A 1.5 cuft softener regenerating at 9# salt per cubic ft would give you a capacity of 38,000. However, there is no need for you to regen with 9# since you do not have iron in your water. The sweet spot between water efficiency and salt efficiency is at 6# salt/cuft resin, which would place you at 31,000 capacity. We could regen yours as low as 4#salt/cuft resin, for a capacity of 27,000 I you don't mind hardness leakage when filling the jacuzzi tub, you could go as low as 1.25 cuft, but I wouldn't go any lower for the fixtures in your home. pH: A chemical injection system, consisting of a tank, controller, and chemical feed pump will take care of the problem. Either acetic acid or citric acid with alum will work. Some systems use sulfuric or hydrochloric acid but those are much more aggressive acids and typically used if water pH is 11 or higher. Resin: SST-60, while a very good resin, is overkill for you. Yes, it has great chemical resistance capabilities, but it is also neutral-core resin, most suitable for iron-laden waters and much more expensive than other resins. There are other 10% crosslinked resins and other companies from which to purchase a softener. Just to name a few resins: Purolite c100x10, Dow HGR, Rohm and Haas IR-122

100 miles... that's just down the road a piece. For a 2 cu ft softener I prefer the Fleck 7000SXT control (I linked to exactly that softener in my previous post) over the 5600SXT. The tank diameter limit of the 5600 is 12" and a 2 cu ft softener uses a 12x48 tank. I don't like pushing anything to the limit of it's specs. Aquatell doesn't seem to list the Fleck 7000SXT but they can get it with no problem. They offer the Clack, which appears to be a good valve, but is the new kid on the block without the long enviable service history of Fleck valves. Any of the Fleck SXT class controls allow custom settings for salt dose. In your circumstances you would set the control valve for 17 grains of (compensated) hardness, 4 lbs of salt / cu ft (4 lbs x 2 cu ft = 8 lbs salt total), and capacity at 30400 and that should regenerate every 7th or 8th day. You should set the calendar override at 8 days. Those settings will get you 3800 grains removed / pound of salt which is pretty darned efficient. Some softener sellers will disagree with me but you'll be smilin' at them for a long time.

Let's get the syntax correct... first, a softener is referred to by the volume of resin the resin tank not the hardness removal capacity. The hardness removal capacity of a volume of resin can be altered by the salt dose applied to regenerate that volume of resin. Second, when you say 64k (2 cu ft) do you mean 64k (2 cu ft) in each resin tank of a twin resin tank softener for a total of 128k (4 cu ft) or 64k (2 cu ft) total or 32k (1 cu ft) in each resin tank of a twin resin tank softener. There was no mention of iron in the water conditions so is there no iron? Based on the incomplete info you provided a 2 cu ft (64k as you call it) softener would be far too small. There's no SFR requirement listed. With 6 people and three full bathrooms a 2 cu ft (64k) softener would leak hardness through at peak demand and regenerate too often wasting both money and water. You want to make an informed decision so here's what I recommend... Water softener 101 ... Get a water test from an independent lab. An independent lab has no agenda and won't be trying to sell you water treatment equipment. Go to http://www.epa.gov/safewater/labs/index.html to locate a certified lab near you. This is a MUST DO because without it everything is a guess. A quickie water test from Sears or a water softener company won't be as accurate (and possibly not as competent) as from a certified independent lab. Since you're on a water system the water utility can supply you with the specs of the water AS IT LEAVES their facility but that is not necessarily representative of the water conditions at your water meter. Hit the Yellow Pages and call at least three local water treatment pros. Make sure you call at least one of the big dogs like Kinetico or Culligan for comparison and at least a couple independent pros. DON'T TELL THEM YOU HAD YOUR WATER TESTED. Give each an opportunity to offer suggestions and provide you with a quote to meet your water treatment needs. IGNORE ANY THAT DON'T TEST YOUR WATER THEMSELVES as they can't speak intelligently to water treatment without knowing what needs to be treated. Ask lots of questions. Peak and sustained SFR of the softener? Softening the entire house or just the water heater (bad idea)? Warranty, parts & labor or just parts, how long and on exactly what? Install, permits required, licensed plumber? Routine maintenance and costs? Do they stock parts? Response time for emergency (water leak) calls? If they don't explain things to your satisfaction that is a good indicator of how you'll be treated after the sale. After they've gone use your water test to compare with theirs. Are all your treatment needs being addressed? Ask your neighbors if they have any water treatment experience. They might tell you who's good or who to avoid. Come back here and post the specific recommendations and hardware components with the costs and we'll give you our opinions.

That makes more sense. In that case, I would go with the larger 2.0 CF softener to accommodate the higher-flow tub and potential increased water usage as your children turn into teens and use more water. Regardless of where you ultimately decide to purchase, you want to ensure your softener meets some specific criteria: High quality American or German made resin. This will provide a tight size distribution for optimal flow within the resin, longer resin life, and more reliable, predicable water softening. Since you have CITY WATER: 10% crosslinked resin. The oxidizers that city water treatment plants use, such as chlorine or chloramine, are harmful to softener resins. Higher crosslinking will resist chemical attack longer. Top basket. This serves two purposes. It sets up a proper water distribution during normal operation and prevents resin loss during backwash. Gravel underbed. The gravel underbed is there to set up proper flow patterns, improve backwash, keep the bottom basket in place, prevent basket failure, and prevent channeling. Many softener sales companies like to leave this out or sell softeners with a vortex system instead. Vortex systems weigh less than gravel so they cost less to ship. In addition, they are a more expensive item that adds profit for the softener salesperson, but provides no additional benefit to the homeowner . It simply adds another piece of equipment that can break. Fleck or Clack valves. These set the industry standard. Be aware that you will not be able to purchase Clack valves online. This is not a problem if you purchase locally. The valve should have the capability to regen based on water usage. Install the softener with a three-valve bypass. This will make it much easier if you ever need to remove the softener for repairs or wish to take it with you when you move. Use full-port, quarter-turn valves. Noryl bypass. Most softeners are available with either Noryl or stainless bypass valves. Both are good valves, but the noryl tends to be more reliable when not used for long periods of time. This is a redundancy if you install with a proper three-valve bypass. I prefer a bit of redundancy but it is your call. Brine tank: Although either round or square will work, round brine tanks are more structurally sound and will not deform like a square tank will. Since you need a softener 1.5 cuft or larger, a square tank will most likely be too small. If you live in a cold climate, ensure equipment is stored in a climate-controlled environment. Frozen softener resin is damaged softener resin. Purchase a Hach 5-B test kit. You will want to periodically check to ensure your softener is working correctly and this kit is your best option.