Since the early 1900s, Chlorine has been used to sanitise public water supplies. The introduction of the chemical significantly reduced the number of deaths caused by waterborne diseases such as typhoid, cholera, and dysentery.
Chlorine might be the only effective solution for public water supply on a grand scale, both in cost and results. However, for those living on their own water storage/supply, promoting the use of chlorine to disinfect and sanitise their water is an archaic and misinformed approach.
Have you ever wondered what chlorine is?
Let’s dive into the fascinating world of this chemical element!
Chlorine is a natural chemical element and a fundamental building block of our planet. It was first discovered in 1774, but it wasn’t until the early 1800s that it was recognised as its own element and named.
The name Chlorine comes from the Greek word chloros, which translates to greenish yellow (the colour of chlorine gas). It was first used as a disinfectant in the mid-1800s and has since become the most potent weapon against life-threatening infections, viruses, and bacteria.
Chlorine is a powerful disinfectant. It destroys bacteria’s outer wall and breaks the chemical bond in its molecules, rendering it harmless.
Many people don’t realise that Chlorine is used in many everyday products. Other than in swimming pools and drinking water,
- it is used to produce more than 85% of modern pharmaceutical or prescription drugs,
- in the development and manufacture of materials to make vehicles lighter,
- in crop protection chemicals,
- in purifying silicon used for making solar panels and semiconductors, and
- is one of the key elements in table salt!
Although chlorine in the mass water supply systems and in the everyday manufacturing and consumption processes is common and not really considered, using chlorine to disinfect home water storage systems is a practice that should be replaced.
How is chlorine harmful in personal water storage systems?
Private water storage systems typically collect water from rooftops, dams, natural springs, or creeks/rivers. No matter how careful you are, each of these sources will collect an element of organic material such as dirt/soil, leaves and twigs. This organic material builds up in your water storage system.
Compared to regular water supply systems that provide water to cities, most personal water storage tanks are not filtered before the water is collected. Even with gutter guards and strainers filtering, the larger debris, dirt/soil, and organic material breaking down will cause your water tanks to build up a level of ‘sludge’ inside.
Since Chlorine has successfully provided bacteria-free drinking water to the masses, governing bodies promote using this chemical as a safe practice to destroy bacteria in smaller home water storage tanks. But this is the wrong approach.
When Chlorine enters water, it reacts with organic matter. The benefit to us is that it kills bacteria (a minuscule organic matter). However, when chlorine is mixed in water with more extensive organic material, such as dirt, twigs, and leaves, it creates a chemical reaction that produces trihalomethanes (THMs).
THMs are formed when chlorine reacts with naturally occurring organic material found in water. There are four THMs found because of chlorination:
- Trichloromethane (chloroform)
- Bromodichloromethane (BDCM)
- Dibromochloromethane (DBCM), and
- Tribromomethane (bromoform)
You may have heard of the first THM – Chloroform. It was once used as an anaesthetic during surgery and is commonly seen in movies when the “bad guy” pours chloroform on a rag and knocks their victim out.
THM levels tend to increase with pH, temperature, time and the level of organic material present. A water storage tank is the perfect environment for high levels of THMs, especially if you have organic material in the tank and are adding chlorine to kill bacteria!
Typical water supply systems are governed by councils and water authorities, who use massive filtration systems and chlorine to disinfect the water, ensuring the end users have a water source free of bacteria and sediment. Many water authorities employ direct measurement techniques such as trihalomethane meters to monitor THM levels to ensure these remain within The Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.
The trade-off is that adding chlorine to the water supply can leave a nasty taste, and it inevitably ends up in our drinking water or everyday household usage, such as washing dishes, showering, and brushing our teeth.
Some town water supplies have a heavy chlorine taste. This might be due to the user’s proximity to the water source or the relatively poor quality of water at its source. Having a house filtration system can help improve the quality of your household water.
There is a clear need to ensure consumers have a bacteria-free water supply for large-scale water supply systems. The massive reduction in deaths caused by waterborne diseases over the last 100 years proves this. But adding Chlorine to home water storage systems is a potential recipe for disaster!
Why you should be worried about THMs and Chlorine
THMs can be absorbed into the body through inhalation (gases), ingestion (water), and skin contact.
Chloroform studies have shown effects on central nervous systems, cardiac arrhythmias and abnormalities of the liver and kidneys. Some studies suggest increases in incidences of rectal, colon and bladder cancer. However, these are inconsistent and possibly associated with other carcinogens in water supplies.
Congenital disabilities and developmental issues have been associated with THMs, which strengthens the case for avoiding the creation of these issues in the first place.
High chlorine levels cause lung fluid build-up, a condition known as pulmonary oedema. When chlorine enters the body, it reacts with water to produce acids. These acids are corrosive and damage cells on contact. The most common symptoms include Airway irritation, wheezing, difficulty breathing, sore throat, cough, chest tightness, eye irritation, and skin irritation.
A natural solution for cleaning and sterilising your water storage tanks
Councils and governments need to understand that while chlorine is a solution for the mass supply of water through filtered and monitored systems, it is not suitable for the personal water storage systems used by millions of people around the country.
There are better and more efficient methods to ensure you have healthy, bacteria-free drinking water. This includes:
- Remove organic sludge from the floor of the tank
- Filter water of heavy organic material
- Disinfect with safe (non-chlorine) sanitiser (only after removing organic material) and
- Aerate and agitate the water.
Pristine Water Systems has developed our QuadClean™ process to effectively clean and sanitise water storage tanks. This process utilises a specialised water sanitiser designed to eliminate harmful microorganisms, ensuring safe and high quality water.
Our AqueousPro™ water sanitiser features a uniquely stabilised hydrogen peroxide-silver complex, delivering superior microbiocidal efficacy compared to standard hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂). It breaks down into oxygen and water, ensuring long-term stability even at elevated temperatures. When diluted, it helps neutralise pH while remaining effective across a broad pH range. Additionally, it is non-toxic, non-allergenic and non-carcinogenic, making it a safe and reliable solution for water treatment.
AqueousPro™50 is a professional-grade product available exclusively through Pristine Water Systems authorised service providers. Our fully trained and experience water technicians use AqueousPro™50 as part of the QuadClean™ process for cleaning and sanitising rainwater tanks.
For consumer use, Pristine Water Systems offers a diluted version – AqueousPro™7.9% – designed to help maintain water storage tanks between major cleans. It is also effective for sterilising caravans, motorhomes and smaller storage systems.
In our modern society, there is evidence that there are a better alternative for killing bacteria in our water storage systems than using Chlorine. Unfortunately, governments and water authorities are failing the broader community by not conducting the necessary studies to highlight the problems of using Chlorine in small water storage facilities and the subsequent formation of THMs.
If you rely on water storage tanks for your precious water supply, we implore you to stop using Chlorine and seek a better, safer alternative to ensure healthy drinking water.
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Contact Pristine Water Systems today with any questions about your water tank systems.