A) We generally offer three resins to choose from for use in your water softener. The first, our standard "Hi-Capacity Resin" is great for most applications that are relatively low in iron content, such as city water supplies. Our "C-249" resin is nearly identical to our standard option chemically and physically. C-249 resin is a branded product that is often asked for by name, and so we have added this item as an optional upgrade. Our third resin type is "Fine Mesh", which is a of a finer gradient than our standard resin option. This resin allows for more surface area per unit of volume, allowing for more efficient hardness and iron removal. We generally recommend this resin for situations involving "clear water" iron concentrations of 3-10pm.

A) The insulating jacket is helpful for instances where you wish to avoid water condensation on the surface of the softener tank, such as placement in a humid area like a lundry room, etc. The jacket surrounds the softener tank, and prevents this condensation and associated dripping, while also adding a nice finished appearance to the softener. NOTE: The selected softener tank jacket color will always match the color of the salt tank, and will override the "tank color option."

A) The "yoke" is a simple plumbing adapter that connects to the back of your softener valve. This simple plumbing adaptor allows a "straight-in" and "straight-out" connection to the plumbing in your home, and should only be selected if you have a "3-way" or "3-valve" bypass installed in your plumbing (seperate from the softener) or if you intend on making a "3-way" bypass configuration yourself during installation. The yoke by itself does not allow for "bypassing", or the ability to turn off water supply to the softener. The "bypass" option combines a "yoke" and a "3-way" bypass in one adapter, which fits directly to the back of your water softener valve. These adapters simplify plumbing for the homeowner and also will allow you to turn off water supply to the softener, without interrupting water supply to your home.

A) The salt tank allows you to store salt and brine water, which is the "fuel" for the water softener's regeneration, and must be large enough to adequately meet these demands. Larger salt tanks in most cases will allow for greater storage capacity of salt, and will not improve on the performance of your system. With larger system sizes we have automatically used the recommended size as a default option. You can think of a larger salt tank as you would a larger gas tank for your car.

A) Our "Res-Care Feeder" is a quart-size jar that we can install into the inside of your salt tank to allow for the automatic addition of PRO Res-Care. PRO Res-Care is a concentrated liquid additive that keeps your softener's resin and brine system cleaner, and is particularly helpful for situations involving iron. The feeder is relatively inexpensive, and the option will ship with a 1 gallon supply of PRO Res-Care, which lasts about 8 months.

A) The Turbulator is a backwash enhancing device that allows for increased kinetic activity within the resin tank during the backwash portion of the softeners' regeneration. This device is helpful for situations involving turbidity (or debris, grit, etc.) in the water, and is usually helpful for well water. Since the Turbulator does not "lift" the resin as a conventional distributor would, it also allows for a more compact system, allowing us to step-down the size of the softener tank while retaining the softener's full capacity. Given all of these benefits, it is important to note that the Turbulator does come at the expense of flow rate and pressure drop performance, and this is the primary reason that we recommend against these if they are not really necessary, particularly for city water applications involving the presence of chlorine. Also, please note that the Turbulator will NOT work with fine mesh resin, as the screen size on the turbulator is larger than the fine mesh resin, and will allow resin into the plumbing.

A) The posted "Service Flow Rate" for all of our systems is the flow rate at which we create a 15 psi pressure drop across the entire system. This is a generally accepted industry standard. It is important to note that the service flow rate of a the VALVE alone and the service flow rate of the SYSTEM are two very different things, with the VALVE being just one component in the measure of the SYSTEM flow rate. It is for this reason that all flow rates posted on our site are SYSTEM flow rates. You may pass higher flows though these systems, but remember that pressure drop will always increase with increased flow. As a general rule, larger softeners sizes will yield higher service flow rates.

A) We make every effort to ship your order as quickly as possible. All systems are built in our warehouse once an order is placed. Parts orders are normally shipped within 2-4 business days once processed and complete systems normally ship within 1 to 1.5 weeks from our location in Illinois, however we do sometimes experience higher lead times depending on order volume. We usually have all items listed on our site in stock but, depending on current sales and availability, the order may take a little longer to ship.

If your order is time-sensitive, please give us that information by calling us and we will be happy to expedite your order for the fastest possible production and shipping time. If you forget to identify your needs during checkout, then contact us by email at info@qualitywaterforless.com, or by calling us at 888-426-5001.