Replacing your old control valve head can add another 10 or 20 years to
your current water softener. On the average well water system, the
resins will last 30 - 40 years. The resin tank will last 100 years. On
chlorinated "city" water resin replacement is recommended
about every 10 years. The salt tank can also last many decades.
Replacing the resins
is simple if you need to ( or want to ) do this at the same time.
If this Valve is to replace an existing valve of the SAME type, then the existing By Pass or Piping Yoke will attach on to the valve. Otherwise you will NEED either a standard Noryl plastic piping connection in either 3/4" or 1" with all valves purchased, OR a By-Pass Option can be purchased separately.
We include at no extra charge, a new distributor kit. This is part # MD1236. It is a plastic lower screen which can be
cemented to a piece of
3/4" PVC pipe to construct a new distributor tube. Your old distributor
could be slightly smaller than the ones now used by both Fleck and Autotrol (
old size 13/16", new size 1.05" outer diameter ).
Valve Replacement Steps
1) Shut off water
2) Disconnect old valve
a. Power cord
b. Brine tubing to salt tank
c. Drain hose
d. In & Out water lines
3) Unscrew old valve ( may require two people ).
4) Remove old distributor tube from the resin tank.
( NOTE the height of the tube relative to the top of the resin tank. You may
be able to use this as a guide when constructing the new distributor
tube. )
5) Construct a new distributor tube using "lower basket" supplied by us and a piece of 3/4" PVC
pipe ( schedule 40 or 160 will work ).
Use PVC cement. Allow 5 minutes to "dry" before inserting into your resin tank. You will need the new tube to be equal to the top of the resin tank ( not more than 1/4" above
), if installing the Fleck 5600 valve. If you are installing an
Autotrol 255 valve, then the height should be 1/2" above the top
of the tank.. It is helpful to "round" the top edges of the PVC pipe to make insertion into the valve easier.
Put new distributor tube into resin tank.
6) Snap and twist in place the "upper distributor basket" to the under side of the new
valve ( supplied with your new valve ).
7) Screw new valve on to resin tank.
8) Attach By Pass or Piping Yoke. On
Fleck valves, it is held in place by two metal clips and two screws. It will be a little bit flexible.
For Autotrol valves you will have three o-rings and four small bolts
with nuts to complete the attachment. The Autotrol 255 will also have
a clear "air check" assembly to mount on the valve.
9) Reconnect:
a. Water lines. NOTE the IN and OUT may be different than your old valve. (
Fleck and Autotrol use opposite connections ).
b. Drain line. A drain
fitting is included. The fitting connection is standard 1/2" .
c. Brine line from salt tank. Fitting is for standard 3/8" brine line. Your brine pickup tube needs to
have an "air check" at the bottom if installing a Fleck valve ( or switch from the Autotrol 155 or 255 to any other model ). If you only have a "screen" with out a air check "ball" ( common for Autotrol 155 or 255 and Rainsoft valves made prior to year 2000 ),
then you will NEED to order a new brine pick up tube ( part # FP60002 or BP1002 ) to prevent air being sucked into the resin tank during regeneration ( specifically during the Brine Rinse cycle ).
d. Plug in power cord.
10. Turn water on.
11. Start up valve:
a. Set time of day to current time of day. Instructions are listed on front of
control and in the owners/service manual supplied with your new valve.
b. Set program wheel to desired regeneration interval. You can consult the manual or email us if you have questions. For
Fleck metered systems, we have helpful hints here
c. Turn front control to the manual regeneration position. The regeneration cycle last approximately 90 minutes.
12. If your old resins have not be recharged or regenerated for more than 2 weeks, it could be beneficial to add 1/2 gallon of bleach to the water in the salt tank. This one time treatment will clean and disinfect the resin bed. Adding one cup of bleach each time you add salt is also a good idea.
You should have about 3 gallons of water in your salt tank to start.
Also, make sure you have salt too! We recommend starting with no less
than 80 lbs.
13. After the system has finished regenerating, you can run the hot water in the bath tub until cold ( usually 10 - 15 minutes ). This will "turn over" the water in the tank with conditioned water.
14. If the resin bed has not been charged for a long time, a second regeneration cycle many be needed to restore conditioned water to the home.
15. Automatic regeneration will now occur at 2 a.m. at night as needed ( or as set on the program wheel). Try to keep the salt level above the water level in the salt tank (
normal water levels with salt included is 6 -12 inches ).
