Chloramination Q&A

Chloramination is the process of adding ammonia to drinking water which already has chlorine added as a disinfectant. The ammonia combines with the existing chlorine which is called free chlorine to create chloramines.

No. Many cities in Alberta and throughout Canada have used chloramines for decades. Edmonton has used chloramination for over 25 years, and other cities including Athabasca, Stettler, and Fort McMurray. Almost 50% of the Alberta population uses chloraminated water.

The Town of Slave, the MD of Lesser Slave River, and Sawridge First Nation have jointly decided to use chloramines for their ability to last in the distribution system, for their lack of taste and odor and for their safety. The further treated water has to travel in the distribution system, the faster chlorine dissipates, making water more susceptible to harmful bacteria and Disinfection By-Products (DBPs). It has been shown that chloramines help deliver water to you with the lowest possible levels of Disinfection By-Products (DBPs) – in Alberta, this is recorded to be 90% less.

DBPs are chemical compounds that are formed when chlorine mixes with naturally occurring organics in water. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has conducted tests which determined that some DBPs are carcinogenic when consumed by laboratory animals in large quantities over a prolonged period of time, and are suspected carcinogens for people.

Yes. Chloramines have been used safely in the U. S. and Canada for many years. Health Canada accepts chloramines as a disinfectant and as a way to avoid DBP formation. Drinking water requires some type of disinfectant due to disease-causing organisms that could be carried in your drinking water. Chloraminated water is safe for bathing, drinking, cooking and all uses we have for water every day. Ammonia is naturally occurring and is efficiently metabolized in the body through our digestive systems. However, there are some groups of people who need to take special care with chloraminated water: kidney dialysis patients, fish owners and industrial users.

In the dialysis process, water comes in contact with the blood across a permeable membrane. Chloramines in that water would be toxic, just as chlorine is toxic, and must be removed from water used in kidney dialysis machines. There are two ways to do that - either by adding ascorbic acid or using granular activated carbon treatment. Medical centers that perform dialysis are responsible for purifying the water that enters the dialysis machines.

You should first check with your physician who will probably recommend the appropriate type of water treatment. Often, home dialysis service companies can make the needed modifications, but you should check with your physician to be certain.

Chloramines are harmful when they go directly into the bloodstream, as happens in kidney dialysis. Fish also take chloramines directly into their blood streams. That's why chloramines must be removed from water that goes into kidney dialysis machines or is used in fish tanks and ponds.

Yes. Everyone can drink water that's chloraminated because the digestive process neutralizes the chloramines before they reach the bloodstream. Even kidney dialysis patients can drink, cook and bathe in chloraminated water. It's only when water interacts directly with the bloodstream - as in dialysis or in a fish's gill structure - that chloramines must be removed.

Certainly. Even large amounts of water used in cleaning a cut would have no effect because virtually no water actually enters the bloodstream that way.

Yes. People with those medical problems can use chloraminated water for all purposes.

Chloraminated water is no different than chlorinated water for all of the normal uses we have for water. Water that contains chloramines is completely safe to drink. The digestive process neutralizes the chloramines before they reach the blood stream. Even kidney patients can drink and bathe in chloraminated water.

Yes. Everyone can drink water that contains chloramines. What about people who are sensitive to chemicals? The amount of chloramines will be no more than 4 parts per million parts of water. If you are concerned that this concentration might cause problems for you, check with your physician. The predominant type of chloramines will be monochloramine NH2Cl) and will be approximately in 3 the ratio of 5 parts chlorine to one part ammonia-nitrogen.

No. The pH of the water will remain the same as before.

Most water softeners are not designed to remove chloramines.

It could. If the bottled water company uses water supplied by a water district that uses chloramines, then the water it provides will have chloramines in it, unless the company takes special steps to remove them.

No. You will still need a free chlorine residual to retard algae and bacteria growth. The chlorine chemicals and test kits you currently use can still be used with confidence.

The small amount of chloramines should have no effect on plants of any type. Beneficial bacteria will generally be protected by the soil in which they live. Chloramines will be removed by the high chlorine demand in the soil.

Chloramines are toxic to fish and must be removed from water, just as chlorine is toxic and must be removed. You may not have had to remove chlorine from your aquarium water, however, because it disappears rapidly on its own. This is not the case with chloramines and steps should be taken to remove chloramines. Most pet stores have sold dechlorinating (or “water conditioning”) agents for years and, generally, have recommended using them. The chemicals used to remove chlorine should work just as well for chloramines. Manufacturers have been adding chloramine information on labels on their products for years.

This will depend on the amount of water added in relation to the size of the aquarium or pond and the time period over which it's added. An alternative is to monitor for a total chlorine residual in the aquarium or pond while adding the chloraminated water rather than a free chlorine 4 residual. For both chlorine and chloramine residuals, the total chlorine in the water used to keep fish should be kept below 0.1 mg/L. Total chlorine test kits are available from pet stores.

No. Unlike chlorine, which dissipates when water sits for a few days, chloramines may take weeks to disappear. If you don't want to use a dechloraminating chemical, the next best solution is to install a granular activated filter and allow sufficient contact time.

Chloramines will have to be removed if the water used to make salt water solution comes from a chloraminated supply. Chloramines affect salt water fish just as they effect fresh water fish.

Yes. However, it must contain high quality granular activated carbon and you must permit sufficient contact time.

No. Salts can be caught by the permeable membranes but chloramines pass through easily.

No. Boiling is not an effective method of removing chloramines from water. The only practical methods for removing chloramines from water are using a water conditioner which contains a dechlorination chemical or by using granular activated carbon.

Ask your pet supplier or read the instructions on the container or equipment.

Ammonia can be toxic to fish, although all fish produce some ammonia as a natural byproduct. Ammonia is also released when chloramines are chemically removed. Although ammonia levels may be tolerable in individual tanks or ponds, commercial products are available at pet supply stores to remove excess ammonia. Also, biological filters, natural zeolites and pH control methods are effective in reducing the toxic effects of ammonia.

Most water which runs into streams and ponds would be agricultural, landscaping or storm water drainage. After water has been used for one purpose, it probably would not have enough residual chloramine to affect fish.