Went to add salt to the softener yesterday and the bin the salt goes in was more than 3/4 full of water. Normally there is only some water in the bottom of the bin. I know nothing about softeners, so I’m wondering if that means something is messed up.
Tap on the layer of salt to see if the top has hardened up and is hollow underneath
Usually when a softener regenerates it back washes, then it draws brine from the salt tank, then it flushes the brine out and refills the brine tank. If the water level in the brine tank is suddenly higher than it used to be it sounds like the softener isn’t drawing brine like it’s supposed to. Might be time for some service.
Rootski
check the flush hose that goes to the drain mine got pinched a little bit at one of the hangers and did the same thing
If you reset the clock on it, you can start a cycle and watch if it works or not.
Quote:
Usually when a softener regenerates it back washes, then it draws brine from the salt tank, then it flushes the brine out and refills the brine tank. If the water level in the brine tank is suddenly higher than it used to be it sounds like the softener isn’t drawing brine like it’s supposed to. Might be time for some service.
Rootski
Hey Cullingan Man…. 
(Rookski should know) 
Most softeners I’ve seen have some sort of venturi that needs to be cleaned every now and again. Look in the owners manual or even on the cover for instructions on how to do this.
Thanks. Will check on the Ken Venturi and look for a pinched drain hose. After that, I’ll call for service if it doesn’t work.
This will run you threw how to clean a venturi on a north star water softer.
Try turning it off, unplug it overnight, and fire it up again the next day. Make sure to record your settings before you shut it down–you may have to reprogram it. Mine got stuck in the middle of the flush cycle a few months ago. I checked the valve body and the cam that drives it and it all looked fine. Something “electronic” got stuck. When I fired it back up it went through an initialization cycle and everything worked. I reprogrammed it and it has been working ever since. My diagnosis was stray photons…
Sounds like time for a new gasket set for the head. Pretty simple job. I’ve done half a dozen of them. Lots of good online info that shows the problem. You need a good seal to allow the venturi effect to draw brine up.
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