Sears KENMORE 625.34845 - Manual (Page 14)

CARE OF YOUR SOFTENER
SECTION 3
14
3A. SALT
…
REFILLING STORAGE TANK/BREAKING A SALT BRIDGE
WHEN TO REFILL WITH SALT: Check the salt
level a few weeks after you install the softener and
every week after that. Refill when the storage
tank is about 1/3 full. Never let the softener use
all the salt before refilling. Without salt, you will
soon have hard water.
IMPORTANT:
You will have a loss in softening capacity and
may get partly hard water if less than 10
inches of salt is in the storage tank.
PLEASE SEE PAGE 9 FOR SALT FILLING DIRECTIONS.
SALT BRIDGE
Sometimes, a hard crust or salt bridge forms in the
salt storage tank. It is usually caused by high
humidity or the wrongkind of salt. When the salt
bridges, an empty space forms between the water
and salt. Then salt will not dissolve (melt) in the
water to make brine. Without brine, the resin bed
does not regenerate and you will have hard water.
If the storage tank is full of salt, it is hard to tell if
you have a salt bridge. Salt is loose on top, but the
bridge is under it. The following is the best way to
check for a salt bridge.
Salt should be loose all the way to the bottom of
the tank. Hold a broom handle, or like tool, up to
the softener as shown in FIG. 9. Make a pencil
mark on the handle, 1 ″ or 2 ″ below the top height
of the rim, as shown. Then, carefully push it
straight down into the salt. If a hard object is felt
before the pencil mark gets to the top of the tank,
it's most likely a salt bridge. Carefully push into the
bridge in a few places to break it. Do not try to
break the salt bridge by pounding on the
outside of the salt tank. You may damage it.
If the wrongkind of salt made the bridge, take it
out. Then fill the tank with nugget or pellet salt
only.
FIG. 9 SALT BRIDGE
Broom Handle
push tool into salt
bridge to break
Salt
Salt Bridge
Water Level
Pencil
Mark
1” – 2”