monitor the salt level in a water softener

MichaelK

Member
I've searched the web several times (using various phrases) for a device to monitor my water softener's salt level and feed the data to a HA system. I found a few projects -- but none work with HA.
One was on this site --
http://cocoontech.com/forums/topic/4666-how-to-measure-salt-level-in-your-water-softener/
Could this be adapted to work with HA? Specifically, with Z-wave and a Homeseer.
 
Just like every other DIYer with a HA system and a water softener, I'm hoping to find some way for my system to check the level, or get fed data, once a day or so. I want to use IR or ultrasonic technology (because anything mechanical would get in the way). Has anyone found a way to do this?
 
I use an ultrasonic sensor and an Arduino with a ethernet shield to display salt level on a simple web page. I check it every day or so. It makes checking the salt convenient, since our softener is in a remote pump house, not in the basement or garage.
 
It kind of depends on what you want the HA system to do with the data. Do you want a simple contact closure when the level gets down to a certain point or a display of the actual percentage of salt in the tank.
 
I have a water softener that does this. It doesn't measure at all but just counts the number of cycles and displays 0-100% full on a panel. Its pretty accurate. You just reset it when you add the salt.  Placing anything in a bin of salt is going to be prone to corrosion or leaks and is probably not going to last very long. 
 
The corrosion issue came to mind when I installed the ultrasonic sensor, but I decided to roll the dice anyway. The sensor was cheap, about $3, and the Arduino isn't in the salt tank, so I didn't have a lot to lose. Anyhow, it's been about a year now and there isn't any corrosion on the sensor, (knocking on wood) and if it does fail, for $3, I'll just replace it.

Capture.JPG
 
MichaelK said:
I've searched the web several times (using various phrases) for a device to monitor my water softener's salt level and feed the data to a HA system. I found a few projects -- but none work with HA.
One was on this site --
http://cocoontech.com/forums/topic/4666-how-to-measure-salt-level-in-your-water-softener/
Could this be adapted to work with HA? Specifically, with Z-wave and a Homeseer.
 
Just like every other DIYer with a HA system and a water softener, I'm hoping to find some way for my system to check the level, or get fed data, once a day or so. I want to use IR or ultrasonic technology (because anything mechanical would get in the way). Has anyone found a way to do this?
Perhaps you didn't read the whole article, but the link you reference not only uses HA, but specifically uses Homeseer. Those sensors work great BTW. My original one (that inspired that article) still works well. I don't use it for a water softener, but it's still working well years later.


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edit: I got the previous 2 posts after posting this.
 
42etus:
I think that a 4-level indication would work nicely: full, half, low, and empty. Low would mean 'refill soon', calibrated such that it has 1-3 more cycles left (depending on how much water the residents use and how much of a warning is needed).
 
How long have you had that set-up? I'm curious because of what ano stated (about salt messing with the sensor).
 
ano:
Regarding the salt corroding the sensor -- I guess that I'm optimistic. I figure that, because there's no water getting splashed on the sensor, or even any mist, it should be OK. Sure, some of the water will evaporate; but, the salt stays where it is (think of the Bonneville salt flats).
 
At any rate, I wouldn't mind building it and seeing how long it lasts.
 
**
So, is there some kind of HA device that can work with data from and IR or US sensor?
 
If you want to build something, go to www.instructables.com and search for "arduino ultrasonic" or arduino hs-sr04". There's a ton of ideas there.
 
What do you want to do with the data? Display salt level on a screen, have your HA system remind you to fill the salt tank. Call your cell phone?
 
roussell said:
Perhaps you didn't read the whole article, but the link you reference not only uses HA, but specifically uses Homeseer. Those sensors work great BTW. My original one (that inspired that article) still works well. I don't use it for a water softener, but it's still working well years later.
 
Yeah, I didn't really fully read it when I found it (which I think was several months ago, and I sorta' forgot that it even mentioned Homeseer). Actually, back then, I didn't know about Homeseer; I decided to get it about 2 months ago (because of a recommendation from someone in another HA forum).
 
So, now that I've re-read it, I realize that I should have mentioned one little detail -- I have a HomeTroller. That project is for a full-blown computer (i.e. with serial port) running HomeSeer software. So, I'm thinking that I need some kind of z-wave module that can feed the sensor data to HS (realizing that I might need interface circuitry that converts the data).
 
42etus:
I think the ideal design would be to have Homeseer send the level (which I described in my previous post) to HSTouch (i.e. smartphone).
I'm sure that I was on instructables already for this project (with a general web search) -- but I'll try searching the site directly. However, I figure that they'll have only stand-alone projects, whereas I want something tied to my HA system.
 
This topic wwas raised many times in the old days.

The easiest solution (pun intended) was to taste the water when you shower. When it doesn't taste of sodium you need salt now. Not much notice up front but it works.

Also don't delay too long without a working softener as the mineral build-up, in your resin granules, can suddeny release, and wreck a lot of plumbing fixtures in your home. Really hard to get out of fixture Y points if you have 8" faucet spacing with the tubed connections between hot, cold and spigot.

Been there, done that. Insurance will laugh at you.
 
LarrylLix said:
This topic wwas raised many times in the old days.

The easiest solution (pun intended) was to taste the water when you shower. When it doesn't taste of sodium you need salt now. Not much notice up front but it works.

 
Well, no. If your water tastes of salt, your softener isn't working correctly. We've had softeners at all our homes and the water never has tasted the least bit salty. Time for a service call.
 
Not quite! Common misconception.
 
It tastes of sodium or your sodium ion exchange water softener either isn't working, or isn't needed. You didn't think the salt was for your good health and taste did you? :)
 
If you can't taste the difference between the hard and soft water then your softener isn't functioning, or your water isn't hard enough to need a softener.
 
How many grains of hardness are you trying to remove by exchanging the other minerals for sodium?
 
My well water is only 14 grains of hardness and my softened water has a barely noticeable difference in taste. When we had 60 grains of hardness the sodium content output even made you feel slimy in the shower. That's how a sodium ion exchange softener works.
 
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "tastes of sodium". Salt (NaCl) and Sodium are two quite different things. If by "tastes of sodium" , you mean that the water tastes salty, then no, the softener isn't operating correctly. Softened water should not taste salty. It will, on the other hand, taste different than hard water. 
 
We don't get the slimy feeling in the shower as we don't use soap. We shower with a body wash that isn't soap.
 
http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/jul2001/996090332.Ch.r.html
 
42etus said:
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "tastes of sodium". Salt (NaCl) and Sodium are two quite different things. If by "tastes of sodium" , you mean that the water tastes salty, then no, the softener isn't operating correctly. Softened water should not taste salty. It will, on the other hand, taste different than hard water. 
 
We don't get the slimy feeling in the shower as we don't use soap. We shower with a body wash that isn't soap.
 
http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/jul2001/996090332.Ch.r.html
The water tastes of sodium.

Body wash is a type of soap comprised of sodium laureth and sodium lauryl compounds, but it doesn't take any soap to feel slimy, just sodium exchanged ions from very hard water. Lye soap is very hard to find anymore. Almost all bars of "soap" are synthetic using the two sodium compounds listed.

Again, If you can't taste the difference then you water wasn't very hard to begin with or you softener isn't doing it's job to remove the calcium ions. Many bottled waters have that same bitter taste.
 
Well you still haven't explained what you mean "tastes of sodium". I guarantee that you have never tasted sodium. If you had, the metal would have violently reacted with the moisture on your tongue and severely burned you. Having said that, if you mean "tastes of salt", then I stand by my statement that the softener in question isn't working correctly. There should be no salty taste in softened water.
 
That said, I agree with you that hard water and softened water will taste different, sometimes remarkably different. Hard water, especially well water, quite often contains some degree of iron, which is very noticeable to the taste. A typical water softener will remove most if not all of the iron, and thus it's accompanying bad taste, from the water passing through it. 
 
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