I have lived here for 7 years, always drank the tap water with zero issues. However in the past say month my tap water (in setagaya) is producing a powerful smell. I noticed it first when boiling some pasta. I thought something was contaminated, I isolated everything till I figured out it was just the water which has been fine for years. My whole house smelled of some chemical, something like bleach but I am not sure.
Has anyone else noticed this? I am thinking there might be some specific issue near me as there are currently 3 separate houses being built within 100m of my house, any of them could be doing anything to the pipes as far as I know.
I need this sorted somehow, I cannot cook anything that needs water. Even if it’s safe the taste/smell of my food is horrible. Wondering if a water filter would help? My tap has one built in but it does literally nothing, I cannot notice anything changing when its on.
Also my tap isn’t like anything I see in instructions for water filters. I have a wide opening with a detachable handle for the water, no idea how any water filter is meant to attach…? Anyone have a detachable water hose thing and a water filter?
My tap is very similar to this:
[https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Japanese-Comfortable-To-Touch-Tap-Water\_1700002892867.html](https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Japanese-Comfortable-To-Touch-Tap-Water_1700002892867.html)
9 comments
Contact your management company or landlord
Have you gotten COVID recently?
The end of your faucet screws off. The filter cartridges are in the neck. They’re changed every couple months. When’s the last time you changed it…if ever?
Is your tap something like this? [https://www.kvk.co.jp/support/category/detail/KM6001EC2.html](https://www.kvk.co.jp/support/category/detail/KM6001EC2.html)
There should be a button that turns the filter on/off. However, these filters are really small and don’t help much. The instructions on page 13 show how to remove the water filter.
[https://www.kvk.co.jp/support/category/assets/KM6001EC2_T.pdf](https://www.kvk.co.jp/support/category/assets/KM6001EC2_T.pdf)
Do you have a smaller handle at the bottom of your tap? If you only have that large handle, I don’t think you have a water purifier filter on your tap. (Although if you could open it, there ought to be some filter, but not one of those purifier type)
You can try to buy a separate water filter/purifier like this attached straight on the tap. I used to use this before and it was great to have.
[https://my-best.com/11652](https://my-best.com/11652)
Now, if you want to, you can have Tokyo Waterworks check on your water quality. They have a separate page concerning water quality FAQs. You can also contact their support center and have them come and test your water. But if you want to go there, I suggest asking your apartment management office first.
[https://www.waterworks.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/faq/qa-13.html](https://www.waterworks.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/faq/qa-13.html)
Chlorine gets added to the tap water as a disinfectant. In Tokyo, that amount is fairly higher than in some remote mountain village. It’s safe for human consumption, but if you have an aquarium, I would recommend using something like Aquasafe.
When I was in France it can happen the water has that smell but since then I always use Brita filter and it is ok. When I arrived this is the first thing I did maybe it can help? It is something like chlorine maybe ?
What kind of building do you live in ?
I’m in shibuyaku and has this exact same thing