It works like so:
C5H5O5CH2OH + HOCL → C5H3O5CH2OH + HCl + H2O
Ascorbic acid + Hypochlorous acid → Dehydroascorbic acid + Hydrochloric acid + water
Or like so:
C5H5O5CH2ONa + HOCL → C5H3O5CH2OH + NaCl + H2O
Sodium ascorbate + Hypochlorous acid → Dehydroascorbic acid + Sodium chloride + water
2.5 parts of ascorbic acid or 2.8 parts of sodium ascorbate are required for neutralizing 1 part chlorine. Here in the UK, tap water generally has under 0.5ppm of chlorine, so I use 1.25mg/litre of ascorbic acid. In the US, tap water can have up to 4ppm of chlorine, so you'll need up to 10mg/litre of ascorbic acid.
I found out about it a few years ago when I heard about a shower head that used vitamin C to dechlorinate the water. At first I thought it was quackery, but I looked into it and discovered that vitamin C really does dechlorinate, and it's very effective at it. It works on chloroamines as well as on free chlorine.
I've been using it for the past few years as a cheap way to quickly dechlorinate water, without the nuisance of standing it for a day in buckets or the expense of special dechlorinator products. I just shave off a bit of a vitamin C tablet with my pocket knife, or crush the tablet with a spoon and add it to the water that I'm going to use and give it a couple of minutes for the powder to dissolve.
Further reading:
Using Vitamin C to Neutralize Chlorine in Water Systems
Does anyone else use this method?
C5H5O5CH2OH + HOCL → C5H3O5CH2OH + HCl + H2O
Ascorbic acid + Hypochlorous acid → Dehydroascorbic acid + Hydrochloric acid + water
Or like so:
C5H5O5CH2ONa + HOCL → C5H3O5CH2OH + NaCl + H2O
Sodium ascorbate + Hypochlorous acid → Dehydroascorbic acid + Sodium chloride + water
2.5 parts of ascorbic acid or 2.8 parts of sodium ascorbate are required for neutralizing 1 part chlorine. Here in the UK, tap water generally has under 0.5ppm of chlorine, so I use 1.25mg/litre of ascorbic acid. In the US, tap water can have up to 4ppm of chlorine, so you'll need up to 10mg/litre of ascorbic acid.
I found out about it a few years ago when I heard about a shower head that used vitamin C to dechlorinate the water. At first I thought it was quackery, but I looked into it and discovered that vitamin C really does dechlorinate, and it's very effective at it. It works on chloroamines as well as on free chlorine.
I've been using it for the past few years as a cheap way to quickly dechlorinate water, without the nuisance of standing it for a day in buckets or the expense of special dechlorinator products. I just shave off a bit of a vitamin C tablet with my pocket knife, or crush the tablet with a spoon and add it to the water that I'm going to use and give it a couple of minutes for the powder to dissolve.
Further reading:
Using Vitamin C to Neutralize Chlorine in Water Systems
Does anyone else use this method?