Hey, we've got some great news for you! North Star water softeners can be installed by anyone who has basic plumbing skills, a little time, and considers themselves DIY savvy. Read on to learn more.
Before You Start!
You'll want to create a checklist to ensure you don’t miss any important steps. A little planning goes a long way! We're here to help this go as smoothly as possible. Check out your installation manual for specific installation details - you can click here to find yours.
Click Here to View our Water Softener Installation Checklist
1. First, you'll need to confirm that the incoming water pressure is within the 20-125 psi range. Pressure outside this range can cause poor performance or damage to the unit. We don't want that. Our recommended daytime range is 50-70 psi. Keep in mind that pressure will peak at night when community demand is less. See our Testing Incoming Water Pressure for more information.
2. If you plan to use flexible hoses, you'll want to make sure that the hose route will be as straight as possible between the softener and plumbing. If you've got a sharp bend or loop that may affect incoming pressure and could cause internal damage and we don't want that. Here are some examples:
3. You'll need to make sure the install location is level, dry and close to the main water line, a drain and an electrical outlet.
4. Then gather your tools according to your installation manual.
5. Next, you can gather and inventory the included installation parts and accessories. Make sure you've got everything.
6. It's important to turn off your water supply at the main line. Please do this when you reach this step.
7. Now, you'll drain the water lines by turning on a faucet at the highest and lowest points in the house. Let it drain until the water's gone.
8. Then you'll install the bypass valve to the softener.
9. At this point you'll need to move the softener to the install location to make sure it's at the right height to hook up the water supply.
- Tip: Using a flex connector can help simplify connection of the bypass valve to the plumbing.
10. You'll now connect the bypass valve to water supply.
- Tip: Make sure that the incoming water connects to the inlet on the valve and that the outlet on the valve connects to the water supply going into the house. (it’s easy to make a mistake, look closely at the a back of the valve for “in” and “out”)
11. Once that's connected, next you'll connect the included drain lines from the softener valve and the tank overflow.
12. Go ahead and turn on the water supply to the softener and check to see if any water is leaking.
13. Then, you'll run water in the house to remove any air from the plumbing lines.
14. Go ahead and add 3 gallons of clean water to the salt tank.
15. Using a bucket, you'll need to fill your brine tank half-full with salt (between the 2 and 5 on the salt level marker).
16. Almost done! You can plug in the power supply and enter your home’s preferred settings by following your manual instructions, or reading our Softener Programming Guide.
17. Now, you can slowly open the bypass valve and check for any leaking.
18. Lastly, to sanitize the system, follow the instructions in the manual and complete an initial manual regeneration.
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