Water softer isn't softening

[TheAggie]

Our house has a Sears/Kenmore 625.3485500 Water Softener. It was here when we bought the house so I don't know how old it is but the data code is 97098.

We were having problems with our hot water coils clogging so I tested the water on both sides of the softener and it was the same (19 gpg), so the softer isn't working at all. And, yes the bypass valve is set correctly to pass water though the softer. I have also verified that water is going through the softener via the softener's flow indicator.

I have cleaned out everthing I can figure out and have done everything short of disassembling the valve housing. Presently I have removed all the salt from the unit while I am trying to diagnose and clean the unit. Running a manual regen the water is coming into the salt tank - water fills to about 4.25" deep (with no salt in the tank) during a 9min fill cycle. I calculate that works out to about 2.7 gal based on the tank geometry. The flow rate for filling is listed as 0.3 g/min matches (2.7gal/9min = .3 g/min). During the brinig cycle, however, the water in the salt tank is not dropping at all. Water is flowing out the discharge tube and when I remove the brine tube from the venturi assembly I can feel a vacuum as my finger will stick (lightly) to the place where the tube attached when it is brining. Also I can easily such water up the brine tube so there doesn't seem to be an obstruction there. Even after the 90min brining cycle is complete, the water level in the salt chamber seems to not have changed at all.

Any recommendation as to what I should do/check next?
I have cleaned everything I can find and checked the parts against the assemble drawings as best as I can and checked and lubricated all the o-rings.

A frustrated (somewhat) handyman,
Mark

[Hube]

Hi, TheAggie; Welcome, I gather you checked to make sure there is no "salt bridge"? Also, the Resin Bed will require a cleaning from time to time.(approx every 6 months, depending on hardness)....Sears has a cleaner for this ,part # 42-75525 .... The Venturi and Nozzle need to be cleaned too. Make sure the float is not sticking. Any rubber parts, washers, O rings,etc that you do clean , give them a thin coat of vaseline Make sure the Brine Tube is completly CLEAR of any build-up, as the problem you describe seems to indicate a plugged intake tube.Brining rate is approx .20 gpm. Let us know what you find, and good luck. Hube

[TheAggie]

Hube,
Thanks for the info. I did have a salt bridge initially but resolving that didn't resolve the problem this time. At the present time I have removed all the salt from the softener to facilitate cleaning and diagnosis. I have also cleaned the venturi/nozzle assembly and vasolined alll the gaskets and o-rings. Last night I did the same for the brine valve. Still no luck so far - the salt chanber fills with water during filling but no water leaves during brining. Only thing left is to do the same for the valve assembly.