# Any easy way to de-chlorinate tap water? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 4, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414 "2011-01-04T20:58:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Randy\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ee7513/32.png) [@Randy\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/1 "2011-01-04T20:58:52Z")
I do a lot of baking, and when I use normal tap water, the chlorine kills half the yeast, making my dough rise a lot slower. I could use bottled water, but keeping bottles of water around is a hassle. Using just the things I’ve got around the house, can I de-chlorinate small batches of water? I guess I could distill it using my stove, but that would take a really long time and waste a lot of energy. Are there any other tricks? ---
**Author:** ![TheChileanBlob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thechileanblob/32/435_2.png) [@TheChileanBlob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheChileanBlob)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/2 "2011-01-04T21:09:01Z")
My mom keeps gallon jugs of water sitting with the tops off for her plants. The chlorine dissipates. You’d still have a jug sitting around, but you could refill it from the sink. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/3 "2011-01-04T21:12:49Z")
At 5 deg C the solubility of Cl2 in water is 10 g/kg. At 100 deg C it is 0 g/kg. You don’t need to distill it, just bring it to a boil and let it cool. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/4 "2011-01-04T21:36:31Z")
Don’t know if it’s safe to consume water after using, but here is a dechlorinator that you add in drops to tap water. Primarily for aquariums and such: [http://www.amazon.com/Microbe-Lift-16-Ounce-Dechlorinator-Conditioner-Chlorine/dp/B001L1R7IU/ref=sr\_1\_6?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1294176882&sr=1-6](http://www.amazon.com/Microbe-Lift-16-Ounce-Dechlorinator-Conditioner-Chlorine/dp/B001L1R7IU/ref=sr_1_6?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1294176882&sr=1-6) ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/5 "2011-01-04T21:41:22Z")
Letting it sit for about three days should do it. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/6 "2011-01-04T21:42:27Z")
Wouldn’t a Brita filter jug get rid of pretty much all the chlorine? ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/7 "2011-01-04T21:45:16Z")
> [@Bill\_Door](#): > > At 5 deg C the solubility of Cl2 in water is 10 g/kg. At 100 deg C it is 0 g/kg. You don’t need to distill it, just bring it to a boil and let it cool. If you’re patient, you don’t even need to boil it; you can just let it sit. Since there’s just about zero chlorine gas in the ambient atmosphere, the dissolved chlorine will gradually come out of solution. [According to the interwebs](http://www.lmgtfy.com/?q=dechlorinating+tap+water) 24 hours is adequate. [Chloramine](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chloramine) is a different beast; check with your city’s water department to see if they’re using it. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/8 "2011-01-04T22:03:54Z")
boiling would work quick but the water has to cool so as to not kill the yeast. letting water set open for days is good for plants both for dechlorination and temperature. ---
**Author:** ![Randy\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ee7513/32.png) [@Randy\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/9 "2011-01-04T22:10:45Z")
Ha. I figured there might be something as easy as that. Thanks for the quick responses, guys. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/10 "2011-01-05T01:45:53Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Wouldn’t a Brita filter jug get rid of pretty much all the chlorine? Yes–a countertop filter containing activated carbon will do the same thing. These filters will also remove chloramine and trihalomethanes (THMs). (THMs are byproducts of chlorine disinfection.) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2011, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/11 "2011-01-05T01:51:06Z")
You can boil water and let it cool in less than one day. Make sure to use cold water, it will boil faster. As a matter of fact, nothing boils faster than ice cubes made from hot water :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/do_not_taunt/32/2968_2.png) [@Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Do_Not_Taunt)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2011, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-way-to-de-chlorinate-tap-water/566414/12 "2011-01-05T03:41:05Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > boiling would work quick but the water has to cool so as to not kill the yeast. > > letting water set open for days is good for plants both for dechlorination and temperature. Interesting. I usually let my plant water sit around for a bit, but I’ve always done it for temperature. Will letting it sit for a couple days in old 12-oz beer bottles allow enough chlorine to evaporate?