You open your tap and breathe in a mild chemical aroma. It's not a trick of your mind, and it's not just the water; it is something that has been added to your water. What you are detecting is a disinfectant, chlorine, or chloramine added to your water supplies. The chemicals have a very real and worthwhile purpose, but the story does not end at the waterworks, and for many households, the contents in the glass are worth investigating in a little more detail.
That, in a nutshell, is what these two disinfectants are. How are they different? What are the risks involved? And most importantly, which chlorine filter correctly purifies your home from both of them? Let’s get into it.
Why Disinfectants Are Added to Tap Water
But before I get into the differences, I think it's interesting to understand why you'd have chlorine and chloramine in tap water in the first place. Drinking water sources - reservoirs, rivers, and aquifers serve as breeding grounds for bacteria, viruses, and other microbial life. Traveling miles through underground pipes before hitting your tap, there's a huge chance that it encounters contamination en route.
Chlorine has been used in the treatment of drinking water since 1908; chloramine was introduced in 1929. Over the course of the century, these disinfectants have greatly reduced the number of water-borne illnesses in the US. The CDC states that levels as high as 4 mg/l are safe to drink; the disinfectants simply do their job of killing pathogens without, in theory, harming people.
So far, so good. However, there is a much more complex side to this.
Chlorine vs Chloramine: Understanding the Difference
Chlorine and chloramine are both disinfectants, yet they each have vastly different reactions in your water.
Chlorine is a chemical element containing one atom and can kill bacteria and viruses very rapidly. It's been used as a disinfectant for more than 100 years. The drawback is that it is very fast-evaporating. By the time the water has travelled miles of piping to your tap, the chlorine can be completely gone, leaving the water un-disinfected.
Chloramine (formed by combining chlorine with ammonia) was used instead of chlorine as it persists in pipes longer than chlorine and ensures more uniform disinfection over long distribution distances. It also forms fewer disinfection byproducts than chlorine - a substantial regulatory advantage.
Still, the "chlorine vs chloramine" debate isn't as simple as choosing one over the other. There are advantages and disadvantages to both approaches, and many utilities change from one to the other between seasons or for other reasons without issuing any reminder.
The Hidden Risks: Disinfection Byproducts
This part of the story is where it may get tricky. When the chlorine or chloramine comes in contact with organically occurring substances such as dirt, decaying organic matter, or trace minerals that are naturally in water, they interact and create chemical substances known as disinfection byproducts (DBPs). For long term exposure, many of these disinfection byproducts have been linked to negative health effects, including a possible relation to certain types of cancer and reproductive harm.
Chlorine has a propensity for producing higher percentages of two of the more highly regulated categories of DBPs, THMs, and HAAs. With chloramine, there are proportionally fewer of these specific species of MPDs, which is another reason for the shift away from chlorine in recent years. It must be considered, though, that chloramine will produce a different set of MPDs, some of which are the iodineacids, and whether these are less or more toxic than their chlorinated counterparts is not yet clear.
My conclusion regarding chlorine vs chloramine: "Each supplies chemical byproducts to your water that were not present when the water entered the treatment plant." The most sensible household decision would be to use a high-quality chlorine filter that deals with both the disinfectants and the resulting chemical byproducts.
The Chloramine Complication: Lead Pipes and Taste
Another disadvantage of chloramine is that it affects plumbing. It has been proven that chloramine can change the chemical properties of water in such a way that it promotes the leaching of metals like lead and copper from plumbing.
Lastly, chloramine does not respond well to home remedies that help remove chlorine. Chlorine is easily evaporated out of water by allowing it to sit in an open container, such as a glass. However, chloramine does not evaporate easily. This is because chloramine is a more stable chemical compound.
In this regard, chloramine treatment makes a strong case for having a water filter that can be trusted to remove it. From a sensory standpoint, chlorine is typically the more noticeable of the two disinfectants. Chlorine water has a distinct “swimming pool” taste and smell. By comparison, water disinfected with chloramine has a milder taste. While it may not have an unpleasant taste, it may have a slightly ammonia smell. Regardless, both disinfectants may be wanting in terms of water quality.
Why a Standard Filter Often Isn't Enough
Many, but not all, of the chlorine filter products will filter both chlorine and chloramine. Using a conventional activated carbon pitcher or a new filter not additionally tested and certified for the removal of chloramine will often allow the chloramine to pass through the carbon. Since utilities often use different disinfectants without prior notification, only a dual-certified filter will do.
Another critical issue is dealing with the disinfection byproducts: the halogenated trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids, and compounds resulting from added chloramine.
The treatment doesn't remove the byproducts: just the chlorine.
How Phoenix Gravity Water Filter Handles Both
This is also where the Phoenix Gravity Water Filter sets itself apart from other carbon filters. Unlike some conventional systems, Phoenix Gravity is built to handle a wide variety of substances that could be in your water - such as chlorine and chloramine (combined with disinfection byproducts), all made possible with the unique Nano Adsorption dual-filtration system.
In the first stage of the system, granular activated carbon from natural coconut husks is used, lauded as one of the most efficient adsorption media for the dismantling of chlorine, chloramine, VOC's, and cchemical byproducts The second stage goes one step ahead, as it uses carbon adsorbents impregnated into the filter media to prevent any contaminant regrowth occurring within the filter, a challenge for many standard chloramine water filter systems.
Critically, the filtration process employed by Phoenix Gravity actually filters out all the most damaging disinfectants and chemical residue, and keeps all the minerals that are natural to the water and necessary to your body - calcium, magnesium, potassium, and thus, like. So unlike reverse osmosis units that apparently cleanse water of everything, Phoenix Gravity provides your drinking water ready for use without that empty nutritional feel.
All full Phoenix Gravity systems are covered with a 100-day money-back guarantee - a rather self-assured stance of the brand on its proven performance. If you are on a chlorinated or chloraminated water supply, then a full certified chlorine filter package for your whole dwelling is available from Phoenix Water Filters.
Final Thought
The chlorine vs chloramine fight isn't about good vs bad disinfectant. Both are worse and can lead to health risks, and both lead to compromises that every household should know about. The bottom line is that disinfecting tap water, even when necessary, does not mean the water in your glass is chemically neutral.
Disinfectant by-products, chemicals, and the reaction of chloramine in ageing pipes are real issues which only a quality chlorine filter can solve. Of course, the Phoenix Gravity Water Filter is a fully certified system that provides the benefits of excellent filtration and ease of use, providing clean, great-tasting water that any home can access, regardless of the quality of their municipal supply.
Reach out to Phoenix Gravity today.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the key difference between chlorine vs chloramine in tap water?
Chlorine is a single-element disinfectant that works fast but dissipates quickly in pipes. Chloramine - chlorine combined with ammonia - lasts longer in distribution systems and produces fewer trihalomethane byproducts. However, chlorine vs chloramine isn't a clear winner: chloramine creates its own byproducts, can increase lead leaching from pipes, and cannot be removed simply by letting water sit out; a certified chloramine water filter is essential.
2. Can I remove chloramine by leaving water out overnight?
No. Chlorine will off-gas from open water over time, but chloramine is chemically stable and will not dissipate this way. Effective removal requires a filtration system specifically certified to address chloramine - a standard chlorine filter that hasn't been tested for chloramine may offer no protection at all.
3. How does the Phoenix Gravity Water Filter remove chlorine and chloramine?
Phoenix Gravity uses a dual-stage Nano Adsorption process with coconut-shell granular activated carbon to adsorb chlorine, chloramine, disinfection byproducts, and over 100 other contaminants. Its second filtration stage prevents contaminant regrowth within the filter itself, ensuring consistent performance throughout the filter's 12-month lifespan.
4. Is the Phoenix Gravity Water Filter certified for chlorine and chloramine removal?
Yes. Phoenix Gravity filter elements carry NSF/ANSI 42 and NSF/ANSI/CAN 372 certification, independently verified by accredited third-party laboratories. The system works without installation or electricity, produces filtered water at $0.05 per gallon, and is backed by a 100-day money-back guarantee.
5. Do disinfection byproducts pose a real health risk?
At the levels regulated by the EPA, disinfection byproducts in tap water are not considered to be actually dangerous. However, long-term exposure to elevated levels of trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids - byproducts of chlorine treatment - has raised concerns among researchers. A comprehensive chlorine filter certified to remove both the disinfectant and its associated byproducts provides the most complete household protection.