The softener regenerates, but water is only partially softened (soft then hard before the next regeneration).

Safety first: No internal work is required.

Step-by-step checks:

• 1. Recalculate settings:
  • Determine actual daily water usage and hardness.
  • Reprogram hardness and capacity according to Kenmore manual guidelines.
• 2. Increase reserve:
  • Increase the reserve capacity or safety factor if available in programming.
• 3. Resin condition:
  • If the unit is old, consider replacing the resin bed to restore full capacity.