Can You Use Water During Water Softener Regeneration

If your water softener were to regenerate while you were using water then your hot water heater will start to fill up with hard water followed by a series of unfortunate hard water events like white scaling on your dishes.

Can you use water during water softener regeneration. When a softener goes into regeneration the system goes on bypass meaning that the water being used at this time in the house has bypassed the water softener and is not softened water. Each of these phases performs a specific task for softening the water. The backwash recharge and rinsing phase. All whirlpool water softeners use demand initiated regeneration with salt saving technology so the system only recharges when necessary saving salt and water.

In other words your water is bypassed around the softener while it is cycling. During regeneration the softener cleans the treatment medium by reversing the. Many common water softeners use an autotrol control valve that has a series of flappers that control the water flow within the valve. In the backwash phase the dirt inside the mineral tank which translates as residue from the previous regeneration process is flushed out through the drain and outside the water softener.

If you use the hot water you will be refilling the hot water heater with hard water. During the regeneration cycle the resin beads are first being washed in the brine solution to replace the sodium ions that are lost over time and use replacing calcium and mangnesium ions. It is not recommended to use water during a water softener regeneration as hard water will fill the water heater which could lead to buildup in the equipment. As these flappers wear down over time their ability to stay closed will weaken.

A typical water softener takes about 85 to 90 minutes to run through its complete automatic regeneration cycle. However some use of water at that time will not harm the water softener. Using water during a water softeners regeneration cycle can allow water that is supposed to go down the drain to go into the home. The amount of water used during softener regeneration varies depending on the hardness of the water.

My water softener doesn t regenerate. With a single tank system you will get hard water during the regeneration process. Some softeners may use between 20 to 25 gallons of water during regeneration. This is why softeners are usually programmed to regenerate at 2am when it s unlikely anyone will use the water.

Fairly quickly after installing a water softener you should develop an understanding of its regeneration schedule. So yes you can use water during regeneration but it may have some undesirable results. Yes the systems use a lot of water during regeneration but they also save you water on things like laundry and washing dishes.