The smell and taste of chlorine or a bleach-like smell in tap water is usually a residual amount maintained in the water supply by your city or county to protect the water from potentially harmful bacteria, viruses, and other parasites. It is mandated by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) that chlorine levels must remain lower than 4 milligrams per liter.
How to remove chlorine from drinking water:
Let it sit
The good news for those who dislike the taste and smell of chlorine is that it is naturally off gasses, so leaving water in a pitcher or Brita filter will naturally remove the chlorine over a few hours.
Boil it
Chlorine has a much lower boiling point than water, so if you boil the water for even a few minutes, most of the chlorine should dissipate, removing the chemical taste.
Filter it
Getting an expensive system to remove the chlorine smell or taste is unnecessary. Instead, a simple activated charcoal Brita filter or tap-mounted activated charcoal filter is one of the most effective ways of removing chlorine and chlorine by-products.
If these methods don’t remove the chlorine taste from your system, you will need a more robust filtration system.
Reverse Osmosis Filtration System
Reverse osmosis systems work by pushing water through a membrane that stops many harmful contaminants. Reverse osmosis is quite effective at improving water quality and will remove many dissolved solids and other chemical pollutants. It works to remove most metals including copper, lead, magnesium, manganese, and iron. If chlorine is your only issue, it’s not necessary to install a whole home reverse osmosis filtration system, however doing so does have the added benefit of removing many other drinking water pollutants from your water system.
Note: Distillation does not work to remove chlorine from water as effectively as other methods, as chlorine has a lower boiling point than water and will remain in your drinking water as it condenses and the water cools.
Why is Chlorine Added to the Drinking Water?
Chlorine is an effective method to disinfect water from waterborne diseases, parasites, and bacteria. The water supply is disinfected before arriving at your home and continually removes microorganisms from the water supply. Unfortunately, tap water tastes worse with chlorine added.
Will Chlorine Damage Your Plumbing System or Pipes?
Chlorine does not damage traditional plumbing systems that are used in homebuilding. It does not harm metal or plastic pipes.
The Taste Series
Explore the taste of water with TryWater.Club’s taste series.
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