Water is intermittently hard, especially just before scheduled regeneration.

Safety first: No hazardous work is required for programming changes.

Review system sizing and settings:

• Check the programmed hardness and compare with a current hardness test.
• Verify the number of people and estimated daily water use; adjust capacity or regeneration frequency accordingly.
• If your water has significant iron or manganese, increase the effective hardness setting (per AO Smith guidelines) to compensate.

Adjust regeneration frequency:

• Change the regeneration trigger (gallons or days) so the unit regenerates before hardness breakthrough occurs.
• Monitor hardness at different times in the cycle to confirm improvement.

If hardness remains inconsistent despite correct settings, the resin may be partially fouled and should be cleaned or replaced.