Whirlpool WHESFC Pro Series – Softener/Whole Home Filter Hybrid, Gray

Pros:I noticed after a couple of days that the water softened, and unlike other softeners I have had, the effect is consistent over time.The tank holds five 40lb bags of salt and seems to be consuming about a bag a week on the initial setting of 25, but my wife and I are the only permanent residents.FYI, do NOT use soft water in your pool. It will cause calcium deposits to form (looks like acne), and they are difficult and expensive to remove. I have a trick that costs less than $75 and 8 hours or so of your time to remove them. Pneumatic grinder.I think all of these systems are overpriced for what they are, but this system is inexpensive compared to others.There isn't much I can't do with the correct tools and supplies so installation was a breeze. Whatever piping you connect to the inlet/outlet must be perfectly level (applies even pressure to 0-rings in the inlet/outlet. If not, it puts too much stress on the o-ring inside the snap in portion of the inlet/outlet and could result in leaks. You must push firmly to cause those connections to "snap" into place. Tighten the threaded end of the inlet/outlet firmly, but do not overtighten. A trick I use for PVC is to tighten it as firmly by hand as you can. Hook everything up. If it leaks at the threads, turn off the water supply and tighten it a half turn or so. Turn the water on and observe the connection for additional leaks. If there are still leaks, repeat the process. In this way, you stop the leak but avoid breaking the threaded connection from over tightening. Always install a ball cock valve between the soft water system and your sidement filter along with one before your sediment filter so you can easily service your sediment filter which I highly recommend.Other:I recommend the "pro" version of the soft water system to avoid having to install a whole home filter at least for a while. I have another brand's RO system under our sink that connects to our ice maker, but at some point, I will add the whole home filter. If you add a paper filter to your whole home that you can see through the mount and look at it after a week of operation, you will understand why. A softener is not a filter (unless you buy the "pro" that also filters), and a sediment filter only removes sediment. So the pro is not as good as a number of the whole home filteration systems.Our MUD (municiple utility district) publishes annual water quality reports. They are great to use as a general guide for how much softening and filtering you need. You will probably have to do some conversion calculations.Here is some helpful information:The hardness of water is measured in grains per gallon (gpg). One grain is equivalent to 17.1 milligrams of calcium or magnesium dissolved in one liter of water. For example, one aspirin is equal to 5 grains, and when dissolved into a gallon of water, the unit of measure would be reported as 5 grains per gallon. Your municipal water supply may measure water hardness in mg/L or ppm. 1 gpg = 17.1 mg/L or 17.1 ppm. Soft water is less than 1 gpg, whereas hard water is anything above 7gpg.See Whirlpool's websiteClassification Range of hardness (ppm)Soft 0 - 60Moderately Hard 61 - 120Hard 121 - 180Like a coffin nail - anything over 180See-https://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/wq/wq-5.htmlYou will know the system is working if your soap suddenly produces a lot more suds, your skin feels smooth after a shower, and your hair doesn't seem to need conditioner any longer. Note: your appliances that use soap will also experience more suds. You don't need as much soap to clean, well, anything.If you install it outside (which Whirlpool says you can if you protect it from direct sunlight), I recommend a cover. There is one sold on Amazon that fits perfectly, but it is not insullated. Those of you in cold weather climantes will at least need to find better protection for the inlet/outlet to avoid damage from freezing.Con: it is not a smart system. I would at least like the ability to monitor the salt in the tank and change other settings if possible.

This was a very easy install, I would recommend getting SharkBite hoses to make it even easier. This unit has "standard" water softener connectors, which are weird pressure connectors with clips. But this unit also includes adapters to 1" NPT. The Sharkbite hose can go from any pipe to 1" NPT, and the Whirlpool bypass valve and connection to the unit were easy and worked great. Keep in mind that with Sharkbite you generally only get one bite of the pipe so be sure the pipe is good and clean and where you want it before installing.The softener works well and the water is obviously soft right away. I didn't test the actual level yet, but will do so when everything has had a chance to settle in the pipes and fixtures. My hot water tanks even started to "clean" as they poured out rusty water for a while. Apparently that will happen as the softer water slowly breaks down old buildup.The design of this unit is tried and true. It is 90% the same as the 20 year old unit I was replacing. Same parts, same procedures. This unit has upgrades that my old unit didn't have, better/clearer electronics, etc but is generally a simple device. I bet almost all of the cost for this unit is for the brine tank, which does all the softening and filtering.The only thing I was missing was a way to read the Gallons Per Day usage. The unit knows how much water is being used and my old unit allowed you to check, which was an easy way to know if there was a leak somewhere in the house. But this unit has no way to read this, that I know of.I never installed one of these before so I followed the directions exactly, and they were mostly good. The biggest issue was the section on sanitizing with bleach. The directions tell you to add salt and do some other things, then there is the bleach section, implying that is the next step. But after I did this, all of the salt smelled of bleach and needed a few regens to get rid of. I think a better way would be to only sanitize when empty of salt, but I am still not sure which is correct. Regardless, there was never enough bleach to smell anything in any faucet, since the brine is such a small portion of the water that ends up there, and the unit filters bleach anyway.For the price it really can't be beat. Any place near me with the fancier softeners was several thousands to buy/install. And when all you are doing is making salty water, simple is better.

This is a water softener. It's used to make house water from a well more alkaline. Salt tablets go inside from the top. A bag of salt tablets goes for around $11.00. Some soft tablets can also contain a material that resists and stops some rust. Bags of salt are for sale at most hardware stores. Ask for the ones that stop the rust. If there is a lot of scale, calcium and lime in the home water, making the water feel "sticky" when showering, this will clear it up.There are settings for hardness that can be adjusted.There is a container within this container. Just pour bleach-like cleaner in it monthly to keep the bacteria down. In fact, the seller says it has to be used or the warranty will not be honored.This takes a very intelligent handyman to install. Pipes have to be fitted to it, water runs in and out. It recharges/cleans itself. When it cleans itself the "old/dirty" water has to be drained. Your town may require a separate leeching field for that. The old water cannot be drained into the septic system, it's too much, apparently. We set it to recharge at 2am every morning.This is the old-fashioned way to soften water and remove a little rust. It's less expensive.If there is a lot of rust in your well, you will need 2 more pieces of equipment: a neutralizer and another tank that is an iron filter. These are daunting to install for any handyman. Most plumbers will not attempt it! It would just be easier to call the Culligan people or another water cleaning company and buy or rent their equipment and have the professionals install it (cost about $6,500.00 plus a monthly service fee.This equipment does not neutralize the water, and it doesn't claim to do so.

UPDATE less than 4 years later and it is out to the curb. Changed review to 1 star.Reliability is horrible. Many online reviews state to avoid box store water softeners like Whirlpool, but with the features and price, along with my own abilities to fix stuff, gave it a try. Experts on line state these only last a few years and are disposable. They were correct. It does work great for the short time that it works...First time this broke was after about 2 years. The motor stripped out the plastic gears. After 2 years, that part is now discontinued. A different metal version is now available, but you need to buy both new motor and new gears. Done and up and running again.This last final breakage, tank would not empty. Common issue. Little rubber washer goes bad. Replaced. Still same problem. Next common issue that corrects failure to drain is replace entire Venturi Assembly. Replaced. Same issue. Both the above Whirlpool parts do fail often and need replaced regularly anyway. Next common issue is replace all the internal seals and rotor, which is over $100 in this next group of parts alone (total $200ish in parts this repair). So averaging around $100 to $200 in parts every couple years to keep it running is not something I bargained for. Other brands post reviews of lasting 20 years of more, and I chose to get a reliable brand instead of continuing to throw good money after bad. If like me, you wanted a unit with built in sediment filter, there are reliable 25 year units out there that are the Boss of Water and have this feature (even better at 20 micron) for around the same price, while using less salt and water each year.(prior 5 star review)Installed myself, outdoors under eve, where city water enters home. Whole house now has soft water except for one outside spigot, where everything connects together. This allows me to use un-softened (hard) water to fill pool or water plants, etc. (can also pull lever on water softener to bypass water softener if hard water is temporarily desired at any faucet). Installation took a couple hours, and I am not a plumber or in construction. Florida home with what is supposed to be good water. I also used a smoker cover to help protect the unit, and found one that fits perfect (26 Inch Square Smoker Grill Cover). We also use a Brita filter pitcher for drinking water, and since adding the combo of Brita filter and water softener, we rarely drink bottled water.Water softener con:After showering or hand washing, skin had a weird feel like it still had soap on it and needed rinsed, which didn't help. Took more than 4 months to get used to that, but now I can't even tell. Knew this ahead of time, happens to everyone making the switch, but didn't expect the slippery feel to take so long to get used too.Pro's:The sediment filter works great. Front house, outside spigot is used to wash cars. Car used to have a terrible dirty film on it after rinsing, and had to rush to dry before it was caked on by the hot Florida sun. Spigot RV water filter did not help. After installing softener, the sediment filter eliminated 95% of the nasty rinse water. That was the first eye opener.In the kitchen before softener, our dishwasher always left spots on glasses, even with best spot remover added to dispenser. We also had to use the strongest ultimate tablets to clean. Black and brown plastic utensils had turned chalky white, and it looked permanent. Had to use dishwasher appliance cleaner powder every couple months. I was ready to buy a new dishwasher. Coffee maker told us it needed vinegar cleaning every few weeks, and they only lasted about a year before needing replaced. After installing softener, we are able to use cheaper dishwasher tablets. Glasses come out spotless (second eye opener). All our old plastic utensils changed from chalky whitish, back to looking like new again, correct black or brown color after a few months. Our dishwasher runs like new again! Coffee maker has not yet asked to be cleaned in 11 months of using soft water. Chrome faucets and sink now stay clean and shiny. Clothes washer works better and clothes feel much softer and cleaner. I can only imagine how great this will be to maker the water heater last a lot longer! Spend the extra money and get a good unit like this one with sediment filter.

This is my first water softener. I live in a rural area on a community well and the hardness is over 120 gpg (grains per gallon), which is pretty hard. I have a filter system, but it wasn’t enough. After a lot of research and talking to plumbers an neighbors with softeners, I picked this Whirlpool unit. It arrived promptly, and the shipping box was in OK condition. But, when I opened it up, I found a lot of issues. The case was pretty scraped up and the bottom was sort or warped. The brine tank was rattling around in the salt tank a the input/output valve was turned sideways inside the cover. When I opened the cover, I found that the circuit board cover was off and the board itself was lying loosely in the cover. The plug was bent and there was some damaged insulation on the power wire. I initially decided to return it, but it would have been a lot of work to get it upstairs and shipped and then wait for a new one. I put the circuit board and display back in place and fixed the other things that I could see. When I plugged it in, it worked so I decided to try it out instead of returning it. The actual hookup was easy (other than running the pex lines through the ceiling). I used 3/4 pex line and shark bite fittings in it (so that it would be easy to disconnect if it didn’t work). The instructions were fairly straightforward, although there is no mention anywhere as to how much salt to put in. I used 2 bags of pellet salt, but shoul have bought 5 or 6. I programmed everything and ran a recharge as per the instructions and it all went well. The next morning however, I noticed that the salt tank was almost full of water (up to 6 on the fill level). I removed the cover and looked it over carefully and noted that the seal between the brine tank and valve body was leaking. I was going to return it again at this point, but decided to dive in further. Found the instructions on servicing the Distributor O-ring kit and took the valve body off off the brine tank. I found that the lowermost O-ring (under the filter screen) was out of place and covered in loose charcoal. I cleaned everything, lubricated the O-rings and put it all back together. So far, no leaks and the unit works perfectly. I will say that installation is relatively easy. Be sure that you have feed lines and drain options wherever you’re going to install this. I will also say that Whirlpool’s website is very good with lots of clear instructions and information. The softener seems to work fine, and there is a significant, measurable difference in the water hardness. Time will tell if this is a lemon, but I do have the extended warranty 🤞.