Walk into any hardware store and you’ll see a wall of salt bags, each one looking suspiciously similar. Do not grab the cheapest one without reading the label. You need water softener salt, usually sold in 40 or 50-pound bags. The two main types are solar salt (crystals from evaporated seawater) and evaporated salt (pellets that dissolve slowly). For most modern softeners, pellets are the reliable, no-fuss choice.
Side note: if you use rock salt, you’re basically inviting mud into your brine tank. Rock salt has insoluble dirt that clogs everything. Don’t be that person—your softener will hate you.
Locate the brine tank and open it like you own the place
Your water softener is usually a two-tank system: one tall cylinder for resin, and a shorter, wider tank for salt. That shorter one? That’s your brine tank—the salt’s home base. Lift the lid. If it’s stuck, give it a gentle wiggle; no need to Hulk-smash it.
Once it’s open, look inside. If the salt looks like a solid, crusty block of ice, don’t panic. That’s a “salt bridge”—a hard crust that forms when salt gets damp and then dries. You’ll need to break it up with a long handle (a broomstick works, but wash it first). Otherwise, the salt can’t dissolve properly.
