Swim advice for Chlorinated water, and fingertip length hair

[jrmviola]

Im thinking of taking up swimming again, but last time I swam- nearly 8 years ago- I Had to cut my hair from hip to shoulder. My hair is fingertip length + and obviously I don't want to do that again. Last time I used tons and tons of leave in conditioner, along with wetting it before-hand, braiding it up under a swim cap, and washing it afterward, along with tons and tons more conditioner. After several months I had 12 inches of orange hair.

So now that my hair is approaching knee and is significantly more fragile than it was previously, I had thought to just douse my hair in Olive Oil and live with any oily residue. I work outside and wear a hat, so if I use too much it doesn't matter. Or am I going to have to live with some mechanical damage no matter what?

Thanks!

[DreamSheep]

Going to subscribe to this thread as I'd quite like to know. :)

When I was little I would put talcum powder to help my silicon cap to slide on better, and that would keep my hair pretty dry, and then wash and condition after. Never noticed anything specia or bad happening, but I didn't have hair as long as I do now.

I've read on these forums that dampening it beforehand and perhaps applying some deep treatment helps too. Keep it under a cloth cap with a silicon one on top perhaps. But anyway, I'm going to subscribe and find out what others say. :)

[jrmviola]

I think I went through a bottle of leave in conditioner a week, swimming five days a week. Maybe a bottle every week and a half. I used that much...

[Becs]

I used to swim at least 5 times a week and I still swim fairly often so I will tell you what I do to protect my hair...however it sounds like you have tried a lot of it already. Also, my hair is not nearly as long as yours (it's about BCL.) I soak my hair in olive oil first, and then wet my hair with tap water until it is saturated. Then I just put it up in a cap. I tend to use latex because silicone caps always slip off of me. When I competed in meets I usually didn't bother with pre soaking it in either oil or water though (often because there wasn't time, we would warm up pretty early) but I would often wear 2 caps to compete, (to keep my goggles in place, I was super paranoid about them falling off) and when I did this oftentimes when I removed the caps my hair was almost completely dry, so wearing more than one cap might be worth a try. Then after I was done swimming I would just shampoo and condition as normal. I've never had any issues with my hair changing color and I've never had any significant damage to my hair either when I have used this method.
ETA: I forgot to mention that after shampooing and conditioning I would then add a bit of leave in and oil to my hair

[gthlvrmx]

Try rinsing your hair with club soda after swimming. The club soda should get rid of the chlorine and other minerals.

[Larki]

Orange hair? I've never heard of chlorine causing that at all! Over-chlorinated pools and hot tubs turn mine green, but normal levels of chlorine (where it can't be smelled) never did anything except dry my hair out. And your hair is dark; I've never heard of dark hair changing color at all!

[cathair]

I was completely saturating my hair in conditioner that contained EDTA before I went swimming and using a swimming cap. Although EDTA is in chelating products, it probably wasn't in high enough concentrations to have much effect on the chlorine in the pool water. It probably just made me feel better. But my hair felt nice! I would the wash it with swimming shampoo and conditioned again. I only went swimming for a few months this year though, so I couldn't say how that worked out long term :/

Coconut oil can have a waterproofing effect on hair, because it can penetrate hair, it can stop water getting in. But I would guess hair would probably need to be soaked in it over night before you went swimming for it to have full benefit.

There are also some that would say soaking your hair in anything before you go swimming is bad practice, since it feeds the pool bacteria and just makes the pool dirty for everyone.

Were you using swimming shampoo to remove the chlorine as well as leave in conditioner?

[Madora]

From "George Michael's Secrets for Beautiful hair" (Doubleday, 1981):

Before you dive into that beautiful acquamarine pool...take a few seconds to work undiluted creame rinse into your hair. Now you can take the plunge.

The chlorine will be happy because it enjoys eating the cream rinse instead of your hair; your hair will be happy because it's protected from the chemicals.

When you're through swimming, rinse your hair off with plain water--you don't have to take a shower, just put your head under one of the garden hoses all pool owners have..and reapply a little cream rinse.

Salt-water Savers

...While salt water is good for your scalp and good therapy for your body, continued exposure to the salt can make your hair dry and brittle. Before braving the surf, apply a cream rinse, starting at the scalp and working it through to the tips of the hair.

Following your swim, always rinse with plain, "sweet" water to remove the living matter ("plankton") of the salt water. Then don't forget to put on your sunglasses and scarf or hat."

Article by former LHC member Ktani from Ktani's Hairsense blog:
http://ktanihairsense.blogspot.com/2009/11/part-2-of-4-on-innovative-approaches-to.html

[jrmviola]

I have dark hair but I have several members on both sides of the family with blond or dark red hair, so I actually have a lot of very fine blond and red that became heavily damaged to the point that I had visible damage. When the ends were held up to my roots it was very evident. But not pumpkin orange, no....

I've never heard of the club soda trick, does that actually work?

I wasn't using special swimming shampoos then or even oil, as I hadn't heard of either. I used about a dime size of shampoo then a double palm-full of conditioner afterwards....

I had thought of soaking my hair overnight. that way my hair is dry when I go in and I can easier tell if the chlorine got in. I guess im afraid to risk my length, but I really miss swimming!

I read on the article, its possible I don't have the correct size swimcap. Where can I get the specially made larger sizes?

quoted the above mentioned blog:
"The safest, cheapest, easiest thing to buy and use to rinse the hair with just after swimming in a pool or sea water, and requires no mixing, guessing, or experimenting with for a good dilution, is club soda.

Club soda although acidic is a weak acid and more importantly, it is buffered to stay stable at its pH, a very hair friendly pH 5. Other carbonated waters by comparison are much more acidic and not hair friendly at all by virtue of that fact. The pH of most carbonated waters and soft drinks is about pH 2.3, the equivalent of undiluted vinegar. Anything with a pH below 3.5 can be damaging to hair, depending on the amount used and frequency of use.

Some hairstylists and a hair extension company recommend club soda as a rinse after swimming in a pool to neutralize chlorine, or remove seawater mineral build-up, followed by a fresh water rinse. The carbonation is doing some of the removal after swimming in the ocean, by helping to break up the minerals.

Some interesting research on hair and water, states that "It takes 15 minutes for hair to be saturated with water" (Robbins, Chemical and Physical Behaviour of Human Hair, Springer). It has been suggested that pre-soaking hair in such a manner can prevent it from absorbing more water while swimming. If one were to use club soda instead of tap water to saturate the hair for 15 minutes before swimming in a pool, or sea water, that may be even better.

Club soda is harmless to hair and can work quite well in removing chlorine and leave the hair with no undesirable after effects. Club soda is a cost effective way to deal with chlorine and sea water swimming and their effects on hair. It is readily available just about everywhere."

I guess that answers my own question about the soda! Thanks!

[cathair]

I would think perhaps if the chlorine had stayed in your hair, then it could be bleaching it and changing the colour?

Speedo make swimming cap for long hair. It's also silicone, so it won't rot if you choose to use conditioners or oils with it. The rubbers ones will. I don't know of anywhere that makes custom ones, I don't have that problem yet but it would be very cool :)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Speedo-Silicone-Long-Swim-Swimming-Cap-Black/dp/B000F6E2JE

[jrmviola]

thanks for the link!

[gthlvrmx]

quoted the above mentioned blog:
"The safest, cheapest, easiest thing to buy and use to rinse the hair with just after swimming in a pool or sea water, and requires no mixing, guessing, or experimenting with for a good dilution, is club soda.

Club soda although acidic is a weak acid and more importantly, it is buffered to stay stable at its pH, a very hair friendly pH 5. Other carbonated waters by comparison are much more acidic and not hair friendly at all by virtue of that fact. The pH of most carbonated waters and soft drinks is about pH 2.3, the equivalent of undiluted vinegar. Anything with a pH below 3.5 can be damaging to hair, depending on the amount used and frequency of use.

Some hairstylists and a hair extension company recommend club soda as a rinse after swimming in a pool to neutralize chlorine, or remove seawater mineral build-up, followed by a fresh water rinse. The carbonation is doing some of the removal after swimming in the ocean, by helping to break up the minerals.

Some interesting research on hair and water, states that "It takes 15 minutes for hair to be saturated with water" (Robbins, Chemical and Physical Behaviour of Human Hair, Springer). It has been suggested that pre-soaking hair in such a manner can prevent it from absorbing more water while swimming. If one were to use club soda instead of tap water to saturate the hair for 15 minutes before swimming in a pool, or sea water, that may be even better.

Club soda is harmless to hair and can work quite well in removing chlorine and leave the hair with no undesirable after effects. Club soda is a cost effective way to deal with chlorine and sea water swimming and their effects on hair. It is readily available just about everywhere."

I guess that answers my own question about the soda! Thanks!

Yes that! I was going to link you the article here on LHC about club soda but I see you found the information before I did! Enjoy! :)

[meteor]

Orange hair? I've never heard of chlorine causing that at all! Over-chlorinated pools and hot tubs turn mine green, but normal levels of chlorine (where it can't be smelled) never did anything except dry my hair out. And your hair is dark; I've never heard of dark hair changing color at all!

It's the iron in water that can turn hair rusty/orange, and the copper that can turn blonde hair green.
Chlorine has a very drying effect and if it's left on hair for too long it can create that fading/discoloration that damaged hair can have.

I highly recommend chelating / swimmers' shampoos. Joico is a great one but there are many others.

I also recommend using penetrating oils (esp. coconut) before swimming to create a barrier, applying them as much in advance as possible, to let them penetrate thoroughly. Wearing two swim-caps instead of one can help, too.

Also, look for chlorine-free swimming pools in your area. Not only your hair, but also your skin and eyes will thank you for it! ;)