Kenmore 625.3484400 User manual

PRINTED IN U.S.A.
SAVE THIS MANUAL Use plastic bag and tie provided, to hang manuals nearby
the softener for future reference.
Water Softeners
◆Warranty
◆Start Up / Setting Timer
◆How It Works
◆Care Of
◆Specifications
◆Repair Parts
        
OWNER’S
MANUAL
MODEL NOS.
625.3484400
High Capacity DIR
625.3484500
High Capacity DIR
Caution:
Read and Follow
All Safety Rules and
Operating Instructions
Before First Use of
This Product.
If you have questions when
installing, operating or main-
taining your softener, and
when setting the timer, call
this toll–free number...
1–800–426–9345

WARRANTY
2
SEARS RESIDENTIAL WATER SOFTENER
FULL ONE YEAR WARRANTY ON WATER SOFTENER
Foroneyearfromthedateofpurchase,whenthiswatersoftenerisinstalledandmaintained
in accordance with our instructions, Sears will repair, free of charge, defects in material or
workmanship in this water softener.
FULL TEN YEAR WARRANTY AGAINST LEAKS
For ten years from the date of purchase, Sears will furnish and install a new current model
water softener tank or salt storage drum, free of charge, if either the tank or drum develop
a leak.
TO OBTAIN WARRANTY SERVICE, SIMPLY CONTACT THE NEAREST SEARS SER-
VICE CENTER THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES. This warranty applies only while
this product is in use in the United States.
Thiswarrantygivesyouspecificlegalrights,andyoumayhaveotherrightswhichvaryfrom
state to state.
Sears, Roebuck and Co., D/817 WA, Hoffman Estates, IL 60179
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SEARS INSTALLATION POLICY
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SEARS INSTALLATION WARRANTY
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FACTS AND FIGURES TO KEEP
Fill in the blanks below and keep this book in a safe
place so you always have these facts.
Water Softener Model No.†
Serial Number
Date Installed
Water Hardness Grains Per Gallon
Iron Content Parts Per Million
*pH Taste And/Or Odor
Water Pressure Pounds/Square Inch
Water Flow Rate Gallons Per Minute
† The model number is on the rating decal, located
on the rim, under the salt hole cover.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
3
PAGE
NO.
SECTION 1 SOFTENER START UP
A. SAFETY GUIDES 4
B. CHECK LIST OF STEP-BY-STEP GUIDES TO INSTALL 5
C. PROGRAM THE TIMER 6-7
D. SANITIZING THE WATER SOFTENER 8
E. FILL THE STORAGE TANK WITH SALT 9
SECTION 2 HOW YOUR WATER SOFTENER WORKS
A. FACE PLATE TIMER FEATURES 10
B. SOFT WATER SERVICE AND REGENERATION 11-13
SECTION 3 CARE OF YOUR SOFTENER
A. SALT: REFILLING STORAGE TANK, SALT BRIDGE 14
B. KEEPING THE WATER SOFTENER CLEAN 15
C. KEEP THE SOFTENER FROM FREEZING 16
D. HELPFUL HINTS CHECKLIST 17
SECTION 4 OTHER THINGS TO KNOW
A. DIMENSIONS/SPECIFICATIONS 18
SECTION 5 SERVICE TECH INFORMATION
A. TROUBLESHOOTING 19-22
B. ROTARY VALVE SERVICE 23
C. WATER FLOW THROUGH THE SOFTENER VALVE 24-26
SECTION 6 REPAIR PARTS 29-31

WATER SOFTENER START-UP
SECTION 1
4
1A. SAFETY GUIDES
▲Read all steps, guides and rules carefully be-
fore installing and using your new water softener.
Follow all steps exactly to correctly install. Fail-
ure to follow them could cause personal injury or
property damage. Reading this book will also
help you to get all of the benefits from your water
softener.
▲Your water softener will remove hardness min-
erals and “clear water” iron from water, up to the
limits shown on page 18. It will not remove other
types of iron, acids, tastes and odors, etc. It will
not purify polluted water or make it safe to drink.
▲Protect the softener and piping from freezing.
Damage from freezing voids the softener warran-
ty. See page 16.
CAUTIONS
PLEASEREADANDCOMPLYWITHTHEFOL-
LOWING GUIDES TO PREVENT DAMAGE TO
THE SOFTENER OR OTHER PROPERTY,
PERSONAL INJURY, OR POSSIBLE FATAL
SHOCK.
▲THIS SOFTENER WORKS ON 24 VOLTS
ONLY.BESURETOUSETHETRANSFORMER
INCLUDED, AND PLUG IT INTO A 120V OUT-
LET.
▲Unplug the transformer right away if the
power cable should become damaged or
frayed. Make repairs before plugging back
into the power outlet.
▲Always unplug the softener from electrical
power before removing outer valve covers.

WATER SOFTENER START-UP
SECTION 1
5
1B. CHECK LIST OF ALL STEP-BY-STEP GUIDES TO INSTALL
Refer to the Installation Manual, part no. 7141417,
for stepĆbyĆstep gui es.
To be sure you have one all the steps to install the
softener, rea the following list. Page numbers
referre to are in the  
✔Is the house water flow going INTO the softenĆ
er valve INLET? Trace piping to be sure. See
pages 10 an 11.
✔Is the plumbing bypass valve (or 3 valves) set
for SERVICE? See page 18.
✔Is the valve rain hose connecte the right
way, an without sharp ben s or kinks that
coul stop or re uce water flow? See page 16.
✔Is the softener power cable connecte to the
transformer, an is the transformer plugge
into   120VĆ60Hz electrical outlet?
See page 20.
✔Be sure to restart the water heater. See page 20. brass 3–valve
plastic
Bypass
Valves
Water
Heater

WATER SOFTENER START-UP
SECTION 1
6
1C. PROGRAM THE TIMER
FIG. 1
hen the transformer is plugged in, the model
code SR21 shows in the face plate display for a few
seconds, followed by a test number (example:
S3.0). After the test number, 12:00 AM begins to
flash. PRESENT TIME and RECHARGE TONIGHT
show at the bottom of the display.
NOTE:
If SR - - flashes in the display, press the UP button
(FIG. 1) until SR21 does show. Then press the
SELECT button to display the flashing 12:00 AM. If
other than SR21 shows, when the transformer is
plugged in, please see page 17 to reset.
SOUND BEEPER": A beeper" sounds while
pressing buttons for timer setĆup. One beep
signals a change in the face plate display.
Repeated beeps means the timer will not accept a
change from the button you have pressed, telling
you to use another button. For example, in setting
the hardness (step 2), the beeper sounds repeatĆ
edly when the display reaches 1 using the DO N
button, or the highest hardness setting using the
UP button.
1. SET PRESENT TIME OF DAY:
NOTE:
If the words PRESENT TIME do not show in the
display, press the SELECT button (FIG. 1) until
they do.
■Press the UP/DO N buttons to set the
present time. Press UP to move the display ahead;
press DO N to move the time backward.
If the present time is between
noon and midnight, be sure PM
shows.
If the present time is between
midnight and noon, be sure AM
shows.
NOTE:
Each press of the UP or DO N buttons changes
the time by 1 minute. Pressing and holding the
buttons changes the time 32 minutes each second.

WATER SOFTENER START-UP
SECTION 1
7
1C. PROGRAM THE TIMER
2. SET WATER HARDNESS NUMBER:
■Press the SELECT button once to display 15
(flashing) and HA DNESS.
The grains per gallon (gpg)
hardness of your water supply is
on your water analysis report. Be
sure to enter water test results on
page 2, for future reference.
NOTE:
If your water supply contains iron, compensate for
it by adding to the water hardness number. 
        
        
         
       
15 gpg hardness
2 ppm iron x 5 = 10 +10
(times) 25 HARDNESS NUMBER
■Press the UP/DOWN buttons to set your
water hardness number in the display. The
DOWN button moves the display to 1. The UP
button moves the display to the highest setting
(see maximum setting for your model in the
specifications).
NOTE:
Each press of the UP/DOWN button changes the
display by 1 between 1 and 25. Between 25 and
the highest number, the display changes 5 at a
time…25, 30, 35, etc. Continuous pressure on the
UP or DOWN button changes the display twice
each second.
3. SET RECHARGE (REGENERATION) TIME:
■Press the SELECT button once to display 2:00
AM (flashing) and ECHA GE TIME.
At the 2:00 AM ECHA GE TIME
setting, the softener begins reĆ
generation (see pages 11 and 12)
at 2:00 AM, ending no later than
4:00 AM. This is a good time in
most households because water
is not being used (see AUTOĆ
MATIC BYPASS, page 13).
If a different ECHA GE TIME setting would be
better for your household, do the following.
■Press the UP/DOWN buttons to set the
desired ECHA GE starting hour. Be sure to
observe the AMĆPM as you did when setting the
time of day.
NOTE:
Each press of the UP/DOWN buttons changes the
display 1 hour. Continuous pressure on the UP or
DOWN button changes the display twice each
second.
■Press the SELECT button once again, to
return the present time (steady) of day and
ECHA GE TONIGHT in the display.
IF YOU NEED HELP P OG AMMING THE TIME , CALL TOLL F EE, NUMBE 1-800- 426- 9345.
SEE PAGE 10 FO OTHE FACE PLATE TIME FEATU ES.

WATER SOFTENER START-UP
SECTION 1
8
1D. SANITIZING THE WATER SOFTENER
Care is taken at the fa tory to keep your water
softener lean and sanitary. Materials used to
make the softener will not infe t or ontaminate
your water supply, and will not ause ba teria to
form or grow. However, during shipping, storage,
installing and operating, ba teria ould get into
the softener. For this reason, sanitizing as follows
is suggested①when installing.
1. Lift the salt hole over and use a pail or hose to
fill the salt storage tank with at least 3 gallons of
water.
2. Remove the brinewell over (FIG. 2) and pour
about 3/4 oun e of ommon 5.25% household
blea h (Clorox, Lin o, BoPeep, White Sail, Eagle,
et .) in the softener brinewell.
3. Press the ON/OFFĆHOLD button and   
 to start a re harge. This first re harge does
several things.
Ċ It draws the blea h into and through the
softener to sanitize it.
Ċ It fills the salt tank to the water level
needed.
Ċ It gets all the air out of the resin tank.
Ċ It makes the resin bed (see page 11) ready
for servi e.
NOTES:
This re harge takes about 2 hours.
You can sanitize the softener   
 salt in the storage tank.
①Re ommended by the Water Quality Asso iaĆ
tion. On some water supplies, the water softener
may need periodi disinfe ting. Sanitize with or
without salt in the storage tank.
FIG. 2 ADD WATER
Water,
About 3 Gallons
Brinewell
Cover
(remove and add
about 3/4 oz. bleach)
Brinewell
hose
Salt Hole
Cover

WATER SOFTENER START-UP
SECTION 1
9
1E. FILL THE STORAGE TANK WITH SALT
Brine (salt dissolved in water) is needed for each
and every regeneration. The water for making
brine is metered into the salt storage tank by the
softener. However, you must keep the tank filled
with salt.
Fill the tank with NUGGET or PELLET water
softener salt. DO NOT use rock salts, as they have
dirt and sediments that will stop the softener from
working.
Before filling, be sure the brinewell cover is in
place on the top of the brinewell. alt storage
capacity is shown on page 18.
NOTE:
In humid areas, it is best to fill the storage tank
halfĆfull, and to refill it more often. alt bridging
(see page 14) occurs more often when conditions
are humid.
WATER SOFTENING SALT WITH IRON REMOVĆ
ING ADDITIVES Ċ ome salts have an additive to
help the softener handle iron in the water supply.
Although this additive may help to keep the
softener resin clean, it may also release corrosive
fumes that will weaken and shorten the life of
some softener parts.
FIG. 3 ADD SALT
ODIUM INFORMATION: Water softeners using
sodium chloride for regeneration add sodium to
the water. Persons who are on sodium restricted
diets should consider the added sodium as part of
their overall sodium intake.
For example, if your water supply is 15 grains
hard, you would have to drink 3 quarts of softened
water to consume 335 milligrams of sodium. That
is equivalent to eating 2Ć1/2 slices of white bread.
Persons who are concerned about their drinking
water should consider a ears Drinking Water
ystem that will remove or reduce in excess of
90% of the sodium and other drinking water
contaminants.
YOU HAVE NOW FINI HED THE WATER OFTENER TARTĆUP. AFTER THE ANITIZING RECHARGE,
ON PAGE 8, THE OFTENER WILL BE GIVING YOU OFT WATER.

HOW YOUR WATER SOFTENER WORKS
SECTION 2
10
2A. FACE PLATE TIMER FEATURES
EXTRA RECHARGE
Sometimes, a manually started regeneration (reĆ
charge) may be desired, or needed. Two examĆ
ples are:
-- You have used more water than usual (guests
visiting) and you may run out of soft water before
the next timer started regeneration.
-- You did not refill the softener with salt before it
was gone.
You can start a regeneration right away, or you can
set the timer to regenerate at the next 2:00 AM (or
other preset recharge time). Do the following.
RECHARGE NOW
■Press the ON/OFFĊHOLD button and 
   ECHA GE
NOW begins to flash in the
display, and the softener enĆ
ters the fill cycle of regeneraĆ
tion right away. This regeneration will last for
about 2 hours. Then, you will have soft water
again.
RECHARGE TONIGHT
■Press and release (do not hold) the ON/
OFFĆHOLD button. EĆ
CHA GE TONIGHT flashes
in the display, and the softenĆ
er begins regeneration at the
next preset recharge time. Press and release
the ON/OFFĆHOLD button once more if you
decide to cancel the regeneration, and EĆ
CHA GE TONIGHT.
PROGRAM MEMORY
If electrical power to the softener goes off, the
time display is blank but the face plate timer keeps
the correct time for about 6 hours. When electrical
power comes on again, you have to reset the
present time only if the display is flashing. The
HA DNESS and ECHA GE TIME never require
resetting unless a change is desired.
Even if the timer is incorrect after a long power
outage, the softener works as it should to keep
you water soft. However, regenerations may occur
at the wrong time of day until you reset the timer
to the correct time of day.
ERROR CODE
An error code could appear in the face plate
display if a problem occurs in the softener
electronics. If you see an error code instead of the
time of day, please call you local Sears Service
Department for service.
IF YOU NEED HELP ON THE USE OF THE TIME FEATU ES, CALL TOLL F EE,
NUMBE 1-800- 426-9345.