Water remains hard even though the AFWFilters softener appears to run normally

Safety: Turn off power and close the inlet valve before opening any plumbing connections.

• Check bypass: Ensure the AFWFilters bypass valve is in the SERVICE (not BYPASS) position. Verify that all house fixtures are supplied through the softener.
• Verify settings: Confirm that the hardness setting matches your actual water hardness. Increase slightly if needed and ensure regeneration frequency is adequate.
• Observe regeneration: Manually start a regeneration and confirm that the brine level in the tank drops during brine draw and refills afterward. If not, service the injector, brine line, and brine valve.
• Test water hardness: Use a hardness test kit on water before and after the softener. If both are hard, the resin may be exhausted or iron-fouled.
• Resin service: If resin is over 8–10 years old or heavily iron-fouled, replace the cation resin with AFWFilters-compatible 8% or 10% crosslink resin. Flush thoroughly before use.