Water Softener Installation in Washington, IL

What Does a Water Softener Do, and What Does It Not Do?

A softener removes the minerals that make water hard, mainly calcium and magnesium. It does this with a bed of resin beads that trade those minerals for sodium or potassium. When the beads fill up, the unit flushes itself with salty water from the brine tank and starts over. That cycle is called regeneration.

What it does not do matters just as much:

• It does not remove bacteria, nitrate, lead or chlorine.
• It does not filter out sediment.
• It handles only small amounts of iron.
• It does not make a well safe to drink.

What a Softener Install Includes

An install covers the equipment, the piping and the first setup, so the unit runs correctly from its first regeneration. The usual scope:

• Sizing from your number. Hardness, household size and any iron on the test.
• The resin and brine tanks. Set on a level floor near the main shutoff valve.
• Main line connection. Cut in with a bypass valve, usually ahead of the water heater.
• A drain with an air gap. Regeneration water runs to a floor drain or standpipe.
• Controller setup and a test. Hardness entered, a regeneration run and leaks checked.

Salt, power and any electrical work are separate from the plumbing, so ask exactly what the quote covers and leaves out. We also talk through which outside spigots stay on hard water, and what a softener will not treat. Removing an old unit should be listed in the quote too, since a full brine tank is heavy.

How Hard Is Your Water, and How Do You Find Out?

Find out from your supplier or from a test. We do not give a hardness number for Washington or any nearby town, because no reliable figure is on file and numbers differ by supply. Deep wells in this region usually run hard, but a usual result is not your result.

• City water. The utility's annual water quality report lists hardness. Ask the utility if you cannot find it.
• Private well. No report exists, so use a lab test or a reliable test kit.
• Units. Results come in grains per gallon or milligrams per liter. One grain per gallon is about 17.1 mg/L.

Signs of hard water show up well before any test result does. Look closely for white crust at faucets, spots on glasses, film in the tub and soap that does not lather. Scale also builds up inside a water heater, which is why hardness is worth settling early.

How Is a Softener Sized?

Size follows household water use and the test result. A unit is rated by how many grains of hardness it can remove before it must regenerate.

1. Multiply the number of people by daily water use. Many sizing guides assume around 75 gallons a person.
2. Multiply by the hardness in grains per gallon. That is the grains the house uses each day.
3. Choose a unit whose capacity covers several days between regenerations.

For arithmetic only: four people at 75 gallons is 300 gallons a day, and at 15 grains per gallon that is 4,500 grains a day. This is not a measurement of any Washington supply. Your test number replaces the example.

An undersized unit regenerates too often and wears out sooner. An oversized unit can sit between cycles, so the resin sits idle. Iron in the water also raises the size you need.

Where Does the Softener Go, and What Does Installation Involve?

It goes on the main line, near the main shutoff valve and before the water heater, so all the hot and cold lines are treated. Outdoor spigots are often left on the untreated line.

1. Pick the spot. It needs floor space, an outlet and a nearby drain.
2. Shut off the water at the main shutoff valve and drain the lines.
3. Cut in the unit with a bypass valve, so water can run around the softener during service.
4. Run the drain. The regeneration water goes to a floor drain or standpipe, ending above the drain with an air gap.
5. Set the controller to the tested hardness and household size.
6. Start it and test. We check for leaks, run a regeneration and confirm the water at a tap.

Which Rules Apply to a Softener Install?

A softener joins your main water line, so the Illinois Plumbing License Law, 225 ILCS 320, and the Illinois Plumbing Code, 77 Ill. Adm. Code 890, are the place to start. Ask for the license number and check the IDPH lookup.

Confirm any permit with the City of Washington on its inspection line, (309) 444-1122, weekdays, or with your village hall elsewhere. Septic homes need extra thought, since the regeneration water goes into the septic system or another drain. IDPH regulates private sewage separately. Septic tank pumping and installs are a separate licensed trade, and we work on the house plumbing up to the system.

What About a Softener on a Private Well?

Test first, then size. A well can bring iron, bacteria and nitrate that a softener cannot treat. Illinois Department of Public Health guidance calls for a yearly well test for bacteria and nitrate, and a metals test every three years.

The softener goes after the pressure tank, so the whole house gets treated water. In rural Woodford County, where private wells are common, we start from the lab result and build the plan from there.

What Changes the Cost, and What Does It Cost to Run?

You get a clear, upfront quote for the install. These things move it:

• Unit size and type. Capacity follows household use and hardness.
• Plumbing changes. A main line in a cramped corner takes more work.
• Drain access. A floor drain nearby is simpler than a new standpipe.
• Electrical. The control head needs an outlet within reach.
• Replacing an old unit. Disconnecting and hauling it away adds time.
• Iron or a well. Extra treatment ahead of the softener changes the whole job.

We list these variables only, because no reliable local price is on file for softeners, and a test result can change the unit size you need. Running cost is salt and the water used in each regeneration. The City of Washington lists residential water at $3.28 and sewer at $6.01 per 1,000 gallons, or $9.29 per 1,000 gallons for water sent down the drain. Check the current rate before you budget.

How Do You Care for a Softener?

Check the salt once a month and keep it well above the water line. Break up any crust. Clean the brine tank if sludge builds up. If the water goes hard, the usual causes are no salt, a bridged tank, or a bypass left open.