Longevity Live Partner Content. Most of the United States Municipal Water Carriers incorporate chlorine plus (or) chloramine for disinfection purposes to the supplies. It’s wise to educate on what is running through your system.
Why is it important? Home-owners should be fully aware of what toxins are present in their water supply to make any necessary corrections and prevent possible adverse reactions, so it is always a good idea to have a bit of knowledge about water filters.
Chlorine and chloramine are individual substances with unique properties and different health reactions. That also means a specific filtration that works for chlorine might not be reactive for chloramine; each will have its own response.
These are the most common resources for municipalities to kill germs in an effort to make the water supply safe to drink. Each is responsive to eliminating microorganisms responsible for diseases that bring illness to people, like viruses and bacteria. Some carriers will only use one of these instead of the two together. Still, many are starting to use chlorine plus the addition of chloramine.
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Are Chloramine and Chlorine Safe
The CDC or “Center For Disease Control” indicates chlorine and chloramine consumption is safe for most people at small levels deemed at 4 ppm (parts per million).
Not everyone agrees with this assessment. In fact, there is much opposition to the organization’s position. One area where there is agreement is that the compound is unsafe for those enduring kidney dialysis.
There is also the indication that “nitrosamines” generate from chloramine. The belief is that these are human carcinogens with the capacity to “cross a placenta.” The substance is potentially toxic to reptiles and fish, along with plant life.
And while the combination of chloramine and chlorine is given the green light to be safe at 4 ppm, no one is fond of the bleach – Esque taste and smell they produce in drinking water. That’s a primary reason people turn to filters to eliminate the substances from their supply.
What Exactly Is Chloramine
Chloramine is relatively unfamiliar to most people. For the most part, homeowners are of the understanding that their supplies are disinfected merely with chlorine. It’s essential to pay attention to what’s happening within your municipality, the EPA, and the CDC so that you know what’s in your water and can react accordingly.
Chloramine is part ammonia and part chlorine blend. There are different types, but the one you need to be most familiar with is “monochloramine, a version other than the ones used for pools. Chlorine is a better disinfectant than this compound, but chloramine holds up longer in the water.
Therefore, municipalities find it beneficial to use chlorine as an initial disinfectant to kill the germs and then add its counterpart to prevent microorganisms from developing on the travels through the pipes to the customer. The substance doesn’t create the same intense taste and smell that chlorine does, but it also doesn’t evaporate from the water as readily, either.
Water Filters For Chloramine
Chloramine molecules differ significantly from chlorine in that they have a degree of stability and offer a challenge to remove from the system. There needs to be a filter in place, but you can’t use a standard filter due to the resiliency of the compound.
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When researching a filter, pay attention to the claims regarding contaminant reduction or elimination for the brand. Chloramines removal is possible with activated carbon. Still, there needs to be contacted between the water and the carbon for as long as ten minutes.
Suggestions indicate catalytic carbon has a significant effect. Brands offering this filtration will have the capacity to remove the compound in addition to a vast array of other contaminants, including chlorine.
Unfortunately, it can be challenging to locate a filter of this type. Some manufacturing companies are hesitant to divulge their filtration specifics, basing their reasoning on it being “proprietary information.” Some types of filters that you can look for with this option include:
- Whole-house filtration
- Gravity filters
- Under-sink filters
- Water filter pitchers
- Reverse osmosis systems
- Countertop filters
With a trusted, reputable brand, you’ll receive guidance on which of these options are ideal for your particular household and the best for removing chloramine from your drinking water, showers, faucets, etc. Check out details on the importance of a shower filter here. If you have difficulty receiving information from a particular manufacturer, move on to a more forthcoming, reliable option, as they are out there.
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How To Know If You Have Chlorine Or Chloramine In Your Water Supply
In order to remove toxins from your water supply, it’s essential to know which contaminants you’re contending.
If you have chloramine but purchase an adequate catalytic carbon filtration system for removal, you can be sure this will also take care of the chlorine. Plus, it will eliminate a host of other contaminants.
The best way to find out for sure is to contact the local water utility from whom you’ll request a copy of your “Consumer Confidence Report” (CCR). The law mandates that water carriers publish these reports and provide them to customers upon request.
For anyone with a well, CCRs are not available since wells are unregulated. For these households, you’ll need to invest in having your water tested to determine the exact toxins comprising your supply before you can implement corrections.
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Final Thought
The CDC (Center for Disease Control) and EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) deem chloramine safe when consumed within small doses (4 ppm or 4 mg/L). There is opposition to those stances for varied reasons, some of which relate to health risks.
While there needs to be a system implemented in the municipality’s water supply to attempt to eradicate pathogens, is a disinfectant the answer? Are chlorine and chloramine the safest options? Is there a natural product? Perhaps a clean, green choice to take care of these viruses, bacteria, and harmful pathogens better and in a much healthier way? That’s probably the way everyone needs to be looking at the situation.
We can’t let the nasties come through each city’s water supply to their customers, or everyone will be deathly ill. This needs to stop at the municipality level and then further filtering needs to occur before coming into the home for optimum safety. And that’s where the homeowner’s responsibility comes in.
You have to be proactive in knowing the toxins in your water so that you can make the necessary corrections to keep you and your family safe. A trusted, expert filtration company like Aquaox Water Filters will be the ideal resource to guide you towards a system able to make those corrections. Please call your municipality for your report and begin the process.
