On the Westside, the complaint we hear most is not hardness. It is the taste and smell of the water itself: a swimming pool note in a glass from the kitchen tap, or a sharper smell in a hot shower.
That taste is the disinfectant your utility adds on purpose, so the water stays clean from the treatment plant all the way to your faucet. It is not a sign that anything is wrong with the water. It is also the easiest thing on the Westside to fix, once you know which filter actually handles it.
Which Westside utilities use chloramine?
Most of them. LADWP, Golden State Water, and LA County Waterworks District No. 29 all say in their reports that they use chloramine, and Santa Monica and Inglewood report a chlorine and chloramine residual.
| Utility | Areas | What its report says |
|---|---|---|
| LADWP | Westchester, Venice | Uses chloramines as its disinfectant |
| City of Santa Monica | Santa Monica | Total chlorine and chloramines, citywide average 1.80 ppm in 2025 |
| Golden State Water, Culver City System | Culver City | Water contains chloramine |
| City of Inglewood and Golden State Water Southwest | Inglewood | Chlorine and chloramine residual in the distribution system |
| LA County Waterworks District No. 29 | Marina del Rey | MWD water treated with ozone, then chloramines |
Here is what each utility's own report says about the disinfectant in its water.
Why does chloramine taste and behave differently from chlorine?
Because it is more stable. Chloramine breaks down more slowly than chlorine, which keeps it working through long pipe networks, but it also means it does not fade from a pitcher left on the counter.
Utilities moved to chloramine because it lasts longer in the distribution system and forms fewer disinfection byproducts than chlorine. The EPA's chloramine page covers the reasons in more detail.
The same stability is why some old tricks stop working. Leaving a jug of tap water in the fridge overnight lets much of plain chlorine escape. Chloramine stays put, so the taste does too.
What does carbon filtration remove, and what does it leave behind?
Carbon removes the taste and smell of chlorine and chloramine, along with some organic compounds. It does not remove hardness minerals, sodium, or most dissolved solids, and it does not soften water.
| Complaint | Whole-home carbon | Under-sink reverse osmosis | Water softener |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pool taste and smell | Yes, at every tap | Yes, at one kitchen tap | No |
| Smell in the shower | Yes | No | No |
| Hardness and scale | No | Only at that one tap | Yes, whole house |
| Sodium | No | Yes, at that tap | Adds a small amount |
| Purified drinking water | No, it is filtered | Yes | No |
Activated carbon works by adsorption and by reacting with the disinfectant on its surface. That makes it the right tool for taste and odor, and the wrong tool for scale. Water that has been through a carbon filter still tests exactly as hard as it did before.
Why does chloramine need more contact time than chlorine?
Because chloramine reacts with carbon more slowly than chlorine does. To remove it, the water has to spend longer in contact with the carbon, which means more media, a slower flow, or a catalytic carbon made for the job.
A small pitcher filter or a thin faucet cartridge can knock down chlorine because chlorine reacts quickly. Chloramine needs time. The Water Quality Association's chloramine fact sheet makes the same point and notes that chloramine is difficult to remove by reverse osmosis alone, which is why good RO systems put a carbon stage ahead of the membrane.
For a whole house, that means a system sized with enough catalytic carbon for your flow rate, not just the smallest tank that fits. Undersized carbon works for a few weeks and then lets the taste back through.
Who needs to remove chloramine for reasons other than taste?
Two groups: people on home dialysis and people who keep fish. For everyone else, chloramine is a taste and smell question.
LADWP's and Golden State Water's reports both say that people on kidney dialysis and aquarium owners must remove chloramine from the water they use. If either applies to you, talk to your dialysis provider or your aquarium supplier about the right treatment. For everyone else, Golden State Water's report puts it plainly: chloraminated water is safe for people and animals to drink.
What should a Westside home install for taste and smell?
In a house, a whole-home catalytic carbon system on the main line. In a condo or apartment, an under-sink reverse osmosis system for drinking water and a chloramine-rated shower filter.
If you own the house, carbon on the main line treats every faucet and shower at once, and it needs no drain or power. Add reverse osmosis if you want purified water for drinking and cooking.
If you rent or own a condo, you probably cannot reach the main line. Our condo and apartment guide covers what you can install, and what needs a landlord's or an HOA's approval.
Tired of the pool taste? Pipe Dream Plumbing Co. installs whole-home carbon filtration and under-sink reverse osmosis across the LA Westside, with Professional Installation. Call (310) 957-1763.