Kenmore 625.3485400 User manual

SAVE THISMANUALUse plasticbag and tie provided, to hang manualsnearby
the softenerforfuturereference.
WaterSofteners
uWarranty
uStartUp/Setting Timer
uHowIt Works
uCareOf
uSpecifications
uRepairParts
Sears,Roebuck andCo., HoffmanEstates,IL60179 USA
OWNER’S
MANUAL
MODELNOS.
625.3485400
SuperCapacityGenius
625.3485500
SuperCapacityGenius
Caution:
Read and Follow
All SafetyRulesand
Operating Instructions
BeforeFirstUse of
ThisProduct.
If you have questionswhen
installing,operating or main-
taining yoursoftener,and
when setting the timer,call
thistoll--free number...
1--800--426--9345
PRINTEDIN U.S.A.

WARRANTY
2
SEARSRESIDENTIALWATERSOFTENER
FULL TENYEAR WARRANTYAGAINST LEAKS
Fortenyearsfromthedateofpurchase,Searswillfurnishandinstallanewcurrentmodelwater
softenertankorsaltstorage drum, free ofcharge,ifeitherthe tankordrumdevelopaleak.
FULL THREE YEAR ELECTRONICSWARRANTY
Fora period of three yearsfromdate ofpurchase,Searswill replacethe BRINETANKLIGHT,
ELECTRONICBOARD,SENSORHOUSING, WIRINGHARNESS,TRANSFORMER,MICRO
SWITCH,DRIVE MOTOR, ORPOWER CABLE,shouldtheybe defectiveinmaterialorwork-
manship.FULL ONE YEAR WARRANTYONWATERSOFTENER
Forone yearfromthe date ofpurchase,when thiswatersoftenerisinstalled and maintained
in accordancewith ourinstructions,Searswill repair, free ofcharge,all otherpartswhichmay
be defectiveinmaterialorworkmanship.
TO OBTAINWARRANTY SERVICE,SIMPLYCONTACT THENEARESTSEARS SERVICE
CENTERTHROUGHOUTTHEUNITEDSTATES.Thiswarrantyappliesonlywhilethisproduct
isin useinthe United States.
Thiswarrantygives you specificlegalrights,and you mayhave other rightswhichvaryfrom
statetostate.
Sears,Roebuck and Co., D/817 WA,Hoffman Estates, IL 60179
Ifyou wantyour watersoftener professionallyinstalled,talk toyour SearsSalesman. Hewillarrange
for a prompt, quality installation by Sears Authorized Installers.
SEARSINSTALLATIONPOLICY
All installation labor arranged by Sears shall be
performed in a neat, workmanlike manner in
accordance with generally accepted trade prac-
tices. Further, all installations shall comply with
all local laws, codes, regulations, and ordi-
nances.Customershallalsobeprotected,during
installation, by insurance relating to Property
Damage, Workman’s Compensation and Public
Liability.
SEARSINSTALLATIONWARRANTY
In addition to any warranty extended to you on
the Sears merchandiseinvolved, which warran-
tybecomes effectivethedate themerchandisein
installed, should the workmanship of any Sears
arranged installation prove faulty within one
year, Sears will, upon notice from you, cause
suchfaultstobecorrectedatnoadditionalcostto
you.
FACTSAND FIGURES TOKEEP
Fill inthe blanks belowand keep thisbookin a safe
placesoyou always havethesefacts.
WaterSoftener Model No.†
Serial Number
DateInstalled
WaterHardness GrainsPerGallon
Iron ContentPartsPer Million
*pHTasteAnd/OrOdor
WaterPressurePounds/SquareInch
WaterFlow RateGallonsPer Minute
†The modelnumberison the rating decal,located
on the rim,underthe saltholecover.

TABLEOFCONTENTS
3
PAGE
NO.
SECTION1SOFTENERSTARTUP
A.SAFETYGUIDES 4
B.CHECKLISTOFSTEP-BY-STEP GUIDES TO INSTALL 5
C.PROGRAMTHETIMER6-7
D.SANITIZINGTHEWATERSOFTENER8
E.FILL THE STORAGETANKWITHSALT9
SECTION2HOWYOUR WATERSOFTENERWORKS
A.FACE PLATETIMERFEATURES 10-11
B.SOFT WATERSERVICE AND REGENERATION12-14
SECTION3CAREOFYOUR SOFTENER
A.SALT:REFILLINGSTORAGETANK,SALTBRIDGE15
B.KEEPINGTHEWATERSOFTENER CLEAN16
C.KEEP THE SOFTENERFROMFREEZING17
D.HELPFULHINTSCHECKLIST18
SECTION4OTHERTHINGSTOKNOW
A.DIMENSIONS/SPECIFICATIONS19
SECTION5SERVICETECH INFORMATION
A.TROUBLESHOOTING20-23
D.ROTARY VALVE SERVICE24
E.WATERFLOWTHROUGHTHE SOFTENERVALVE 25-27
SECTION6REPAIRPARTS28-31

WATERSOFTENERSTART-UP
SECTION1
4
1A.SAFETYGUIDES
sReadall steps,guides and rules carefullybe-
foreinstalling andusing yournew watersoftener.
Followall steps exactlytocorrectlyinstall. Fail-
uretofollowthemcouldcause personal injuryor
propertydamage.Reading thisbookwill also
helpyou to getall of thebenefitsfromyourwater
softener.
sYourwatersoftenerwill remove hardness min-
erals and “clearwater”iron fromwater,up tothe
limits shown on page 19. Itwill notremove other
types ofiron,acids,tastes and odors,etc. Itwill
notpurifypollutedwateror make itsafeto drink.
sProtect the softenerand piping fromfreezing.
Damagefromfreezing voidsthe softenerwarran-
ty.See page 17.
CAUTIONS
PLEASEREADANDCOMPLYWITHTHEFOL-
LOWING GUIDES TOPREVENTDAMAGETO
THE SOFTENEROROTHERPROPERTY,
PERSONALINJURY, ORPOSSIBLEFATAL
SHOCK.
sTHIS SOFTENERWORKSON24 VOLTS
ONLY.BESURETOUSETHETRANSFORMER
INCLUDED,AND PLUG ITINTOA120VOUT-
LET.
sUnplug thetransformer rightaway if the
powercable sould becomedamaged or
frayed.Make repairsbeforeplugging back
intothepoweroutlet.
sAlways unplug the softenerfromelectrical
powerbeforeremoving outervalve covers.

WATERSOFTENERSTART-UP
SECTION1
5
1B.CHECK LISTOFALL STEP-BY-STEP GUIDES TO INSTALL
Refer to the Installation Manual, part no.
7141417, for step-by-step guides.
To be sure you have done all the steps to install
the softener, read the following list. Page num-
bers referred to are in the Installation Manual.
4Is the house water flow going INTO the soft-
ener valve INLET? Trace piping to be sure.
See pages 10 and 11.
4Istheplumbingbypassvalve(or3valves)set
for SERVICE? See FIG. 12, page 19 of this
manual.
4Is the valve drain hose connected the right
way, and without sharp bends or kinks that
couldstoporreducewaterflow?Seepage16.
4Is the softener power cable connected to the
transformer?Is thetransformerpluggedinto
an inside, 120V-60Hz electrical outlet? See
page 20.
4Be sure to restart the water heater. See page
20.
brass
plastic
3--valve

WATERSOFTENERSTART-UP
SECTION1
6
1C.PROGRAMTHETIMER
FIG. 1
When the transformer is plugged in, the model
code AR31, and a test number (example: A1.0)
show in the face plate display for 4 seconds.
Then, 12:00 AM and PRESENT TIME begin to
flash.
NOTE:
If AR-- shows in the display, press the UP or
DOWN button until AR31 shows. Then, press
the #1 SELECT button to set, and change to the
flashing PRESENT TIME display.
Tocheckthemodelcode,unplugthetransformer
atthewalloutletandpluginagain.ifotherthan
AR31 shows, see page 18 to reset.
SOUND “BEEPER”:A“beeper”sounds while
pressing buttons for timer set-up. One beep
signals a change in the face plate display.
Repeated beeps mean thetimer will not accepta
changefromthebuttonyouhavepressed,telling
you to use another button. For example, while
setting the hardness (step 2), the beeper sounds
repeatedly when the display reaches 1 using the
DOWN button, or the highest hardness setting
using the UP button.
1.SETPRESENT TIMEOFDAY:
NOTE:
If the words¼PRESENT TIME do not show
in the display, press the #1 SELECT button
(FIG. 1) until they do, or see the notes above.
nPress the UP/DOWN buttons to set the
present time. Press UP to move the display
ahead;pressDOWNtomovethetimebackward.
If the present time is between
noonandmidnight,besurePM
shows.
If the present time is between
midnight and noon, be sure
AM shows.
NOTE:
Each press of the UP/DOWN
buttons changes the time by 1
minute.Holding thebuttonsin
changes the time 32 minutes
each second.

WATERSOFTENERSTART-UP
SECTION1
7
1C.PROGRAMTHETIMER
2.SETWATER HARDNESS NUMBER:
nPress the #1 SELECT button once to
display 15 (flashing) and HARDNESS.
The grains per gallon (gpg)
hardness of your water sup-
ply 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.
For example, assume your water is 15 gpg hard and
contains2ppmiron.Add5tothehardnessnumberfor
each1 ppmof iron.Inthis example,youwould use25
for your hardness number.
15 gpg hardness
2 ppmiron x5=10 +10
(times)25 HARDNESS NUMBER
nPress 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:
EachpressoftheUP/DOWNbuttonchangesthe
display by 1 between 1 and 25. Between 25 and
the highest number, the display changes 5 at a
time¼25, 30, 35, etc. Holding the UP or DOWN
buttoninchangesthedisplaytwiceeachsecond.
3.SETRECHARGE(REGENERATION)TIME:
nPressthe#1SELECTbuttontodisplay2:00
AM (flashing) and RECHARGE TIME.
At the 2:00 AM RECHARGE
TIME setting, the softener be-
gins regeneration (see pages
12 and 13) at 2:00 AM, ending
nolaterthan4:00AM.Thisisa
goodtimeinmosthouseholds
because water is not being
used (see AUTOMATIC BY-
PASS, page 14). If a different
RECHARGE TIME setting
would be better for your
household, do the following.
nPress the UP/DOWN buttons to set the
desired RECHARGE starting hour. Be sure to
observethe AM-PMas youdid whensetting the
present time of day.
NOTE:
Each press of the UP/DOWN buttons changes
the display 1 hour. Holding the buttons in
changes the display twice each second.
nPress the #1 SELECT button once again, to
return the present time, and RECHARGE TO-
NIGHT in the display.
IF YOU NEED HELP PROGRAMMING THE TIMER, CALL TOLL FREE, NUMBER
1-800-426-9345.
SEE PAGES 10 AND 11 FOR OTHER FACE PLATE TIMER FEATURES.

WATERSOFTENERSTART-UP
SECTION1
8
1D.SANITIZINGTHEWATERSOFTENER
Care is taken at the factory to keep your water
softener clean and sanitary. Materials used to
make the softener will not infect orcontaminate
yourwatersupply,andwillnotcause bacteriato
form or grow. However, during shipping, stor-
age, installing and operating, bacteria could get
into the softener. For this reason, sanitizing as
follows is suggested¬when installing.
1.Lift the salt hole cover and use apail or hose
to fill the salt storage tank with at least 3
gallons of water.
2.Remove the brinewell cover (FIG. 3) and
pour about 3/4 ounce of common 5.25%
household bleach (Clorox, Linco, BoPeep,
White Sail, Eagle, etc.) in the softener brine-
well.
3.PresstheON/OFF-HOLDbuttonandholdfor
3 seconds to start a recharge. This first re-
charge does several things.
—It draws the bleach into and through the
softener to sanitize it.
—Itfillsthesalttanktothewaterlevelneed-
ed.
—It gets all the air out of the resin tank.
—It makesthe resinbed (see page 11) ready
for service.
NOTES:
This recharge takes about 2 hours.
You can sanitize the softener with or with-
out salt in the storage tank.
FIG. 2ADD WATER
Water,
About3Gallons
Brinewell
Cover
(remove and add
about3/4 oz.bleach)
Brinewell
hose
SaltHole
Cover
¬Recommendedby theWaterQualityAssociation.On
somewatersupplies,thewatersoftenermayneedpe-
riodicdisinfecting.

WATERSOFTENERSTART-UP
SECTION1
9
1E.FILL THE STORAGETANK WITHSALT
Brine(saltdissolvedinwater)isneeded foreach
and every regeneration. The water for making
brine is metered into the salt storage tank by the
softener.However,youmustkeepthetankfilled
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. Salt storage
capacity is shown on page 19. Be sure to set the
salt monitor system (see page 10).
NOTES:
The salt monitor system page 10, is calibrated to
the density of nugget or pellet water softener
salt. The monitor will not work as accurately
with othertypes ofsalt includingrock andsolar.
In humid areas, it is best to fill the storage tank
half-full,and torefillit moreoften. Saltbridging
(seepage15)occurs moreoften whenconditions
are humid.
WATERSOFTENINGSALT WITHIRON RE-
MOVINGADDITIVES —Some 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. 3ADD SALT
Sodium information: Water softeners using so-
dium chloride for regeneration add sodium to
the water. Persons who are on sodiumrestricted
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 2-1/2 slices
of white bread.
Personswho areconcernedabout theirdrinking
water should consider a Sears Drinking Water
System that will remove or reduce in excess of
90% of the sodium and other drinking water
contaminants.
You havenowfinishedthewatersoftenerstartup.Afterthesanitizingrecharge,on
page8,thesoftenerwill begiving yousoftwater.

HOWYOUR WATERSOFTENERWORKS
SECTION2
10
2A.FACE PLATETIMERFEATURES
EXTRA RECHARGE
Sometimes, a manually started regeneration
(recharge) may be desired, or needed. Two
examples are:
--You have used more water than usual (guests
visiting) and you may run out of soft water
before the next timer started regeneration.
--Youdidnotrefillthesoftenerwithsaltbeforeit
was gone.
Youcanstartaregeneration rightaway,oryou
canset thetimer toregenerateatthe next2:00
AM (or other preset recharge time). Do the
following.
RECHARGENOW
nPress the ON/OFF-
HOLDbuttonandholduntil
RECHARGE NOW, SERV
and FILL begin to flash in
the display. Upon reaching
fill, the first cycle of regen-
eration, the flashing SERV
goes off and FILL is on
steady. RECHARGE NOW
continues to flash. This re-
generation will last for
about 2 hours. After the 2
hours, you will have soft
water again.
RECHARGETONIGHT
nPress and release (do not
hold) the ON/OFF-HOLD
button. RECHARGE TO-
NIGHT flashes in the dis-
play, and the softener be-
gins regeneration at the
next preset recharge time.
Press and release the ON/
OFF-HOLD button once
moreifyoudecidetocancel
the regeneration, and RE-
CHARGE TONIGHT.
SALT MONITORSYSTEM
The face plate timer has a low salt monitor with
an indicator light to remind you to refill the
storagetankwithsalt.Tosetthismonitorsystem:
1.Liftthesaltholecoverandlevelthesaltinthe
storage tank.
2.The salt level decal, on the brinewell inside
the tank, has numbers from 0 to 8 (see
drawing on page 9 and below). Observe the
number the leveled salt is at or closest to.
NOTE: To light the salt storage area, press the
TANK LIGHT button on the face plate.
3.Now,presstheSALTLEVELADJUSTbutton
until black bars display up to the salt level
number. For example, the pictures below
show the salt level at 6.
4.Finally, set the level you want the low salt
indicatorlight tocomeon.PresstheSIGNAL
LIGHT ADJUST button until a (T) shows
opposite this number. In the example below,
the light will come one when the stored salt
dropstolevel 2.At level2, thestoragetankis
about 1/3 full. This is the lowest you should
allow the stored salt level to drop to. To turn
the salt monitor off, press the button until
OFF shows.
NOTE:
For accurate salt monitor operation, always use
nugget or pellet water softener salt. See page 9.