How to fit a water softener | How a water softener works

[@plumberparts]

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[@darenreynolds8824]

we bumped into you in a pub about 2yrs ago and didn’t realise it was you !! Great vids , top bloke !!

[@plumberparts]

Which pub?!

[@Whoop0]

That pipe work looks amazing, a true craftsman.

[@MrDbone75]

A very good Saturday morning to you all from Wellington Somerset

[@tonypybus8003]

Excellent video as always - should help Tiny out on the Ale Army!! Glad to see that even you can get the odd dry joint. She you next week on the Ale Army Mate!!!

[@marlonw6236]

Thanks

[@wrekinwater1361]

This is an awesome video!! You are installing one of our water softeners :) Thank you :)

[@neilmccartney9987]

Love the way you use that board to tidy up the pipes. Love your work. Hold tight

[@potluckfishing]

Why would you leave the drinking/kitchen tap unsoftened? Genuine question from someone who needs to get a water softener installed. Lewis in Ireland.

[@Whoop0]

He literally said in the video, its slightly salty (as much salt as milk has) and tastes weird.

[@potluckfishing]

@Whoop0 he did indeed thanks. I had posted my question before that part. It makes sense, I just wonder how it compares to having a softened drinking tap, surely that would be the same?

[@timmyc6164]

Another great video mate.

[@arinb12]

Did the braided hose have rubber washer on the softener end??

[@gavtaylor4091]

I would recommend Monarch water softeners, they come supplied with a manifold and very simple to install 👍

[@jemselectrical9239]

Regarding the brine overflow, could you take it into a hotun to vent into in that situation? I.e. lower on that waste pipe as it goes down behind the sink trap?

[@ravindersidhu9417]

Did u supply cold water to fill boiler some boilers requair unsoften water worcester isar ideal boiler

[@gregoryrourke7417]

Hi James, just for info, all water companies have to provide details of the quality of the water in their area of supply. Quick check on their web page and you will find the hardness. Might save you faffing around with that test kit.

[@copperskills3973]

Just a little tip I have found handy. Use a 50 micron mesh bag and cable tie it over the brine draw float assembly, this acts as a bit of a barrier for salt that mushes after about a year or so and blocks the brine draw which can lead to over flowing of the softener 👍🏼

[@Rory241995]

I haven't watched the the whole video but I would say with a tray to add a water sensor alarm that way it will be heard and not rely on someone watching the tray

[@Tom_Plumb_PHS]

My first thought too. Although petes suggestion of a condense pump is good too I wouldn't have thought of that one.

[@RedRupert64]

Well done old chap! 👍🏼

[@cj4freedom856]

Nice clean job, simple and neat, well done!

[@samanthajames-cooper5529]

Wonderng how often the brine chamber overflow or other similar leak detection on other equipment, can't be pushed outside, instead needs to go under a cabinet and needs watching-out for.

[@gopakumarsudhir4766]

Does the brine overflow happen only once in a while?

[@berbababy]

Hi James can you put a link to that adjustable PRV please?

[@nikc888]

You can clamp a clear plastic non return valve onto the waste from the sink and drop the overflow hose onto that

[@jacksimpson9966]

What brand of water softener do people recommend?

[@Aitch1964]

Would/could you just soften the hot water side to protect cylinder/boiler? I’m in the process of replacing a scaled up unvented cylinder and am thinking about softening just that side

[@clivebmth]

Morning, I couldn't see on Amazon the type of water softener system you are using? Cheers

[@jjeal4583]

I assume that the water softner has to be connected to the inlet pipe, above the stop cock, so the softened water goes through the whole system.. if i put a softener under my sink it would just connect to the sink pipes..

[@ashvanbro9329]

Great job James

[@alexanderthompson2704]

Which water brand and model is that water softener?

[@nicolettacharolidi4203]

Can you connect the hot water supply of a mixer tap to water softener and leave the cold water one as your hard drinking water? Thank you very much in advance.

[@AndrewStrydomBRP]

Yes

[@JP_Raptor]

That's what he did in the video

[@jayseabie215]

Does the hard water have any affect on the PRV you installed?

[@jahidk123]

Any reason why you can’t the overflow on to the kitchen trap?

[@JamesMoondew]

You need adequate protection, such as an air gap, to stop drain water being drawn into the softener if there was a drain blockage. Personally I wouldn’t double up a stand pipe with a washing machine connection without an fitting to provide an air gap

[@bradleybrittan9677]

Plus a lot of machines the overflow is gravity - so you need a constant drop

[@steve00712]

Cpuld one of these be installed upstairs for shower? My wife has psoriasis and soft water is amazing on her skin. In Northamptonshire our hard water is bad, so would love to have one installed for the shower only as she doesn't have baths and showers every day.

[@Norg49]

The way it work's it filtreing all the water in the house. That's why is connected at main supplie . So water filtreded goes to your attic tank and then is distributed all over your house.

[@steve00712]

@Norg49 we don't have a tank in the attick/loft. It comes in via mains straight through the boiler and out the shower. But out boiler is up stairs in a cupboard next to bath room and loads of room to install one there and no room down stairs

[@dimitar4y]

hear me out, but. Modular pipework panels. The way you did that plank with all the piping neat on it. What if they were standard units you can just plug and play wherever you need to do pipework?

[@johncoppock3823]

Top job. Would be interesting to know with the elbow you had to pull off how you cleaned the solder off the pipe to fit on the T or if that wasn't necessary. Didn't see the bit where you cleaned inside of your assembly with boiling water, but guess that was a minor filming error. Silly question: Are there different kinds of water softener? Many thanks for the education.

[@bradleybrittan9677]

Many different types. Some that use electric that are programmed to regenerate in the early hours in the morning regardless of water usage usually called single tank systems (you cannot use the water while this regeneration happens on these models). You also get twin tank systems that allow a constant soft water flow as during regeneration the machine diverts water flow through the opposite tank while one gets cleaned (you can use water while it’s cleaning). These are usually mechanical and contain their own water meter. They can vary in size for larger or smaller properties too. You can also get in line ones, such as no calcs etc but these I find aren’t as effective. What you really want is a mechanical machine that is ‘geared’ for your water usage - e.g it will clean itself purely based on your water usage and will therefore not use more salt than necessary.

[@OTFBULLETZ]

How much should something like this cost to install like this guy has?

[@si4651]

Hi James, I hope to have a water softener one day but have traditional open vent CH & HW. Am I right in thinking I'd need an unsoftened feed to the CH expansion tank? Cheers!

[@bradleybrittan9677]

You could, but equally you could ‘bypass’ the softener when you need to refill your heating

[@98067100]

Depends on your manufacturers instructions to your boiler. The majority can't be softened but if you have a stainless steel heat exchanger such as a viessman you can but all depends on the instructions especially considering any warranty

[@GHOOGLEMALE]

My softener is fitted to system with open vent CH&HW and is supplied with softened water (By Harvey). Its been in over a decade with no probs, is the water damaging somehow - is that the concern. Harveys didnt mention anything about it on install.

[@si4651]

@@bradleybrittan9677 Being open vent the F&E tank currently fills with a float valve. Maybe this could be changed to a manual fill with some sort of level sensor alarm?

[@si4651]

@@98067100 Thanks, we have a Grant Vortex which I think has a stainless heat exchanger but no mention of softened water in the manual, and I'd be worried about the radiators corroding faster too. According to Google it seems advised to use unsoftened water, just seems a faff to run dual mains cold feeds to the loft!

[@CommercialGasEngineerVideos]

Great video as always. I charged far too little installing these.

[@OTFBULLETZ]

How much should you charge on average for something like this?

[@chrisgunn121]

"Are you happy with your new water softener Bernie?" "Oh yes, especially as it's been fitted by a celebrity plumber......." 😂😂😂

[@LukeStratton94]

What was the reason for cutting out the bottom of the carcass? Was it due to the weight? Looks like there was enough space but perhaps that was just a trick of the camera! Also how come some of the pipe work is at the front of the cupboard? Cheers for the insight on this as I’d like to get one installed in my place.

[@tentonhammer5469]

I think it might have been because there's a drawer above. I spied a drawer runner at one point

[@mphys5370]

Do you recommend water softeners? So many plumbers I asked said not worth adding

[@JP_Raptor]

It is worth adding if your beautiful new chrome taps keep getting limescale and your skin is generally dry

[@JamesMoondew]

Didn’t hear a mention of a check valve, which would be used to stop a condition where the outside pressure drops to a level that softened water is pushed out of the house pipe work contaminating it

[@plumberparts]

I didn’t mention it…but it is there. Watch again! 😉

[@johncoppock3823]

@@plumberparts Snag is don't they tend to jam up on hard water? Also is it somewhere to RHS of top hose (I need to watch on a bigger screen)

[@dimitar4y]

oooh, self-regenerating units. Finally they hit the market. Sick of receiving those pamphlets about the 50$ monthly jug replacements.

[@_Miner]

Tray with a leak detector alarm could of been an option.

[@HA05GER]

When i run hot tap i can physically see the scale in it where i am in suffolk.

[@vrdrew63]

Most of southern England has dreadfully hard water. Those famous "White Cliffs of Dover"? Calcium carbonate. The same stuff that clogs up your pipes. Destroys your hot water system, and makes your shower look like a horror film. Any money you spend on a water-softening system will be repaid ten-fold in reduced maintenance and repair bills, to say nothing of nicer feeling showers, laundry, sheets, etc. That said, putting a water softening system can be a challenge in UK houses. Limited space being the biggest problem. Putting it under the kitchen sink seems like the best option, but you'll need a skilled plumber to do it right. I personally went with a Harvey's water softening system. IMHO those guys have developed softening systems best suited to the unique challenges of UK houses.

[@leoncomar2038]

I run a Kinetico water filter, they have to be run through a water softener.

[@igorchuchro4991]

8 Bars, unseen in London

[@manickbarry]

Just use a leak detector in a tray with the overflow

[@anthonygreenwood4486]

Running out of content

[@user-kh7ft5go4t]

You want be paid for remove waste with take you 5min and make your job easier and faster 5 times. Sh... Mate, nice attitude to your work and yours self

[@tentonhammer5469]

He was doing the job as a favour to a friend. Often when you take out a waste thats not been touched for years its more hassle than its worth. Im sure if it was in James way he'd have removed it.

[@MsFaridsheikh]

Hi James, I just wanted to know does it matter where in the house you install your water softener. Because my boiler is upstairs main stop cock is downstairs in the small toilet. There is no room in the small toilet to install it.Harvey hv3 non electric thanks🫣