Does Your Household Water Smell Like Chlorine?
We all have to deal with smells and odors we’re not really thrilled about every day, but most of us draw the line at the heavy odor of chlorine in our drinking and bathing water.
Tri-Florida Water Treatment of Auburndale, FL, has been helping our customers eliminate chlorine odors (and the chlorine that causes them) in their water for more than 30 years. Here are a few things you’ll want to know about this problem.
Why Is Chlorine In The Water?
If you get your water through a municipal source, it’s likely that the water has been chlorinated by the utility provider. This is done to neutralize viruses, parasites and various potentially harmful microorganisms.
The Environmental Protection Agency allows for chlorine levels in public drinking water to measure up to four milligrams per liter of water. This is enough to take care of most of the impurities. It’s also enough to make your water smell like chlorine.
Is “Chlorinated Water” Safe To Drink And Use?
According to the EPA, as long as chlorine levels are below 4 mg/L, the water is safe to drink. Public water utilities closely monitor these levels. However, if you use a well and notice the smell of chlorine in the water, there could be a concern.
Well water can be contaminated by chlorine from:
- Runoff or improper disposal of bleach-containing household cleaning products
- Seepage from nearby industrial operations that use chlorine
- Chlorine-treated swimming pool water that moves into groundwater
- Nearby geological formations that store chlorine compounds
If your well water smells like chlorine, have it tested by a professional and then follow that professional’s advice on eliminating the problem.
How To De-chlorinate Your Tap And Bath Water
Since you can’t alter the chlorine levels in your municipal water source, you have to deal directly with the chlorine itself. There are four effective ways to do this.
1. Give It Time
Chlorine molecules will dissipate if allowed to sit for several hours. This may or may not be a good solution for you.
2. Boil Your Drinking Water
Boiling water will remove chlorine and a number of other contaminants. This approach will work with drinking water but probably not with water you use for bathing.
3. Use A Carbon-based Water Filter
Carbon water filters can be attached to faucets to filter chlorine and other impurities from those faucets only.
4. Install A Reverse Osmosis Water Treatment System
A whole-house reverse osmosis (RO) system will treat all the water that enters your home. RO systems work by pushing water through a semipermeable membrane that traps chlorine and many other unwanted compounds and impurities that could affect the quality of the water and the quality of your health.
Get The Best Water For Your Home & Family
Tri-Florida Water Treatment specializes in the installation of whole-house water purification systems to ensure that the water you drink and bathe in is safe and clean and free of the odor of chlorine. We also provide professional water testing services for municipal water sources and well water.
Give us a call and speak with a water treatment professional today. If you prefer, you can use our handy contact form.