Water Softener in Rancho Santa Fe, CA

Rancho Santa Fe is an unincorporated community of low-density country estates, laid out under architect Lilian Rice's master plan. Water comes from the Santa Fe Irrigation District for most of the area, which treats Lake Hodges and imported water at the R.E. Badger Filtration Plant, while a San Diego LAFCO report shows Olivenhain Municipal Water District serving Santa Fe Valley. We don't have a verified hardness figure for either, so testing comes first.

What to do now

1. Confirm from your bill whether SFID or Olivenhain serves the property.
2. Test hardness at a kitchen or bar faucet near the main house.
3. Map where the main enters and where irrigation, pool fill and guest-house lines branch off.
4. Check that a shutoff exists on your side of the meter. SFID handles the valve on the street side and says customers should have their own on the customer side.
5. Find out whether the home is on the Rancho Santa Fe Community Services District sewer or a private onsite wastewater system, since some parcels are not on municipal sewer.
6. Have the plumber check County of San Diego Planning & Development Services permit needs, since the community is unincorporated.

Symptoms and likely causes

Cost factors

Estate homes often need higher-flow valves, larger resin tanks or a twin-tank system so soft water is available while one tank regenerates, and that sets the price more than anything else. Separating irrigation, pool and outdoor lines so they bypass the softener can involve real re-piping on a big lot. Where the house is on an onsite system rather than CSD sewer, an efficient metered valve that keeps brine volume down is worth the extra cost. A carbon stage, a drinking water system, outdoor shelter for equipment and hauling off an old unit round out the list. The median home here dates to about 1986, so many mains and shutoffs are original and may be due for replacement while the line is open. SFID's line is 858-756-2424, with after-hours calls at 858-756-2854.