Your water softener has two main tanks: the resin tank (where the magic happens) and the brine tank (where the salt lives). The brine tank always has a little water at the bottom—it’s like a salty swamp.
This water is used to regenerate the resin beads that remove hardness from your water. So seeing a couple of inches of water in the brine tank? Totally normal. Especially right after a regeneration cycle.
If your water level is low—say, just covering the salt—you’re probably fine. Go make a cup of coffee and relax. But if it looks like a kiddie pool? Keep reading.