Me and my questions, what's this?

[LazyPup]

I am assuming from your photo that you intend to connect the new filter in the line toward the back of the photo and between the water conditioning unit and the valve to the right side of the photo.

in the photo you have a female thread adapter on the left side of the new filter and on the right side you have a female thread adapter with a short nipple of copper to a regular 90 el.

It looks like you could take the nipple and regular 90 out. Install a Street 90 directly on the thread adapter on both sides of the new filter which would make the 90 close to the filter body. Stub a short lenght of copper out to the existing pipe, then attach the filter lines to the existing pipe by means of conventional 90's. It looks like you would have plenty of space.

[Max]

Here's what I have gone with. What you see in the photo is all dry fitted. I haven't looked at the photo yet (typing this p first) but don't laugh at my sweating. In case that seems like a contradiction i.e. dry-fitted and sweating, I should say that I have joined the male adapter, nipple and cast unions that are screwed into the filter body, the rest (elbows and pipes) are just dry fitted.

I had to go with the crazy pattern because there isn't enough room to move the softener any more so I have to work with the confines I have. I could have probably gotten away with a simple design but I decided to put in two cast unions so that I could easily disconnect the filter and remove it. With the cast unions it's also easier to fit the pipes since I have to thread two male adapters into the filter body. If the adapters had copper pipes attached I wouldn't be able to turn the adapter through a complete rotation as I am so close to the wall. I hope that makes sense?

Anyway, if what I have shown below looks completely crazy then don't be afraid to say so.

Cheers, Max

Edit: in case you are wondering, I went to great lengths to get the pipes the correct length so that when it is time to put the new filter in service I should have little to do other than chop the existing pipes and sweat all the joints. If it turns out that my calculations are a little off I should only need to cut two new pipes.

[LazyPup]

I would have made the 90's off the thread adapters with street els then attached the unions on the runs out to the existing pipe, but the manner that you have it will work just as well.

[mrcaptainbob]

I'd add two more unions at the end's of those dry fit elbows. Sure would make it easier to install. Not to mention being able to easily remove/replace any appliance either side of that filter. Does that filter have bypass capability? If not, maybe adding three valves to mock that up might be good idea. Looks like there'd be room. ....
That looks like a nice clean job you're doing. Equal, square, neat.

[Max]

The filter does not have a bypass function although you would expect it for the price those things are!

Here's another question. As you can tell from the image above I eventually have to sweat the pipe entering the water softener i.e. the join on the left. The water softener is connected to the pipe via a couple of plastic screw cap thingies. These plastic screw cap thingies are only about 6 inches away from where I will be sweating the joint, is there any chance they cuold melt? I'm assuming not since there are already other joints that are closer to the plastic than than the joints I will be making but I don't want to make any rash assumptions.

[Max]

Wow, it has been almost 3 months since I last looked at this, how time flies! I've not been lazy, just concerned that I damage the plastic threaded fitting circled above. Do I have a reason to be worried that the fitting could melt when I sweat the new joint? It kills me that I've not gotten around to finishing this job yet and I think I should get it done.

Cheers, Max