water_damage
Hard Water Returning
Limescale creeping back onto taps, kettle and shower screen. Soap and shampoo not lathering the way they did. Usually the first thing people notice.
water_dropWater Treatment
Water Softener Installation, Repair & Servicing
Softener stopped working? Hard water back? I install, repair and service water softeners across Orpington, Bromley and North West Kent — and I gauge your water pressure before specifying anything, which is the step most installers skip.
verified_userWRAS Water Regulations
money_offNo Call-Out Fee
handymanRepair or Replace
buildBrands I Work On
- check_circleBWT · Harvey · TwinTec
- check_circleKinetico · Monarch · Wash Water
- check_circleRepair where sensible, replace where not
- check_circlePressure gauged before specifying
- check_circleCorrect drain & overflow arrangement
Smith EcoFlow installs, repairs and services water softeners across Orpington, Bromley and North West Kent, working on BWT, Harvey, TwinTec, Kinetico, Monarch and Wash Water units. Incoming water pressure is gauged before any softener is specified, and installations are fitted with a correct drain and overflow arrangement discharging to foul drainage only. Common faults include valve block failure, resin exhaustion, salt bridging and blocked injectors. Book on 07717 846247.
Real Work
A real job: softener replacement, Erith
An eleven-year-old TwinTec had stopped working and hard water had returned throughout the house. The valve block had failed — common on TwinTec and Harvey units around the ten-year mark, and not economic to repair at that age. Replaced with a correct drain and overflow arrangement, and the incoming pressure gauged and verified before the new unit was specified.
Read the full case study →warningWarning Signs
Signs Your Softener Has Failed
If you recognise any of these, the unit has usually stopped regenerating properly.
sync_problem
Not Regenerating
The unit should run a regeneration cycle regularly. If it never seems to, the valve block or the timer is the usual cause.
grain
Salt Not Being Used
If the salt level has not dropped in weeks, the softener is not regenerating — it is sitting there doing nothing.
water
Water in the Salt Tank
Standing water in the salt cabinet points to a drain or valve fault, or a salt bridge that has formed above the water line.
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Continuous Drain Flow
Water running to drain constantly wastes a great deal of water and means the valve has stuck mid-cycle. Worth sorting quickly.
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Salt Bridging
A hard crust of salt forms above the water, so the brine tank looks full while no brine is actually being made.
buildCommon Faults
What Actually Goes Wrong
Valve block failure — TwinTec and Harvey
This is the big one. The valve block controls the regeneration cycle, and on TwinTec and Harvey units it is a common failure once the unit is ten years or older. On a unit of that age it is usually not economic to repair, and a replacement is the sensible call. I will tell you honestly which side of that line yours falls on.
Resin exhaustion
The resin beads that do the actual softening have a finite life. Once exhausted, the unit will regenerate perfectly happily and still deliver hard water. Age plus hard water returning despite normal salt use usually points here.
Salt bridging
A solid crust forms above the water line so the tank looks full but no brine is being made. Often caused by the wrong salt type, damp, or an overfilled tank. Easy to break up and prevent once you know.
Blocked injector
The injector draws brine into the resin during regeneration. A blocked one means the cycle runs but nothing is actually regenerated. Cleaning it is usually straightforward.
plumbingDoing It Properly
Installation & Replacement
Most softener problems I am called to are installation problems, not unit problems.
Water pressure comes first
Most softeners need a minimum of around 1.7 bar, and above 3 bar if the drain run needs extending. I gauge your incoming pressure before specifying anything. Fit a softener to an inadequate supply and it will underperform forever — and the unit gets the blame.
Drain and overflow must never share a pipe
This is the one I see wrong most often. The drain and the overflow need separate runs. Combine them and a blockage in one backs up into the other, which can flood the cabinet or, worse, siphon brine the wrong way.
The 20mm air gap
There must be a 20mm air gap at the drain connection so there is no possibility of back-siphonage into the softener. It is a Water Regulations requirement, and it is not optional.
Foul drainage only
Softener discharge goes to foul drainage only — never surface water. Brine discharge into a surface water drain ends up in watercourses, and it is not permitted.
Block salt or tablet salt?
Depends on the unit. Block salt suits compact twin-cylinder units like TwinTec and Harvey and is far cleaner to handle. Tablet salt suits larger cabinet softeners and is cheaper per kilo. Use what your unit is designed for — the wrong type causes bridging.
placeHard Water Area
Orpington, Bromley & North West Kent
This is genuinely hard water country. Chalk and limestone geology means high calcium carbonate, and it shows — scaled kettles, blocked shower heads, dull laundry, and shortened life on every appliance that heats water. A properly specified and correctly installed softener makes a real difference, and pays for itself in appliance life alone.
helpFAQ
Water Softener Questions
Hard water returning, the unit not regenerating, salt not being used up, water sitting in the salt tank, or water running continuously to drain. Any one of those is worth a look.
Sometimes. Blocked injectors, salt bridges and timer faults are usually worth fixing. A failed valve block on a ten-year-old TwinTec or Harvey usually is not — you would be putting good money into a unit near the end of its life. I will give you a straight answer either way.
Around 1.7 bar minimum, and above 3 bar if the drain run needs extending. I gauge your pressure before specifying — fitting one to an inadequate supply causes problems that then get blamed on the softener.
No — never. Separate runs, a 20mm air gap, and discharge to foul drainage only, never surface water. It is a Water Regulations requirement and it matters.
A softener treats the whole house, which is what stops limescale in your boiler, cylinder, kettle and appliances. If you want better-tasting drinking water as well, that is a separate job — see my filtered water taps page.
Softener Problem? Let's Have a Look
Repair, replacement or a new installation — across Orpington, Bromley and North West Kent. No call-out fee, and a fixed price agreed before I start.
call07717 846247See a softener replacement in Erith
An eleven-year-old TwinTec with a failed valve block, replaced with the drain and overflow done correctly.
Read the Case Studiesphoto_cameraOur Work
Softener Work, Photographed on Site
Repair where sensible, replace where it is not.