Suction at the Venturi

The venturi assembly produces a vacuum effect that pulls the salty brine water from the tank during a recharge. Please follow our steps below to test the suction and increase it if necessary.  

1. Hold the Recharge button until the motor starts to turn, then let go. This initiates a recharge. On most units, the tank will start filling. 

*Note: If you notice a heavy flow out of your drain hose here, your softener has an extra Clean cycle set up. We need to skip that. Press Recharge once to move the Rinse cycle, then after the motor stops, press Recharge again to move to the Fill. Continue to step 2. 

2. Advance to the Brine cycle by tapping the Recharge button one time. Check your drain hose here and see if there is a small trickle of water draining. If you cannot see the end of the drain hose, readjust it to have an air gap:

3. Remove the top cover:

a. On the back of the unit, unhook the two clips that hold the cover onto the tank below (Figure 1). Flex/pull the cover out and away from the softener at these clips. 

b. There are two similar clips holding the front of the cover on as well. Slide the cover towards you to release these clips, being careful not to disconnect any wires. (Figure 2). It is normal for the plastic cover to produce some noise as it shifts and bends. 

4. Bypass the water softener by pushing the handle in on the back of your unit. This will stop water from coming in or out of the softener while you work.

5. Unscrew the black brine hose from the left side of your Venturi assembly. Blow air through the hose like a straw to confirm it is clear. If it is hard to blow air through, you may want to Clean the Float Assembly quickly to ensure there are no obstructions.

6. Now we will check for suction at the Venturi port. You may want to place a towel under the Venturi port in case water leaks out.

7. One of three things (listed below) will happen next. Slowly pull the bypass handle out in the back of your unit.

      a. Water flows out the Venturi port consistently (at least 15 seconds).

            i. Bypass the system again and remove the Venturi cap. Check that all pieces with numbers and letters on them are facing up inside the Venturi.

            ii.Replace cap and open bypass again, listening for suction. Skip to #8.

      b. Suction, then water means your drain line is blocking water from exiting correctly.

            i. Bypass the unit again and disconnect the drain hose elbow by removing the black clip (pictured).

            ii. Look inside the elbow port and check for any debris.

            iii. Blow through the drain hose elbow (like a straw) to free any obstructions.

            iv. Reattach drain hose elbow and open bypass again, listening for suction. 

       c. Consistent Suction is the desired outcome. If the suction is strong, move to #8. If it is weak:

             i. Bypass the unit and unscrew the white cap of your venturi. Pull up and out on the gray screen. Inside the red/blue disc is a circular black flow plug. Remove that black plug, set aside, and reassemble the venturi without it.

             ii. Take the unit out of bypass and you should hear a stronger suction.

             iii. Screw the brine hose back on and reattach the top cover. Leave the bypass pulled out.

8. Leave the softener to automatically finish the recharge over the next 2 hours. There is no need to push any buttons. The excess water should drain over the next 2 hours, leaving 2-4 inches left in the bottom of the tank.

9. Depending on how much water you start with, you may need to run multiple recharges. Over the next few days, if you notice your tank continuously filling with water in between cycles, you may want to check for Internal Leaks. 

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