fungus in citric acid solution?

[ariala]

hallo to everyone!

I'm new but I have lurked around and gotten a lot of good info from all of you.

I recently have started citric acid rinses for my waist length hair. I used to do vinegar but I like the smell of citric better. Also travelling is easy with citric acid.

My question is -- when I make the solution in my spray bottle; after 3-4 days I get white cottony stuff in the solution. On googling I found that citric acid solutions are prone to fungus??? The vinegar never had such a problem.

I would love it if someone made me understand why is this happening.Is it really fungus? Do I need to make fresh batches everyday?

Thank you !!!:o

[spirals]

No, you just need a preservative. The least expensive and easiest to obtain is isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol of at least 70% solution. Here's my recipe if you want to try: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=110611 You don't really have to do the marshmallow root, but the proportions of water, alcohol, and citric acid work for me. I've been using this for 1 1/2 years and have had no dryness from the alcohol. I know that's a concern that's been brought up.

[ariala]

note: I've found the bottle in the shower developed mold. I added about 1/4 cup isopropyl alcohol, which is what I usually use as a preservative.
:violin:
Hugs you !!
At last the answer to the elusive cottony bits I was wondering about. That is mold eh. I cannot understand why vinegar doesnt seem to get mold as citric acid does ! Both work equally well but the citric acid smell is way better. I had a terrible experience during travel when vinegar leaked! Now I carry only the crystals of citric.

marshmallow root? thanks for letting me omit that. I really don't have a clue what that is. The rest of your recipe is exactly what I was looking for. Wonderful!!
Thank you so much :eek:

I was wondering though- I have black hair and I'm doing the citric rinse since a few months. There is no change in colour and I rarely if ever wash hair. And that too I follow the water-wash method for most part. Would be great if you or anyone could suggest travel friendly conditioning rinse for dark hair which almost luckily self manages itself.

Thank you!

[oatmealpie]

Aha! The same thing happened to me. Thanks for the info, spirals!

[ErinLeigh]

No, you just need a preservative. The least expensive and easiest to obtain is isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol of at least 70% solution. Here's my recipe if you want to try: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=110611 You don't really have to do the marshmallow root, but the proportions of water, alcohol, and citric acid work for me. I've been using this for 1 1/2 years and have had no dryness from the alcohol. I know that's a concern that's been brought up.

Awesome link. I never saw it before.
I am eager to try now. Weeeeee :)

[spirals]

The marshmallow root was originally for slip in detangling, but I find it adds a bit of hold, since I leave my rinse in. This is good for keeping frizz at bay; I don't need styling products. Marshmallow mucilage is what marshmallows were originally made out of, rather than gelatin, which is the modern replacement. MR is good for sore throats, so it was whipped with sugar and egg whites and given to children in Victorian times. I think the flavor was a combo of rosewater and vanilla. Anyway, I found a recipe for MR detangler spray and adapted it.