The water smell in your home can be a problem, and it’s not the water’s job to smell like anything. Normally, your tap water smells like bleach or chlorine.
Unfortunately, this “chemical” smell is more common than you think.
If you use city water, there’s a chance you’ll notice the bleach-like smell sooner than you think.
It is usually due to chlorinated water. According to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), recommended chlorine level in public water systems should be below 4mg/L. Although it can be smelled at levels of 1mg/L.
This guide will explain why tap water smells like chemicals and how to fix it as fast and efficiently as possible.
ABOUT BLEACH & CHLORINE
It is most important to know the differences between bleach and chlorine.
Bleaches have many uses, from killing germs to whitening paper or your laundry. Some bleaches use chlorine, while others don’t.
On the other hand, elemental chlorine is a gas. It is toxic by itself (even in small amounts), but it is a popular disinfectant.
Because chlorine is relatively cheap and does a great deal at killing microbes, water treatment plants use it often.
The chlorine is measured to remain in your water when it travels from the plant to your home.
Your tap water may odor like chlorine bleach if you turn it on.
To get an affordable way to remove chlorine smell and test from your water supply, find the best alkaline RO system.
Why my city water smells like bleach?
High chlorine levels are most likely responsible for city water odors like bleach.
Although it is unlikely that the bleach water smell will be dangerous to drink, it could cause unpleasant odors or other problems.
The most common causes include the following:
1. Well Water Chemical Injection/Shock Chlorination
Suppose you have a private well and use a chemical infusion filter to remove harmful bacteria. In that case, the chlorine smell could be from that filter.
It is most important to treat your brown well water source. However, not all disinfection options can make my well water smells like bleach.
The UV light water purifier can kill all waterborne pathogens without the need to add chemicals.
Your water will temporarily smell chlorine if you shock chlorinates. This odor, like public water shock chlorination, should subside within 48 hours.
2. Public Water System Chlorination
The public water system disinfects the water with chlorine or chloramine before sending it to your home’s pipe.
This is to lower the chance of infection-causing pathogens like Legionella or Cryptosporidium.
We would more likely get sick if our water was not disinfected. Water treatment is vital, but how much chlorine is too much?
As per Environmental Protection Agency, the municipal water supply authority has free chlorine levels ranging from 0.2 to 2.0 parts per million (ppm).
3. Municipal Water Shock Chlorination
Public water supply authorities sometimes have to shock the public with chemical treatment. This job is usually done with bleach or another disinfectant.
You can eliminate pathogens from your swimming pool water by using chlorine at higher concentrations if there is a bacteria crisis or storm.
After a short time, shock chlorine can make water taste and smells like bleach. But a few days later, your water odor will be normal.
Run water through your faucets for 5-10 minutes to speed up the process. It will remove the bleach odor and discolored water.
Your water could have a chlorine level of 5.0 ppm, depending on the treatment method.
4. Chlorine Interaction With Organic Materials
Algae, harmful bacteria, and fungi can develop inside your water pipe and plumbing system swimming pool water over time. These materials can combine to create a slimy substance called biofilm.
As a disinfectant, chlorine will react with these chemicals and release byproducts called trihalomethanes.
The content of organic matter in your drinking water supply will influence the production of THMs as well as the strength and color of the bleach odor.
The problem may be in the plumbing system. Run the faucet for a few moments to get rid of the stench. If the smell persists, the problem may be in the pipes that lead to your home. There is little you can do.
Sometimes you feel a strange rotten egg smell and discolored water; it could be due to Hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S).
It could occur in wells and be produced by sulfur bacteria or chemical reactions inside the hot water heater.
Is it safe to drink water that smells like bleach?
Yes, It’s much safer than drinking water piped in.
The chlorine disinfectant you smell makes sure water stays pure in the piping system. It is essential to prevent bacteria from growing in the piping system.
If you put chlorine in a pitcher, it will gasify, then wait at least a day before drinking it.
Bleach is an entirely different product.
It is made of sodium hypochlorite, a simple form of chlorine gas held in a suspension.
Bleach contains lye, which is why your hands feel so slick when you rub bleach on them.
What Should I Do When My Tap Water Smells Like Chlorine?
Step 1 Test Your Water
If you suspect your tap water may have a chlorine smell, it is best to test your water before making any changes.
You can Order an at-home water test or arrange for a sample to be sent to a laboratory for testing.
If the result indicates too much chlorine in the water, you will want to take simple steps to reduce the chlorine level.
Step 2 Reduce the smell
1. Store Water In Your Fridge
If you have an efficient water filter, try storing your tap water in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.
This will help reduce chlorine levels and eliminate any odor problems.
2. Run The Sprinkler When You Wash Dishes
Water washing dishes can release chlorine gas from dishwashers.
To minimize this effect, run the sprinkler when you are doing your dishes to wash them with fresh water.
3. Use Fresh Water For Quench
If you find that the smell of chlorine is coming from your sinks and shower, it may be necessary to use fresh water when quenching your thirst.
This will help reduce odor and potentially improve the quality of household water.
4. Contact Your Local Authority
If you’ve found chlorine more than 4 ppm, it may be necessary to contact your local authority.
They may be able to provide instructions on how to reduce the level of chlorine in your water.
How to Remove Chlorine And Bleach Smell From Drinking Water?
There are many ways to remove Chlorine and Bleach odor from drinking water, including distillation, carbon filters, and chemical neutralization.
1. Carbon filters
The most effective charcoal carbon filters remove chlorine, sediment, volatile organic compound (VOCs), and taste and odor problems from water.
They do not remove minerals, salts, or dissolved inorganic substances.
So, how does a carbon filter work?
Carbon filtering uses activated carbon as a filter to remove impurities and contaminants using chemical adsorption.
Activated carbon works through a process known as absorption. It means that pollutant molecules from the fluid are trapped within the pores structure of the carbon substrate.
2. Reverse Osmosis
The RO water softener is the most efficient system to eliminate arsenic, other heavy metals, minerals, and chlorine taste or odor from hard water.
It can filter chlorine through multiple stages. An RO system typically has a pre-filter and activated carbon filters.
Activated carbon filters are highly effective at removing chloramines if you have ever researched the subject.
Reverse Osmosis, however, is more accurate because the water flows through the semi-permeable membrane. This membrane has tiny pores, and chlorine molecules cannot pass through.
RO water filter removes chlorine and other contaminants from the hard water supply. And you will get pure, clean like bottled water, free from bleach smell and taste.
You can also rematerialize RO water by doing some simple steps.
The wastewater is then flushed down the drain, leaving fresh water that flows out of your faucet.
3. Chemical Neutralization
You can use chemicals like potassium metabisulfite to neutralize chlorine in your tap water source.
After neutralizing chlorine, potassium metabisulfite will evaporate. So you aren’t swapping one chemical with another.
4. Distillation
One rule of thumb is that distillation can remove contaminants with a higher boiling temperature than water. It works as a hot water heater.
Some organic matter and inorganic chemicals have lower boiling points than water. For example, chlorine and bleach. Distillation has two ways to handle this:
First, our distillers have twin volatile gas vents. It is a patent-pending feature. These two tiny holes allow gases lighter than air, like chlorine, to safely vent out.
The second is that all our water distillers include carbon filters. These are highly effective in removing any gases that may still be present.
However, it is too slow as per the Reverse Osmosis system filtering capacity.
5. Faucet Filter
The faucet filter removes heavy metals, pesticides, and other harmful chemicals in the water. It may enhance your fresh water’s color and odor.
In addition, it could enhance the taste and reduce the chlorine levels in the water.
Filters for faucets are classified into ultrafiltration and pure water filters. Purified water filters eliminate harmful and beneficial substances and are better suited for the northern regions.
The ultrafiltration filter can only remove macromolecular compounds from the water and make it more appropriate with better water quality.
Clean and cold water can use to drink and fulfill your household water need.
6. Shower Filter
Shower filters are a water purification system that safeguards your hair and skin from irritation and dryness by removing chlorine gas smell and chloramine from your water.
Like the skin and hair, chlorinated water sloughs away the oils that protect your hair strong and healthy. It can cause hair that is dry and itchy and hair cells that lackluster.
7. Refrigerator Filter
A refrigerator filter is an easy carbon filter that gives purified and cold water whenever you want.
Most refrigerators are equipped with NSF 42 approval, meaning they can only eliminate chlorine taste and smell.
Eliminating chlorine is a beneficial job since most water is treated by chlorine. But, many families in our area are also impacted by other pollutants to be concerned about, aside from chlorine.
Further easy steps and a checklist are explained in this video:
Cleaner Water
Most water coolers can remove chlorine and the smell of bleach from your drinking water.
A carbon filter can absorb chlorine and remove it entirely from your drinking water.
The market has complete UV and carbon filter coolers that provide bottled water quality, ideal for offices.
A water filter will be your best choice if your local tap water smells like bleach.
Filters come at different prices, from a simple pitcher on a tabletop to filtration that covers the entire house.
