner
• Model: IMS-1354-00-01-00-00-00-00
• Continuous Flow 22 GPM, 15 PSI

https://www.water-right.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/LIT-IMS-IMFE-1.pdf

It does not specify the media or a lot of other stuff, but it does seem to be primarily an iron filter.

 

[whi52873]

https://www.water-right.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/LIT-IMS-IMFE-1.pdf

It does not specify the media or a lot of other stuff, but it does seem to be primarily an iron filter.

Thank you @Reach4. I will stagger the regeneration times and see if that fixes the issue. Didn't even think about that.

 

[Bannerman]

The 1354 number, indicates your media tank size is 13" diameter X 54" tall, which is typically suitable for up to 2.5 cubic feet (ft3) of media.

The IMS designation, is specified as applying to an air injection unit which contains activated catalytic media (most likely Catalytic Carbon), mainly for the reduction of hydrogen sulfide (aka: H2S) (sulfur, the cause of rotten egg odor) from the well water. The oxygen within the air pocket at the top of the tank, is intended to first oxidize the dissolved sulfur, causing it to precipitate out from the water as solid particles, allowing them to be simply filtered out by the filtration media.

As the recommended backwash flow rate for carbon media is between 8 and 12 GPM per square foot, the appropriate backwash rate for a 13" diameter carbon tank will then be between 7.4 and 11 GPM. As a 9" softener will usually require an additional 2.0 GPM maximum during regeneration, if both had been cycling at the same time, the possible 13 gpm supplied by the pump, could explain the unusual low water pressure which is causing your cistern pump's low pressure switch to trigger.