Whirlpool WHES30

What Whirlpool publishes, and what it does not

This record is mostly complete. What Whirlpool omits will not stop you sizing the unit or working out roughly what it costs to run, though you will have to ask if you want the full picture before buying.

Of the specifications a buyer actually needs to size and compare this unit, Whirlpool publishes 7 of 8. The capacity claim is backed by NSF/ANSI 44, NSF/ANSI/CSA 372.

Not published for this unit:

• price, which left to the retailer by some manufacturers, which makes comparison harder.

Nothing fills those gaps here. A spec sheet with holes at least tells you where to push the seller, which an invented number does not.

How it sits in the Whirlpool range

The WHES30 is the smallest Whirlpool unit we track at 30,000 grains. Alongside it sit the WHES40 and the WHESFC Pro Series Hybrid: the WHES40 adds 10,000 grains, and the WHESFC Pro Series Hybrid adds 1,000 grains on different warranty terms.

At its maximum 13.1 lb dose the WHES30 works out to roughly 2,290 grains per pound of salt. That figure is the fair way to line it up against other units, because every manufacturer in this category advertises the maximum and nobody runs it there day to day. Each regeneration also sends 35.2 gallons to the drain.

Who this suits, and who should skip it

A good fit for:

• Smaller households. At 30,000 grains this is sized for one or two bathrooms, and on hard water a larger household would push it into regenerating every few days.
• Well water. A published rating of 8 ppm of iron is among the higher figures we have recorded, and iron rating is the specification that decides whether resin lasts ten years or three.
• Anyone replacing an older timer softener. A metered head regenerates on water actually used rather than on a schedule, which is where most of the salt saving in a modern unit comes from.

Look elsewhere if:

• Large or hard-water homes. Undersizing is the most common softener mistake and it shows up as hardness creeping back between regenerations.

Mistakes to avoid at this size

• Buying the number on the box. The 30,000-grain rating is what this unit reaches at its maximum 13.1 lb salt dose. Day to day it runs a much smaller dose and delivers proportionally less per cycle, which is the honest basis for comparing it against anything else.
• Spending the iron headroom instead of banking it. A 8 ppm rating is worth having, and the way to use it is as margin rather than as a target to run against. Iron also loads capacity: at 3 ppm you are effectively adding 12 gpg to your hardness figure before sizing, which pulls a 30,000-grain unit down a household size.
• Stretching it one household size too far. At 30,000 grains the margin is thin. Add a bathroom or move to harder water and this unit regenerates every few days, which burns salt and wears the valve faster than the capacity gap suggests.
• Comparing it on price you cannot verify. Whirlpool leaves pricing to the retailer on this unit, so the figure you find will move week to week and between stores. Price it in the same week you price its alternatives or the comparison is meaningless.