How to Repair a Water Softener | This Old House

Renewing an old water softener with This Old House plumbing and heating contractor Richard Trethewey. (See below for a shopping list and tools.)

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Richard and a local expert helped a pair of Florida homeowners repair a broken water softener. A plastic basket inside one of the tanks had ruptured, allowing "resin beads" to clog water pipes and fixtures inside the house. To fix the problem, they cleaned the inside of the tank and installed a new "control head" and resin beads.

Shopping List for How to Repair a Water Softener:
- control head, the electronic brains of the water softener
- manifold tube, carries water through water softener tank
- resin beads, used to attract calcium and other mineral deposits
- gravel, for filtering water at bottom of water-softener tank
- brine-solution tank, used to hold blocks of sodium
- electrical tape, used to temporarily seal manifold tube during rebuilding process
- PVC pipe and assorted fittings, primer and cement, used to make new plumbing connections

Tools for How to Repair a Water Softener:
- pliers and wrenches, for tightening threaded fittings
- PVC cutter, used to cut plastic pipe

Technical support was provided by Culligan Water Conditioning, Inc [culligan.com/]

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Homeowners have a virtual truckload of questions for us on smaller projects, and we're ready to answer. Ask This Old House solves the steady stream of home improvement problems faced by our viewers—and we make house calls! Ask This Old House features some familiar faces from This Old House, including Kevin O'Connor, general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, and landscape contractor Roger Cook.

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How to Repair a Water Softener | This Old House
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