On 2/26/09 1:30 PM, David Palumbo wrote:
I have an off-grid customer with a need for for a non-electric, or
very efficient electric, water softener.
Lots of options there if you don't need time based regeneration. Regen
typically follows one of the following scenarios, listed in ascending
order of cost:
1. Time only (regen at a perset time and day regardless of water use.)
2. Flowmeter only (regen after a praticular number of gallons regardless
of time or date.)
3. Time and flowmeter (regen only after waking or business hours but
before media runs out of capacity, sometimes based on floating averages.)
#1 will be familiar to many residential softener owners of yore, who may
recall the famous 'guest button' that told the softener there was more
flow that day. It requires power all the time.
#2 can be completely mechanical (flowmeter spins the counter gears and
opens/closes valves using water power.)
#3 requires power all the time (but frequently has added benefits like a
totalyzing meter.)
The ultimate solution for off grid is a twin tank softener (a smaller
version of the type frequently seen in commercial or industrial
applications. These have a number of benefits:
Backflushing is done with softened water, improving the quality of the
flush and prolonging the life of the media.
Regen can happen at any time of the day or night and the system (if
appropriately sized) will deliver treated water 24x7.
Regen never happens unless the media is depleted, minimizing salt usage
(and minimizing landscape poisioning if the softener drains to anything
other than a muicipal sewer.)
If the budget is there, have them buy a twin tank system based on a
Fleck 9000 valve (with the mechanical timer - I bought the electronic
one and while I like the features, I am starting to regret the phantom
load it married me to.)
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