Water softener resin tank with its control valve next to a storage tank

Generic photo: రవిచంద్ర (Ravichandra) · CC BY-SA 4.0

Clean a water softener injector (nozzle and venturi) when it won't draw brine

The injector (nozzle plus venturi/throat, with a small screen) uses water flowing to drain to create suction that pulls brine from the salt tank. Silt, iron, scale or salt sludge plugs it easily, especially on well water. Cleaning it is a 20-30 minute job and should come before replacing the valve, piston or seals.

Cross-checked ~30 min easyBrands: All

Before you start

Put the unit in bypass and relieve pressure (open a downstream cold tap or start a regeneration and let it reach a step with no pressure on the injector, as the manual describes) before you open the injector cap.
Unplug the valve's transformer before working near the board if water can splash on it.
Do not enlarge the nozzle hole with a drill bit or wire; the orifice size sets the brine draw rate and a wrong size ruins regeneration.

Diagnostic steps

Unlock all 4 steps with expected values

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