Culligan Soft-Minder 2005 - Manual (Page 7)

Introduction 7
The Culligan Process
Your Culligan water conditioner consists of three basic components, (A) the Control Valve, (B) the Mineral Tank, and (C) the Brine
System.
A. The exclusive Culligan control valve automatically performs a variety of tasks that are necessary for the proper operation of
your water conditioner. These tasks, commonly referred to as cycles or operating positions, are: Service, Regeneration, and
Brine Refill.
1. Service:
While the control valve is in the “Service cycle”, hard water is directed down through the column of Cullex® resin
where hardness minerals are removed from the water. The softened water is then directed into your household plumbing
lines. The ability of the Cullex resin to remove hardness minerals needs to be periodically replenished; this is referred to
as . . .
2. Regeneration: While the control valve is in the “Regeneration cycle”, water is first directed up through the column of
Cullex resin to flush accumulated sediment out of the resin and down the drain. Then, the regenerant brine solution is
slowly drawn from the bottom of the salt storage tank of the Brine System and is directed down through the column of
Cullex resin, restoring the ability of the resin to remove hardness minerals from your water supply. Once completed, the
regeneration cycle is followed by . . .
3. Brine Refill: While the control valve is in the “Brine Refill cycle”, a predetermined amount of water is directed to the salt
storage tank of the Brine System so that additional salt can be dissolved to provide the brine solution that will be needed
for the next regeneration cycle.
B. The exclusive Quadra-Hull ® Mineral Tank contains the Cullex resin column, Cullsan ® underbedding, and an outlet manifold.
The number of gallons of hard water that can be softened by the Cullex resin column before it needs regeneration is called
the “capacity” of the resin column, and depends upon the amount of hardness minerals in each gallon of water (expressed as
grains per gallon) and upon the amount of regenerant brine solution (expressed as pounds of salt) passed through the resin
column during regeneration.
Your Culligan service person, taking into account the hardness of your water and the amount of softened water your
household may reasonably expect to use each day, has carefully established how often the softener will regenerate and how
much salt will be used for each regeneration. This will ensure that all of your soft water needs will be fulfilled without using an
excessive amount of salt.
C. The Brine System consists of a salt storage container and hydraulic Dubl-Safe valve. The salt storage container holds the salt
that is used to make the regenerant brine solution. The hydraulic Dubl-Safe valve limits the amount of water that is returned to
the salt storage tank during the brine refill cycle.
Since a predetermined amount of salt is dissolved with each brine refill cycle, the salt must be periodically replenished in order
to maintain efficient operation. Your Culligan service person will be able to tell you about how often salt must be added to the
salt storage container.