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Called to a Bosch WFG2220 that had a broken leg on the drum shaft last week. 😥 When the machine was about 18 months old she started getting cronic limescale problems blocked waste hose, container bottle etc.
So she decides to get a water softner installed. While I did not strip the machine down to inspect I guess the aluminium cross piece has suffered salt corrosion. Would this be due to her water softner setting being to high?
I suppose this machine is about 6 years old now.
I realize that the manufactures do not recommend connecting washing machines to a softened supply to cover themselves from this eventuality.
But in the hard water area I work in the advantages of having a water softner far out weigh the disadvantages
TurboRe: Water Softner The Pros & Cons
Turbo wrote:I guess the aluminium cross piece has suffered salt corrosion. Would this be due to her water softner setting being to high?
What type of water softener (electronic or auto mechanical?) has she got?
They are pretty tough drum spigots to corrode in this way, are you sure it was a broken leg?
Re: Water Softner The Pros & Cons
If the water softener is working correctly, then very little or no salt should be present in the water going to the machine. Like a dishwasher softener unit, the salt is only used periodically to ‘regenerate’ (or clean and flush) the resin bed that does the softening – the resulting salt solution is discarded down the drain on completion of the softening cycle. Saline does not come into contact with the crockery at all. It is actually quite safe to drink softened water. There may be very slight traces of salt but not enough to taste it. ( Is the water they clean their teeth with salty? The bathroom basin taps will almost certainly be supplied with soft water).
The reason they do not recommend to run a washing machine from a softener is usually due to the large amount of water required by a machine; therefore the softener’s flow rate may be exceeded. Problems arising from this would be outside the control of the manufacturer of the softener.
Could the damage to the washing machine and the resulting blockage and sludge be down to use of a liquid detergent? Broken spider problems galore with Hotpoint 95 and WM series a few years ago were all because of liquid usage. Machine probably smelt bad too!??
Hope this helps!!! 😉Steve.
Re: Water Softner The Pros & Cons
Thanks for replying guys.
Yes the shaft was broken as there was 25mm of play in the drum but only in line with one of the legs it also made a right racket when it went apparently.
Not sure if she had a electronic or auto mechanical softner unit but she is going to get a plumber to check it is working ok.
She does not think the bathroom cold water tastes salty but she does use liquid detergents all the time. So there could be the problem. 😆
Thanks again.
TurboRe: Water Softner The Pros & Cons
I live in a very soft water area we never had any prob’s with broken spiders until the advent of liquid detergents and colour powders, i have military bases nearby had more prob’s with service folks moving here from hard water locations, i only replace elements usualy because they are damaged ,down to earth or open circuit we very rarley get elements covered in limescale it is usualy one from the bases or somebody moved from down south.
Re: Water Softner The Pros & Cons
Yes we certainly get our fair share of water hardness problems here in the Chiltern Hills especially when they use Calgon or worse still that Aqua Softner liquid which turns limescale to stone.
TurboRe: Water Softner The Pros & Cons
To find out why liquid detergents cause these problems, contact Rob Dray – detergent trainer on this site. I learnt a lot at his presentation last week. It’ll certainly help you to explain why this happens and how to prevent it. Liquids are also a major cause of the growing number of foul smelling machines. 😉
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