 systems to form disinfection byproducts (DBPs) like trihalomethanes, which have been linked to health effects like cancer in laboratory testing. As a result, some water utilities have turned to chloramine as an alternative to chlorine, either by choice or by updated local regulations.
What is Chloramine?
Chloramine is an inorganic compound created by combining free chlorine – the type of chlorine typically found in municipal water – with ammonia. It cannot be purchased and must be created onsite at water treatment facilities. It is more stable chemically than chlorine and retains its effectiveness for a longer period of time within water distribution systems. It also produces lower levels of DBPs in distribution systems. As a result, chloramine is emerging as the best available technology for public water disinfection. Chloramine is regulated by the US EPA, with a maximum contaminant level of four mg/L (ppm).
In the last decade, chloramine use for disinfection has nearly doubled with an estimated 35-40 percent of municipalities using chloramine. Some municipalities occasionally switch between disinfecting with chlorine or chloramine.
How to Remove Chloramine
Like chlorine, chloramine can be removed with whole-home or point-of-use carbon filtration. Removal increases with the activation level of the carbon. Unlike chlorine, chloramine is a relatively stable molecule, and therefore requires a more reactive media and longer contact time for effective removal. Standard activated carbon – either coconut shell or coal-based – does an excellent job at filtering free chlorine, but does very little to remove chloramine. Contrary to a common belief, standard activated carbon does NOT remove the chlorine from a chloramine molecule, leaving only ammonia behind.
Schedule a free water test to treat your water for chloramine
Catalytic carbon beds are quite effective at filtering chloramine, and for the last decade have been the media of choice. Catalytic carbon will remove chloramine for a year or more depending on load levels and flow rates, but will eventually become exhausted and will need to be replaced. It is a relatively expensive alternative to activated carbon, costing roughly twice as much.
Hollow-core carbons (HCCs), like those used in Kinetico Chloraban®, represent the next generation of carbon filtration media. HCCs have up to 10 times the active filtration sites on each carbon particle, providing a dramatic increase in filtration capacity and media bed life. Initial estimates, based on laboratory testing of a whole-home filter, suggest that HCCs may effectively remove chloramine for up to four years depending on the variables. HCCs are more expensive than catalytic carbons, but the higher filtration capacity and substantially longer bed life must be considered when evaluating media options for chloramine filtration.
How Kinetico can help
Chloramine Reduction System
If your home uses a dechlorination system, it will not reduce chloramines effectively. Kinetico’s Chloramine Reduction System (CRS) uses our exclusive media, Chloraban®, which reduces the level of both chloramine and chlorine in your water. Kinetico CRS systems are the only residential systems certified by the Water Quality Association for whole-house reduction of chloramine.
K5 Drinking Water Station
Kinetico also offers a Chloramine Guard FlexFilter for our K5 Drinking Water Station. With the Chloramine Guard auxiliary filter, your drinking water system will have a filter that is also third-party certified for the reduction of chloramine.
Contact your local Kinetico dealer to have your water tested. After they have tested your water, they will be able to design a water treatment plan to reduce the levels of chloramine and other contaminants that may be in your water.
Contact your Kinetico dealer to schedule a free water test