Pentair Water Softeners Explained (2026): Fleck, Pelican, Everpure, and the Dealer Line, and Which One You Are Actually Being Quoted

Pentair does not make one softener. It makes two of the three main softener control valves in the American industry: the Fleck and the Autotrol. It also sells a few complete systems under the Pentair name. So when a quote or a listing says "Pentair," it usually tells you whose valve is on the tank and almost nothing about the tank, the resin, the sizing or the price. This page shows you how to tell which Pentair you are looking at, what each one costs, and where the parts come from.

Caller "We just had somebody come by, and they priced out a Sterling Water Systems, but I haven't seen anything about them."

Aidan "That's just the name. That's probably the name of their company, and that's what they call their equipment. It could be either Clack or Fleck or Autotrol."

A homeowner on a well with 26 grains of hardness, holding a dealer's quote. Whatever name is on the cabinet, the valve on top is usually one of a few, and two of them belong to Pentair.

Which Pentair valve do you have?

Look at the control valve on top of the tall tank, or at the line on the quote that names it. If it says Fleck or Autotrol, it is a Pentair valve, whoever built the rest of the softener. In this business one company usually makes the tank and another makes the valve on top, and a dealer puts the two together and often puts its own name on the front.

Is Fleck owned by Pentair?

Yes. Pentair bought Fleck Controls in 1995, so every Fleck valve made since is a Pentair product. Fleck started in the U.S. in 1950 and made its first water softener valve in 1963, according to Pentair's own Fleck brochure. The New York Times reported the price at about $130 million, for a Brookfield, Wisconsin company that "makes valves for residential water softeners."

That ownership is most of why I like the Fleck. In my words from the video: "Fleck is owned by a huge company. They have great tech support. They have parts readily available." Callers say it both ways, "a Pentair, uh, Fleck" or just "a Fleck," and they mean the same valve.

The 5600 is the primary valve in the Fleck line. The 5800 is newer and has more features, but it does not sell nearly as well. My Fleck 5600SXT review covers the valve itself, and Clack vs. Fleck covers the Clack, the third of the main valves.

What is an Autotrol valve?

Autotrol is Pentair's other softener valve: an Autotrol 255 valve body with a 400 series or Logix control on top. It came to Pentair in 2008, when Pentair took an 80.1 percent share of GE's water softener business, and at the time Pentair said it would keep both the Autotrol and the Fleck dealer programs. When I tell people there are three main valves in the American industry, Autotrol is one of them, with Clack and Fleck.

Inside, the two Pentair valves work differently. A Fleck moves a brass piston through seals and spacers. An Autotrol opens and closes flat valve discs, so there is no sliding seal to wear. Pentair rates the 255 for tanks 6 to 14 inches wide with up to 3 cubic feet of resin, at 15.5 gallons a minute in service and a 6 gallon-a-minute backwash.

Autotrol is sold through water treatment dealers, so you will usually find one on a dealer-built softener, often under the dealer's own name. That is why the caller above could not find anything about the brand on his quote.

Is it a Logix 740 or 760?

The control on top decides when the softener recharges. Pentair's manuals describe them this way:

• Logix 740: a clock. It recharges on set days of the week, or every so many days, up to 99.
• Logix 760: a meter. It counts the water you use and recharges only when the resin needs it, with a calendar backup.
• 460i: a meter control from the 400 series. At 2:00 a.m. each day it averages the last seven days of water use and recharges only if tomorrow would run the resin out.

Not sure which Logix you have? Pentair's manual says to take the cover off and unplug the control from the valve; a silver label on the back shows the model number.

Can you still get Autotrol parts?

Yes. Pentair still lists the Autotrol 255 in its current valve range, still publishes the Logix 740 and 760 manual (the current one is dated 2021), and warrants Autotrol valves for 5 years. Its manual says to get service and parts from your local water treatment dealer. One exception: the old 440i timer control is listed as obsolete.

We do not sell Autotrol parts. If yours is working, keep it. If you are deciding between repairing an old Autotrol and replacing the softener, send a photo of the valve and its label and I will tell you which way I would go.

Why Pentair's capacity numbers look low

A softener's grain rating is how much hardness it removes between recharges, and it changes with how much salt it uses each time, so one tank of resin can carry several different numbers. Pentair's Pro Elite spec sheet prints three for the same 1.5 cubic feet of resin:

Pentair's own 5600SXT Series lists its 10 by 54, 1.5 cubic foot system as "17K," and the page does not say what salt setting that assumes. Our 48,000 grain Fleck sits in a 10 by 54 tank too. My read is that the two numbers are taken at different salt settings, not that one softener is three times bigger. Compare quotes by cubic feet of resin and tank size, and size the softener from your hardness, the people in the house and the bathrooms in use at once; my sizing guide walks through it.

What a Pentair softener costs

Pentair does not publish a price for its dealer-sold softeners; the 5600SXT Series and Pro Elite pages both send you to a dealer for one. So the price of a "Pentair softener" is whatever the dealer quotes. My guide to reading a dealer quote shows which lines to ask about.

Here is the same Fleck valve with the price printed. Shipping is included to the lower 48 states.

Each 5600SXT system is the Fleck valve on a Vortech tank with a stainless steel bypass and 10% crosslink resin. Every tank ships empty: the resin comes in separate bags and is loaded into the tank at install, and drain tubing is not included. We recommend having a plumber install it: about 2 to 3 hours. Plumbing it in is an inlet and an outlet; the part that takes planning is the 1/2 inch drain line to a floor drain, standpipe or utility sink, with an air gap.

Have a Pentair quote or an old Autotrol?

Text Aidan a photo of the quote

Send a photo of the quote or the valve label. Aidan will tell you which valve and tank it is and what that hardware costs with the price printed, whether or not you buy from us. Aidan supports your plumber by phone at 800-460-5810, and if you'd rather do the install yourself, text him at 443-277-2204 with any questions.

Text Aidan443-277-2204 Call800-460-5810Aidan

8 AM to 5 PM Eastern, seven days a week. A real person, not a call center.

What Pentair's warranty covers

Pentair warrants Fleck and Autotrol valves for 5 years. Its fiberglass tanks 13 inches wide or smaller get 10 years. These are the lines from Pentair's published limited warranty that matter on a softener:

Three lines of fine print matter more than the years:

• Labor is not covered. The warranty covers the part, not the visit to swap it.
• Your claim goes through whoever sold you the system. Pentair says anyone who did not buy directly from it "must submit warranty claims with their direct suppliers." That means the local dealer, or us.
• A non-Pentair part ends the warranty. Putting "any parts manufactured by a third party into a Pentair Product shall completely void the limited warranty." Inside the 5 years, use Pentair seal kits and pistons.

On the softeners we sell, the valve is covered for 5 years and the tank for 10, which I tell people is standard throughout the industry.

When a Pentair dealer is the right call

We sell Fleck systems direct, so weigh this knowing that. A local Pentair dealer is the better buy in a few cases:

• You want one company for everything. The dealer sells it, installs it and comes back to service it. If you have no plumber you trust, that is worth paying something for.
• You need a certified complete system on paper. The Pro Elite is tested and certified by the WQA as a complete system to NSF/ANSI 44, the softener performance standard, and 372, the lead-free standard.
• You already own a working one. A Fleck or Autotrol that softens your water should stay, and its parts are still made.

The gap worth acting on is a quote thousands over printed-price hardware plus a plumber, not a few hundred. If Culligan is the other name on your table, my Culligan cost guide covers how that one is sold.

Why we use Fleck valves

We build our softeners on the Fleck valve because, after trying the others, it is the one we keep coming back to. We have tried Clack, Fleck and Autotrol, and been dealers for different companies, and we always come back to the Fleck. Its parts are readily available, the tech support is good, and it is the valve I have in my own house.

The difference between us and a local dealer is not the valve. It is that the price is printed, the resin is 10% crosslink, which I prefer to the 8% some systems use, and the sizing comes from your water: send me your hardness, iron and the number of people in the house, and I will tell you which size you need. For other brands side by side, see our brand comparison.

Frequently asked questions