June 27, 2022

What are the most common replacement parts for water softeners?

Introduction image for article on common water softener replacement parts.

Your water softener neutralizes the calcium carbonate in your home’s water supply to reduce wear and tear on your clothing, prevent filmy deposits on your dishes and thoroughly rinse soap from your skin and hair.

When your water softener isn't working right, you’ll quickly notice that your skin doesn't feel slick after rinsing off in the shower. You’ll also notice that it takes more dishwashing liquid to make water suds up in your kitchen sink.

If you suspect that your water softener isn’t working, try this quick test to check water hardness:

When your water softener isn’t working, you may need to replace one of these parts.

Electronic control

The electronic control monitors water flow and manages the operation of the water softener. The electronic control positions the rotor valve to direct water flow for softening and regeneration.

Water softener resin beads

The resin beads act as a magnet to remove the minerals that make the water hard as the water flows through the resin tank.

Rotor valve

The rotor valve on top of the resin tank is driven by the valve motor. The rotor valve directs water flow for water softener functions such as regeneration, flushing and softening.

Rotor valve seal

The rotor valve seal prevents water from leaking between the openings in the rotor valve as the rotor valve directs water flow for water softener functions such as regeneration, flushing and softening.

Valve motor

The valve motor rotates the rotor valve to perform the various water softener operations such as regeneration and water softening.

Venturi

The venturi draws the brine solution from the salt tank to the resin tank during the regeneration cycle.

Rotor position switch

The rotor position switch detects the position of the rotor valve.

Brine well

The brine well inside the salt storage tank houses the brine valve assembly. The brine well prevents the salt pellets from interfering with the brine valve’s operations.

Brine valve assembly

The brine valve assembly inside the brine well controls the brine water level.

Brine float

The brine float on top of the brine valve rises with the brine during brine production to prevent the brine well from overfilling.

Determining which part to replace when your water softener isn’t working can be challenging. Follow the DIY troubleshooting advice in our Water Softener Repair Help section to determine the cause of the failure and figure out which part to replace.

If you’re not able to diagnose and repair the water softener failure yourself, schedule a Sears Technician to visit your home and fix the problem. Our techs are experts at repairing water softeners as well as all of the other appliances in your home. Call Sears Home Services whenever you have an appliance problem.