Recently I went from in-tank softening to an under-the-counter system. After following various threads on HB I decided the best approach for me was to leverage the generic Chris Coffee system (CCS) and add my own bypass. (I am certainly not the first to do this.) I thought I'd share my approach.

Note that there are at least two systems out there (Everpure's Claris and Mavea's Purity C) that do this in one self-contained unit that makes it easy (e.g., takes up less space, only one unit to plumb in). However they do have their downsides, such as locking you into one brand for new cartridges ($$$). Additionally these units use hydrogen ion exchange which creates additional risks that should at least be considered (i.e., low pH, see Warning: Chloride & sulfate levels with weak acid cation softeners (e.g., Everpure Claris)).

I've mounted everything to a piece of plywood so that I could "hang it up" under the sink and also remove it with ease for filter changes or any other reasons. Here's a picture of my system before installing it under the counter (water inlet at top right; water outlet to left of carbon filter; bypass adjustment ball valve in middle towards top):



This DIY bypass system is based on the CCS to which I added some additional fittings, such as the tees and one-way check valves which Chris also sells. (The check valves are inline before the two ball valves and are labeled with arrows.) Definitely start by drawing out what you need before you buy anything. I did this but still didn't account for the sharp bends for the water IN and OUT connections and so had to separately order two additional elbows. While I was getting those, I also picked up the red locking clips and a very nice John Guest ball valve mounting clip that enables you to mount the valve so it doesn't move when you make adjustments (mine is mounted to the plywood).

One of my concerns was with the JG ball valve used to control the amount of flow through the bypass. I didn't know if it had the "resolution" needed to adjust to the hardness level desired. John B pointed me to this mixing valve that he uses which should do the trick if it turns out the JG doesn't cut it (smart shopping alert: this mixing valve includes integrated check valves). The jury is still out on the JG valve resolution in my setup.

One last thing I added, which is not shown on the picture, is a 0.5 GPM flow restrictor. The softening cartridge that came with the CCS stated it was rated for a maximum flow of 0.5 GPM. I put the restrictor after the carbon block. I doubt this would provide enough volume for machines that are directly plumbed in (I'm not).

It would be a major miss if I did not thank those that helped guide my journey, Jim Schulman, John B, and the others on HB, and so thank you all for a truly great community!

Looks good. There are several different ways you can do the bypass. I like to use the JG 2 way dividers between the filters:
http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-2474 ... er-38.aspx What are you feeding? Cold water faucet?

The 2-way dividers can also make for a nice install. Yes, I'm feeding a cold water faucet that is at the bar sink next to my machine. I really haven't had much time to play with things, but since I'm feeding the faucet I can close the valve to the softener and have 100% of the flow go through the bypass. Then by watching the flow out of the faucet, I can see how much of an adjustment I'm making to the bypass. Once that's done, I open the valve the softener again. I just need to take some time to do various water measurements to see how this all effects hardness levels.

NeedBeans wrote: Then by watching the flow out of the faucet, I can see how much of an adjustment I'm making to the bypass. Once that's done, I open the valve the softener again. I just need to take some time to do various water measurements to see how this all effects hardness levels.

My set up under the kitchen sink uses the JG shut off valve to control the bypass. Just changed filters yesterday. Well water hardness is currently 7 gr. & with the JG valve wide open I'm getting 2 gr. of hardness at the cold water faucet. This set up sees much more use then the coffeebar so the softener gets changed every 4+ months. I'll recheck the hardness (Hatch 5B kit) every couple weeks & adjust the valve as required to stay in that 35-40ppm range.