Although there are many health-related reasons to filter your water, one of the top reasons that homeowners begin to consider residential water treatment systems is because of offensive tastes and smells coming from their tap water. And if your water begins to smell like rotten eggs, you will most certainly want to do something to take care of it. Today we’re going to talk about why some tap water smells like rotten eggs and what can be done to remove the nasty odor!
Why does some tap water smell like rotten eggs?
The culprit behind the rotten egg smell in water is almost always hydrogen-sulfide (H2S). Hydrogen-sulfide is created when sulfur in water reacts with sulfur-reducing bacteria or materials and produces the gas as a byproduct. This most often occurs in two separate places:
- Private wells: Well water is much more susceptible to a rotten egg smell than city water. That’s because groundwater often contains sulfur-reducing bacteria. As well water picks up sulfur from soil and rock formations, the bacteria in that water reduces the sulfur and gives off H2S as a byproduct. As a result, the hydrogen-sulfide gas in your tap water gives off a rotten egg smell.
- Water heaters: If you only notice the rotten egg smell in your water when the water is hot, the smell might be coming from your water heater. If your water heater uses a magnesium anode rod to control corrosion, the rod will reduce sulfur in its tank to H2S and make it smell like rotten eggs.
What are the effects of having tap water that smells like rotten eggs?
The levels of hydrogen-sulfide that are typically found in tap water do not generally have any adverse health effects. In fact, the contaminant is not regulated by the EPA because the levels it would take to affect your health would make the water completely unpalatable.
However, the smell of H2S can make your water extremely undesirable to drink. In addition, leaving hydrogen-sulfide untreated can lead to corrosion of your home’s pipes.
How can you remove the rotten egg smell from your water?
There are a few of ways to remove hydrogen-sulfide from your water. If the problem is originating in your water heater, you can install an anode rod that is made of aluminum or another metal instead of magnesium.
If the problem is originating in your tap water itself, there are several different filtration methods available to remove H2S from your water. Carbon filtration, for example, can remove small traces of H2S, while ion exchange filtration can remove larger traces of the gas. Talk with North Carolina Water Consultants about the products we have that can reduce sulfur and H2S from your water!
If you have any questions about why your tap water smells like rotten eggs, or if you’d like a water treatment system serviced or installed in your home, contact North Carolina Water Consultants, your North and South Carolina water filter and water softener dealer. We service areas all over the Carolinas, including towns like Indian Trail, Monroe and Oakboro, NC.