Chlorine or Chloramine - Alberta
The Alberta chlorine or chloramine data presented in this chart have all been verified by Aquatell directly from primary sources. Typically, this means we located the data in municipal water reports or contacted municipal water utilities directly to confirm whether they use chlorine or chloramine as their primary disinfectant. If your city or town isn’t listed, please let us know — we’ll verify it and add it right away.
Disinfectant Type by City - Alberta, Canada
Chlorine or Chloramine in Alberta
The list below shows whether your city in Alberta uses chlorine or chloramine as the water disinfectant.
The data presented in this table has been verified by Aquatell directly from primary sources, which typically means we located the data in a municipal water quality report or contacted the water utility directly. If your city is not listed, let us know and we will add it right away.
Disinfectant Type by City in Alberta
| City | Disinfectant Type | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Airdrie | Chlorine | Source |
| Calgary | Chlorine | Source |
| Edmonton | Chloramine | Source |
| Grande Prairie | Chlorine | Source |
| Lethbridge | Chloramine | Source |
| Medicine Hat | Chlorine | Source |
| Red Deer | Chlorine | Source |
Find the Right Filter for Your Water
A carbon filter is the right way to remove both chlorine and chloramine, though chloramine reduction requires the use of catalytic carbon. The following are commonly used systems for chlorine and chloramine reduction:
Upflow Catalytic Carbon for Chloramine
Backwashing Carbon for Chlorine
Backwashing Catalytic Carbon for Chloramine
The Difference Between Chlorine & Chloramine
When we talk about Chlorine vs. Chloramine we are really talking about the choice of residual disinfectant, which is the chemical that travels with your water through miles of pipes to reach your tap. Most Canadian cities still use chlorine as their residual, but some have switched to chloramine. Chloramine persists in the water longer. It is a more stable molecule and will not naturally dissipate into the air or aggressively react with every surface it encounters. More persistence means better disinfection coverage from the treatment plant all the way to your home.
But that stability also makes chloramine significantly harder to remove than chlorine. Both compounds are removed using activated carbon filtration, but chloramine removal requires a special type called catalytic carbon. Standard carbon filters designed for chlorine removal will not effectively remove chloramine.
Why Does It Matter?
- Filter selection: standard carbon for chlorine; catalytic carbon for chloramine
- Aquarium and fish pond owners: chloramine cannot be neutralized by letting water sit - a dechlorinator rated for chloramine is required
- Home brewers: chloramine cannot be boiled or off-gassed and will cause off-flavors in beer
- Dialysis patients: both chlorine and chloramine must be removed from water used in dialysis
Understanding the data - Chlorine & Chloramine
The disinfection of city drinking water is a two-part process. Step one, usually called primary disinfection, is the process where a city treats the water it draws from the environment to destroy all pathogenic organisms - bacteria, cysts, viruses, etc. For the vast majority of cities in Canada, this is accomplished using free chlorine. Free chlorine is an aggressive oxidizer and essentially destroys the tissues of these organisms and kills them.
But just killing the organisms at the water extraction point isn't enough. This water now has to travel through thousands of kilometres of pipe to reach every home in the city. To ensure that the treated water isn't contaminated on its journey, the city adds a residual disinfectant that travels with the water as it's distributed.
When we talk about Chlorine vs. Chloramine we're talking about the choice of the residual disinfectant. Most cities in Canada still use chlorine as the residual, but more and more cities are making the move to Chloramine. Why?
Simply put - Chloramine persists in the water longer than Chlorine. It's a more stable molecule and won't naturally dissipate into the air or aggressively react with every compound or surface it comes into contact with. This means that chloramine added at the source is much more likely to be present at the point of use - your home. More persistence = better disinfection = safer citizens.
But the stability of chloramine also makes it a lot hard to remove from water than chlorine. Both compounds are removed well using activated carbon, but chloramine removal necessitates the use of a special type of activated carbon called catalytic carbon.
Here at Aquatell, we sell multiple different systems that can be used for the removal of chlorine and chloramine. These systems fall into two broad groups - systems that treat the water for your whole home, and those that treat the water for a single dispensing point (these are usually called point-of-use systems).
Disinfectant Removal
If you’re looking to remove chlorine or chloramine from your household water, Aquatell has the right solutions. We offer a wide range of products designed to target the specific disinfectants used in your municipal water supply. Whether you’re looking to improve your drinking water, protect your home’s plumbing, or enhance your filtration system's performance, we make it easy to find the right setup for your needs. Explore the right solution below based on your water disinfectant type and application.
