Written by: Alexandra Uta // Expert Fact-Checking: Buddhini Dolapihilla, MBSS // Last Updated: Aug 4, 2023
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The Genesis Premier is a digital-metered on-demand water softener that uses upflow regeneration (a.k.a. upflow brining) for improved water and salt efficiency – more on that below.
The system which is sold by Discount Water Softeners is available in 5 different softening capacities:
This means that it’s suited for families of all sizes. For example: The 24,000-grain version is ideal for households of 1 or 2 people. The 40,000-grain unit is large enough for up to 5 residents living under the same roof.
Genesis Premier |
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| Price: | $$ |
| Flow Rate: | 11.2 gpm |
| Capacity: | 40,000 Grains |
| # of People: | Up to 5 |
| Metered Regen: | |
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Our Rating
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For this review, we are going to use the 40,000-grain system as our reference.
It provides a service flow rate of 11.2 gpm.
As mentioned before, the Genesis Premier softener works with upflow regeneration. According to the seller, this helps you to save up to 75% salt and 64% water on every single regen cycle.
Based on a minimum life expectancy of 15 years, you will save up to 8,280 lbs. of salt and 32,400 gallons of water compared to a downflow system, says Discount Water Softeners.
And indeed, customers have confirmed that after making the switch their new Genesis Premier uses significantly less salt compared to their old softener. However, some experts remain skeptical.
They claim that counter-flow regeneration only works properly if the softening resin is in a packed bed. In a non-packed bed, it’s even worse. Furthermore they state that upflow brining is more of a marketing hype and the efficiency gain is marginal at best, especially for residential applications.
For all we know, it’s certainly possible to achieve high salt efficiency with almost any softener with the right programming.
FYI: Upflow regeneration means that the resin is regenerated from the bottom up instead of top down. This allows for a more precise recharge and preserves unused softening beads from unnecessary ion exchange.
Aside from upflow or downflow regeneration, the Genesis Premier is engineered and assembled in the U.S. Plus you get a lifetime warranty on the resin and brine tank and 10 years on the control head.
There are a couple of additional benefits that this softener provides:
The Genesis Premier – learn more on amazon.com
Of course, the most important question is whether or not you will be able to install the Genesis Premier water softener yourself.
Well, it was designed to make installation easier and faster than ever, but you definitely need some prior DIY experience if you want to pull this off.
And yes, the unit can be installed outside as long as it’s shielded from the weather & sunlight and it does not freeze.
The following instructions are supposed to give you a basic idea of what the setup process looks like:
If a softener is not equipped with a bypass valve, we recommend you provide for one for ease of maintenance. Also, make sure to comply with local plumbing codes.
Discount Water Softeners recommends to place the system as close as possible to the pressure tank if you are on a well or water meter if you are on city water. It also requires a nearby drain and an electric outlet.
It would also makes sense to keep outside outlets on hard water so save on salt.
For more information, definitely check out the instruction manual.
The seller has provided the following installation video:
The Genesis Premier softener allows you to set custom cycle settings for the most efficient salt and water usage saving you time and money.
And the good news is that you have to make these settings only once and then you can forget about them.
First, you will have to set the time of the day, followed by your water hardness and the number of people living in your home. Additional settings are your water type (municipal or well) and regen time.
As for system maintenance, remember to fill up the brine tank with new salt every once in a while. This is also the ideal time to check for a salt bridge.
In case there is lots of sediment or silt in your water, you might have to clean the injector assembly on the right side of the control valve.
A manual for the Genesis Premier can be downloaded here: https://www.discountwatersofteners.com/content/manuals/GenesisUpFlowAndPremierManual-0916-6.pdf
Unfortunately, the Premier is quite pricey, even for a salt-based system.
With that in mind, not every user saw considerable less salt usage and by no means close to 75 percent as advertised.
One minor setback are the installation diagrams and instructions which could be a bit more detailed.
All in all, the majority of users seem to be more than happy with their purchase and would recommend the Genesis Premier salt softener to anyone with hard water problems.
They also said that the seller’s customer support is reliable for the most part and that the system will save them enough money on salt to pay for itself in the long run.
The only real issue that we see is the high price tag. Our rating: 4 stars!
The Genesis Premier is best for small to large homes and NSF-certified water softening.
This completes our Genesis Premier review. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below!
About the Author Alexandra Uta
Information provided on BOS is for educational purposes only. The products and services we review may not be right for your individual circumstances.
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Do you sell your Genesis water softener s on eBay? I saw some sold on eBay buy I’m not sure if that’s the same quality or may not be original product?
ReplyHey Barbara,
We don’t sell any water softeners at all. We only review them.