Leave in conditioner and sticky hair

[Temme]

Hello, I need some advice.
When I wash my hair, I usually only shampoo the scalp and only condition the length. I only shampoo my length every few months, so, of course, I don't use cones so I won't get build up.

However, my hair has been acting a bit dry and frizzy in this summer heat, so I decided to try a leave in conditioner. I tried L'Oreal Eversleek leave-in creme, which is cone-free. I thought it couldn't give me build up because it didn't have cones. I thought it would be just like regular conditioner, only instead of letting it soak in for a couple minutes I would let it soak in for a couple days. However, after I used it a few times, my hair felt very sticky like it had maple syrup in it. It took 2 shampoo washes to get it all out.

So, my question is, do you think I should try a different leave-in conditioner? Or do you think a leave-in conditioner wouldn't be good for someone who doesn't shampoo their length very much? Or maybe did I just use it too frequently?( I used it almost every day because I was swimming and I thought I should apply more since it would rinse out in the pool. So I didn't condition it out, I only rinsed it out with water.)
Thanks for your help!

[Firefox7275]

Plenty of curlies rarely or never shampoo and use leave in conditioners routinely - we avoid most silicones, some polyquats, mineral oil/ petrolatum, waxes such as beeswax or cetyl esters. Butters like shea can also build up. Cetyl esters are the problem ingredient for me in the new formula Fructis Repair & Shine (Triple Nutrition).

That Eversleek product claims to be humidity defying, ie. it is water resistant. Also Ulta don't have it listed as a conditioner but as a frizz control treatment, it reads more like a serum replacement.

"Aqua (Water),Cetearyl Alcohol, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil (Sunflower Seed Oil), Behentrimonium Chloride, Cetyl Esters, Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Glycerin, Fragrance, Quaternium-87, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Isopropyl Alcohol, Candelilla Cera (Candelilla Wax), Hydroxyethylcellulose, Propylene Glycol, Olea Europaea Oil (Olive Fruit Oil), Benzoic Acid, Citric Acid, Argania Spinosa Oil (Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil), Hexyl Cinnamal, Linalool, Benzyl Salicylate, Limonene, Benzyl Alcohol, Citronellol, Triethanolamine"

Are you wearing a swimming cap? If not but still using a leave in conditioner you will conmtaminate the pool, feed bacteria and make the pool chemicals less effective.

[WilfredAllen]

Sounds like something that would happen with my hair lol ^.^ I always have to shampoo if I use conditioner (even cone free) the next day or it gets gross. Perhaps you have low porosity hair? It tends to associated with having problems with product build up. A web search will help you find "tests" and checklists to help you determine the porosity of your hair. If you do determine that your hair is low porosity you can then starting looking for moisturizing treatments specific to that hair type.

I have low porosity hair and my current favourite way to moisturize my hair is to wet it and wrap it in a bag or my swim cap for a few hours. My hair slowly absorbs the moisture (especially if I wear a warm toque over top), and there is nothing I need to shampoo out after. You could also do a catnip tea rinse, which many people, myself included, find to be conditioning (I don't think it is moisturizing, though) and, again, the tea won't need to be shampooed out.

[Mya]

I never shampoo my length and my hair does good with leave-ins. From my experience, leave-in cremes tend to end up somewhat dry or sticky. You may want to try sprays or oils.

[Anje]

I tend to find all leave-ins that I've tried to be sticky compared to my uncoated but conditioned hair. It might be the product that you tried, but I think some of us (depends on hair texture, probably) just aren't meant to use them.

[SerinaDaith]

I use cones in my curly/wavy hair. I also just use a small amount of regular conditioner as a leave in. I only shampoo my scalp if I shampoo at all. Cones are not everyone's enemy, or they are not mine at least, without them my hair gets snaggly and frizzy.

[fairview]

Sounds like too much is being used. Whatever amount you think you need to use put 75% back or leave that much in the bottle. Only apply to damp, towel dried hair working on 1/2 the scalp then the other. If you need more, use no more than half the amount used the first time. Ignore whatever directions are on the bottle pertaining how much to use. The manufacturer wants you to use a lot for obvious reasons. A little bit of leave in product goes a long, long way. Longer than most user realize

[Firefox7275]

Sounds like too much is being used. Whatever amount you think you need to use put 75% back or leave that much in the bottle. Only apply to damp, towel dried hair working on 1/2 the scalp then the other. If you need more, use no more than half the amount used the first time. Ignore whatever directions are on the bottle pertaining how much to use. The manufacturer wants you to use a lot for obvious reasons. A little bit of leave in product goes a long, long way. Longer than most user realize

Actually many curlies need to use far more conditioners than the manufacturers indicate, and wavies/ curlies taken together comprise about two thirds of the earth's population, so perhaps the manufacturers are not simply writing the guidelines for those with healthy straight hair who only need a little product. Many wavies and curlies also find applying to wet hair is far superior than applying to towel dried/ damp hair, it's much easier to distribute evenly and it substantially affects how hair looks and feels when dry.

[Temme]

I feel dumb for saying this, but it seems now that leave-in conditioner wasn't the cause of my sticky hair problem. After shampooing out all of the stickiness, I didn't use any more of the leave-in conditioner, but my sticky hair returned. I felt sure the problem was my leave-in conditioner because the problem occurred right after I started using it, but apparently not. I'm thinking it may be the salt water (we're out the beach right now). Sorry for mistake.

[Temme]

Plenty of curlies rarely or never shampoo and use leave in conditioners routinely - we avoid most silicones, some polyquats, mineral oil/ petrolatum, waxes such as beeswax or cetyl esters. Butters like shea can also build up.

Wow, I never realized there were other things besides cones that caused build-up. I'm going to look at all my conditioners now! I am worried about the cetyl esters in the leave-in. Do you have a recommendation of a leave-in without these things?

[Temme]

Are you wearing a swimming cap?
No, but I rinse my hair in the shower before swimming, so technically my leave-in was rinsed out in the shower.

[Firefox7275]

Wow, I never realized there were other things besides cones that caused build-up. I'm going to look at all my conditioners now! I am worried about the cetyl esters in the leave-in. Do you have a recommendation of a leave-in without these things?

Depends on your hair properties and dew points/ humidity, you will do well with completely different ingredients if you have porous coarse hair to low porosity fine hair. Many curlies use their wash out conditioner as a leave in as well.

[Anje]

Wow, I never realized there were other things besides cones that caused build-up. I'm going to look at all my conditioners now! I am worried about the cetyl esters in the leave-in. Do you have a recommendation of a leave-in without these things?

Lots of things will build up, but I think it varies a lot between people, routines, and the type of water you have. If you can clarify occasionally and that's sufficient to take care of it, a little buildup isn't a big deal. Since your hair seems sticky, I'd suggest that you need to do a good clarifying or possibly chelating as soon as you reasonably can.

[sarahthegemini]

Definitely clarify.

[nobeltonya]

You could try a different kind and see if you get different results. I use a coney leave-in (GF Sleek & Shine Intensely Smooth) every day, but I also wash scalp and length every day.. I've also been using Suave Professionals Lower Sulphate shampoo for the past 2 weeks or so with Aussie Miraculously Smooth conditioner, and it seems to be working well. :disco:

[Temme]

I'm a bit off the original topic now, but Firefox mentioned that some polyquats can cause buildup. I looked at all my conditioners and almost all of them have polyquats, mostly either cetrimonium chloride or behentrimonium chloride, which I read both cause buildup. Polyquats are also apparently even harder to wash out than silicones. So has my avoidance of silicones been useless? Correct me if my science is wrong.