Big-Box Water Softeners Compared: Whirlpool, GE, Morton, WaterBoss, and NorthStar

The Whirlpool at Lowe's, the Rheem at Home Depot and the Morton at Menards all come from one company. Those three, plus Kenmore, NorthStar and EcoPure, name Water Channel Partners as the maker in their own manuals, so comparing a Whirlpool to a Rheem is comparing sizes, features and prices, not factories. For a small house on city water with no iron, any of them is a reasonable buy.

Who actually makes big-box softeners

Six of the big-box brands name the same maker, Water Channel Partners, in their own manuals and warranties. Whirlpool's reads "Manufactured under license by Water Channel Partners." Rheem's says "THIS PRODUCT IS MANUFACTURED BY WATER CHANNEL PARTNERS." Morton's, Kenmore's, NorthStar's and EcoPure's say the same thing in their own words. The names on the box are brands, not factories: Whirlpool's softeners are made under license, and Morton's are made for Morton Salt.

From each brand's current manual, warranty or product page, checked September 29, 2026.

What this means for you: a Whirlpool, a Rheem and a Morton are not three companies competing on how well they build a softener. They are one maker's cabinet softener in different sizes, colors and feature sets. Pick on resin, warranty and price, which the next table lays out.

Water Channel Partners is a trade name that EcoWater Systems LLC registered in Colorado; EcoWater describes itself as "A Marmon Group, Berkshire Hathaway Company." The papers give two Minnesota addresses, 1890 Woodlane Drive in Woodbury and 2805 Dodd Road in Eagan. Older papers used a different name: EcoPure's 2020 warranty says its softener "is manufactured by Ecodyne Water Systems LLC" at the same Woodbury address.

The shelf models side by side

The number to compare is the cubic feet of resin inside, because resin is the part that softens. The grain number on the box is each maker's own rating. Most shelf models hold between 0.7 and 1.3 cubic feet.

Grains and resin from each maker's spec sheet or manual. Menards prices from its site; Home Depot prices as its listings showed in search results that day, because Home Depot blocks automated page reads. Prices move, so treat them as the neighborhood.

The makers also rate each model for clear-water iron, from 3 to 12 parts per million (ppm) depending on the model. That is their rating; what I'd do about iron is under which softener fits your house. If you are comparing stores rather than brands, our where to buy a water softener page covers Lowe's, Home Depot, Menards and the warehouse clubs. The Aquasure Harmony, a softener with a separate salt tank, sold on Amazon and listed online by Lowe's and Home Depot, has its own review, and if Amazon is where you are shopping, read what to check before you buy a softener or filter on Amazon.

Each big-box brand in brief

Every brand below makes a cabinet softener that works on moderately hard city water; the differences are resin, features, warranty and price.

Whirlpool

Whirlpool's softeners are "Manufactured under license by Water Channel Partners." The WHES33 holds 0.88 cubic feet of resin, the WHES40 holds 1.14 and the WHES44 holds 1.23. The WHESFC is a softener and carbon filter in one cabinet, and the WHEC46 adds Wi-Fi alerts for low salt and for water running continuously, which is the one to buy if you want your phone to tell you. Full coverage lasts 1 year, extended to 5 if you use Whirlpool's cleanser every 4 months and keep the receipts; the electronics are covered 3 years and the tanks 10.

Rheem

Rheem's softeners at Home Depot come from the same maker as Whirlpool's, so Rheem vs Whirlpool is a spec and price comparison. The Rheem RHS32 and the Whirlpool WHES33 both hold 0.88 cubic feet of resin rated 33,000 grains, and Home Depot listed the RHS32 at $399. The RHS42 holds 1.20 cubic feet for $499, and the RHW42 is the same size with Wi-Fi for $599. The warranty matches Whirlpool's.

Morton

Morton's softeners are made for Morton Salt, and the current manual says the softener "is manufactured by Water Channel Partners, 1890 Woodlane Drive, Woodbury." Everything true of the Whirlpool applies: fine for light-to-moderate city hardness in a compact package, not built for heavy duty. Menards had the M34 (0.91 cubic feet) at $519.99 and the Wi-Fi M45C (1.26 cubic feet) at $719.99, and both recharge with salt based on the water you use. Morton's 1-year warranty extends to 5 years with its cleanser every 4 months, the same deal as Whirlpool's. Pick between Morton, Whirlpool, Rheem, and NorthStar on price and available capacity, not brand.

Kenmore

Kenmore softeners are "Manufactured under license by Water Channel Partners, Woodbury, Minnesota." The Kenmore 350 holds 0.83 cubic feet of resin rated 32,100 grains, the 420 holds 1.11 rated 40,100, and the Elite 520 is a softener and carbon filter in one cabinet. The warranty is 1 year on parts and labor, 3 on the circuit board and 10 on the tanks. Old Sears units hang on in some houses: this summer a Virginia caller was replacing a Kenmore more than 30 years old, and an Ohio caller on a well told me his Sears 420 series "works pretty good for a while, you know, like 5 or 10 or 15 years," and was starting to die.

NorthStar

NorthStar comes from the same maker, with 1 year on parts, 5 years on the electronics and valve, and 10 on the tanks. It is sold through dealers and costs more. Warners' Stellian, an appliance dealer, listed the NSC31 at $999.99, the NSC42 (1.2 cubic feet) at $1,249.99 and the NSCWC softener-and-carbon cabinet at $1,499.99. At those prices it sits next to a standard softener with a separate salt tank; our 32,000 grain is $1,495.

WaterBoss

WaterBoss comes from a different maker: it belongs to Hague Quality Water, the Ohio company A. O. Smith bought in 2017. The 900 holds 1 cubic foot of resin plus a built-in filter, rated 38,000 grains in WaterBoss's manual (Home Depot's listing says 36,400), and Home Depot listed it at $540.54. The smaller 700 holds 0.7 cubic feet and regenerates in 19 minutes. Its manual covers the mechanical and electronic parts for 5 years and the media tank, main control valve and brine cabinet for 10; the resin and the labor are not covered, and parts come through WaterBoss's technical support. Its manual says the water needs a pH of 7 or higher, which matters on a well.

A. O. Smith

A. O. Smith, which owns Hague, sells its own AO-WH-SOFT line at Lowe's, and the manual names "A. O. Smith and its suppliers" as the manufacturer without saying more. The 350C holds 1 cubic foot rated 35,000 grains and is pitched for 2 to 4 people; the 400T and the Wi-Fi 450T hold 1.25 cubic feet. The shared manual gives 3 years on parts and 10 on the tank and cabinet, while the 450T's product page says 5 and 10, so check the paperwork in the box for the model you buy.

EcoPure

EcoPure's current manual says the softener "is manufactured by Water Channel Partners." The EP31 holds 0.81 cubic feet of resin and the EP42 holds 1.09, with the same 1-year, 3-year and 10-year warranty as Whirlpool and Rheem.

What a cabinet softener does well

For a small house on city water with no iron, a cabinet softener does the whole job, and it costs $400 to $720 instead of $1,495 and up. The resin tank sits inside the salt cabinet, so the whole softener fits a closet or a crowded utility room. Rheem pitches its smallest model for "condos, townhomes, etc.", A. O. Smith sizes its 350C for 2 to 4 people, and WaterBoss sizes its 700 for small families. Most are certified by NSF International to remove hardness.

When a caller in Alaska asked what to do about freight on one of our softeners, I told him, "you can get like a 48,000 grain water softener if you can find one locally, like at Lowe's or Home Depot, and that should work." Years ago, when we were a service company, we were a contractor for one of the big-box stores, putting these in for people, so when a caller has one I know exactly what it is.

Already own one that works?

Keep it. A Maryland caller this spring had a 10-year-old Whirlpool on his well that was still taking out the iron and the hardness, and asked whether to replace it. I told him I usually say run it till it dies. In Pennsylvania, another company had told a caller her Whirlpool wasn't big enough. Her water had iron and a pH below 6, which call for an iron filter and a neutralizer, not a bigger softener. I told her that if the softener was working well, that was fine, and put a sediment filter, an iron filter and an acid neutralizer ahead of it. A Minnesota caller's Morton was about 5 years old and working fine, and I told him, "keep it, put it after the iron filter, and you're good to go."

Cabinet softener vs standard softener

A cabinet softener puts the resin tank inside the salt cabinet; a standard softener keeps the resin tank and the salt tank apart, with the control valve on top of the resin tank. The build is the smaller difference. The bigger ones are how much resin you get and where the parts come from.

Resin is the part that softens, and less of it means more regenerations. As I told an Illinois caller with a small softener and four people in the house, "The smaller you go, the more it's gonna backwash and the more salt it's gonna use, the more water it's gonna discharge." By resin, a 40,000 grain cabinet unit and our 32,000 grain softener are about the same size: 1.14 cubic feet in the Whirlpool WHES40, 1.0 in ours. The grain numbers are each maker's own rating, so compare the cubic feet.

The parts are the other difference. Whirlpool's parts list shows a control valve built for that softener, and one parts supplier sells a common catalog for Whirlpool, Kenmore, EcoPure, GE, Morton and NorthStar, with a warning to compare part numbers first. WaterBoss parts come through WaterBoss's technical support. The Fleck 5600SXT takes standard Fleck parts, sold openly.

The one cleaning a cabinet softener needs

A cabinet softener pulls salt water into the resin through a small suction jet called the nozzle and venturi, and when grit plugs it, the water goes hard. Whirlpool's manual puts it plainly: "A clean nozzle & venturi is a necessity for the water softener to work properly." When the softener does not draw brine, the first thing its checklist names is a "Dirty or plugged nozzle and venturi." The manual shows how to take it apart and clean it, and gives no schedule.

Owners who keep these running learn to do it. A NorthStar owner on a tractor forum wrote that his 12-year-old unit had "always worked well" because he learned to take apart "the little jet system and clean it," about once a year when sand gets in. If the part is worn, a replacement nozzle and venturi with its gasket was $34 at SoftenerParts.com on September 29, 2026, a rotor disc $72.95 and a seal kit $62.95. On a well, a sediment filter ahead of the softener keeps the grit out in the first place.

How long big-box softeners last

Whirlpool and Rheem both put the average life of their softeners at about 8 to 10 years. Whirlpool's support page says it depends "on the incoming water quality and usage," and that near the end the resin is likely breaking down. Both are made by Water Channel Partners, so that is the closest thing to a maker's number for most of the shelf.

Real houses run wider than an average: the Maryland caller's Whirlpool was 10 years old and still working, and the Virginia caller's Kenmore passed 30 years. Owner reports on homeowner forums are few and scattered, from Kenmores that lasted 5 to 7 years to a 12-year-old NorthStar still going. The trouble owners describe most is the softener no longer pulling in salt water, the nozzle and venturi problem above.

We don't publish an average life for our softeners either. What I can tell you from my service work is that on water kept free of iron and chlorine, the sturdier 10% crosslink resin has lasted 30 to 40 years. Because the Fleck valve takes standard parts, a worn valve part is a repair, not a new softener.

Which softener fits your house

A cabinet softener fits a small household on city water with no iron; a well with iron or low pH, or a bigger household, is where the choice changes.

Looking at one on the shelf?

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Text a photo of the box or the tag, with your hardness and iron numbers, and I'll tell you straight whether that unit is enough for your house. Sometimes it is.

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Call 800-460-5810 or text Aidan at 443-277-2204.

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What we sell instead

We sell softeners with a separate salt tank, built on the Fleck 5600SXT, a standard control valve, so we benefit when you skip the cabinet unit. That is why this page says plainly when the cabinet unit is the right buy. The Fleck 5600SXT 32,000 grain is $1,495, the 48,000 grain with 10% crosslink resin is $1,995, the 64,000 is $2,195 and the 80,000 is $2,495, with free shipping to the lower 48 states. The 48,000 holds 1.5 cubic feet of resin in a 10 by 54 inch tank.

What ships: the mineral tank, the control valve with the bypass valve pre-installed, the brine tank, and the resin in separate bags. Resin is loaded into the tank at install. Drain tubing is not included. We recommend a licensed plumber; a licensed plumber typically completes the install in 2 to 3 hours, and I tell callers to expect about $700 to $1,000 for it, on top of the price above.

The full lineup, 32,000 to 80,000 grains, is on our water softeners page, and if you are weighing a dealer or a rental instead, our water softener brands comparison covers the dealer and online brands. Starting from scratch? Our complete guide to water softeners explains how they work.

Frequently asked questions