We've been having some kind of issue with our water softener since November. I suspected the water softener, but Mitzi insisted it couldn't be. She'd had this model before in her townhome and never had any problems with it. But the water was salty and the only source of salt is the water softener.

I don't think I've got it resolved yet, but I think I know what I'm looking for now.

At any rate, I put it in bypass last night and then ran the water for a while to test the unsoftened utility water for total dissolved solids (TDS). They were lower than what I was getting out of the softener. Then I put the softener into recharge (wash the resin with brine), but forgot to take it out of bypass. I remembered that about 0430 this morning, for reasons I will never understand.

Anyway, it was pointless to lie in bed anymore thinking about it, so I got up to go check. Sure enough, it was in bypass. So I put it in service, and ran a recharge cycle.

At which point the drain hose blew off!

Hilarity ensued.

I vaguely recall "thinking" what do I do now? Well, I grabbed the hose and shoved it on the discharge fitting and held it there. Problem solved.

It now has a hose clamp. (Hurray for "junk" drawers.)

Cleaned everything up and let it do its thing. Went back into the office and watched a few YouTube videos on water softener maintenance. Read the manual some more, then decided to go for a walk.

I didn't see much in the weather forecast last night about rain. Sky was cloudy with an eerie red glow in the east. I carried the E-P7 with a Lumix 12-32mm/f3.5-5.6 compact zoom mounted. Neither camera nor lens is weather sealed.

I also made sure to pick the outdoor walk on the watch. More about that later. Maybe.

Anyway, it was warm, 70°F, so just a t-shirt and a ball cap and I was on my way.

A little over a mile in, I started feeling a light rain, very light. Didn't worry too much about it. Kept the camera cupped in my right hand.

About a mile and a half in, at roughly the halfway point, it was no longer "light," it was raining.

Seemed like my morning for getting wet.

Fortunately, it didn't last long. Did the best I could to shield the E-P7 with my hand and after it stopped raining I let it swing freely from the strap to perhaps "air dry." Got home, looked it over and it was dry everywhere I could see. Seems to be fine. Time will tell.

Made breakfast, watched a few more YouTube videos on water softener maintenance. Figured I'd attend to the marmot, and now I'm going to go take a shower and think about running to Home Depot for some more salt before I take this thing apart. I may take a nap first.

May not be my day for taking apart the water softener, but I think I have a pretty good idea of what to look at.

Originally posted at Nice Marmot 09:32 Saturday, 27 April 2024