On Fri, 23 Dec 2016 10:14:45 -0500, wrote:

On Fri, 23 Dec 2016 01:37:42 -0800 (PST), "
wrote:

Recently I started noticing a fine gold colored sediment in the sink that our water softener drains to during the backwash cycle. It is not a huge amount but a lot is probably going down the drain. It showed up a few times now so I called the water softener company and the woman answering the phone spoke to a technician who told her I should shut the unit down and put it on bypass until someone can come out and look at it. She said that there is a risk that our pipes could become clogged.

I was reading up on this and it I am thinking this might be the result of the beads becoming worn down from friction and somehow they are able to pass out during the backwash cycle. I read something about that online but I'm not sure if it is my problem. The unit is probably about 5 years old at this point.

If anyone can shed any light on what might be the problem here or point me to any online explanation I would appreciate it.

The repair guy is coming Monday and I want to understand it better before he sells me a brand new tank or some other type of system.

Thanks in advance.

That does sound like beads. If the strainers are intact there is
something wrong with the beads. I got a load of beads for mine for
about $100 (a cubic foot). They were 20 years old. The trick is
getting a water softener guy to order them. They may be available on
the net now tho. There are a couple of sites that have water softener
parts.

Beads/resin media generally last between 10-15 years. They can be
purchased online. Mine came with the softener when I replaced it.

OP. What brand and model is the softener?