Hard Water vs. Soft Water

[endlessly]

I've had hard water as far back as I can remember. At one point, my family had purchased a water softener, but for whatever reason, it stopped working and we never thought to replace it. Now, we've purchased a new water softener and honestly, I'm a bit worried. I've heard from so many that soft water will make a huge difference when it comes to how appliances run and clothes are washed...but what will it do to my hair? Will I notice a vast improvement in the health of my hair? Will I need to use smaller amounts of my products? Are there any issues I should keep an eye out for?

[Anje]

I've had hard water and softened water, and I actually don't notice much difference with my hair. Maybe it's a little softer with soft water, but it's not all that drastic. I've been using sulfates for the last few years, before that I had a long period of CO. Shampoo bars didn't work for me with hard water (I wanted them to and I know people like Chromis get it to work, but it wasn't for me), but I never gave them a serious try with softened water. I do make a point of occasionally using a swimmer's shampoo or rinsing with dilute vinegar to help keep mineral buildup to a minimum.

I do notice a huge difference with softened water for other things, though. It's soooooooooooooo much better for dishes. Dishwashers actually work with soft water, instead of being something that you can use a few times as a lazy measure and then need to scrub out everything by hand to get the residue off. Clothes seem softer. The shower doesn't get a layer of guk covering everything. Skin didn't get so dried out in the winter.

I should mention that my water here is REALLY hard. Last time I saw it tested, I think it was 27 grains per gallon hardness (OK, city site says 21 grains per gallon, but I know I've noticed changes from time to time, probably due to different wells servicing different parts of the city). Having a water softener made a huge quality of life difference for me, and is probably the single thing I missed most when I went back to renting in the area after a few years of owning a house. I've just bought a new place (I keep posting that -- I'm giddy!) and going back to a softener is one of the things I'm really looking forward to. So from my perspective, it is absolutely worth it.

[gthlvrmx]

Soft water won't have those minerals that hard water has which means that you won't get mineral build up as fast. You might not feel a difference though with changing to soft water. You might notice the change if you chelate or get some club soda and rinse your hair with it and continue using soft water. I know when I tried club soda, my curls got curlier and they seemed "lighter and bouncier" along with the shower filter. I actually had spiraly tube things going on after years of not having it. But other than that, my hair didn't feel super soft or anything. I am wondering what would happen if I chelate my hair and then switch to soft water. It's an experiment for the future.
The health of your hair will probably stay good for a longer time since you don't have the minerals building up so fast and as for products, I am not sure. Just make sure to watch when your shower filter (if that is what you are using) stops working and replace the little thing in it you have to replace. Home Depot is where some shower filters are found.

[peahennery]

My hair has been feeling icky (sticky, easily tangled) for a couple of months now and all the signs lead me to believe that it was hard water build up. This would have made sense considering I'd been living in the country for 6 months and using boar water in the shower, before moving to the city which apparently has some of the softest water in Australia. I used an apple cider vinegar rinse and that did wonders the first time. The next few not so much, now I'm thinking I may be over stripping my hair and the problems I'm seeing must be because of something else. Let me tell you though, my housemates have decided that with all my talking about hard water constantly that I've definitely lost my mind. I suppose that's what happens when you darkly mutter whilst doing the dishes about how hard water stole all your suds. Point is, my hard water hair (which may not actually be hard water hair) seemed to get worse when moving from a hard water to supposedly soft water area.

[lilin]

When I got a softener for just the shower, I didn't notice an enormous difference in the health of my hair.

But I did notice that it was much easier to get it properly clean. My hair also stays feeling clean for longer. I don't have to scrub as much, which in turn makes my scalp less irritated, so that's good.

My friend that I live with, on the other hand, noticed a HUGE difference. If I had to hair type her, I'd say she's probably 1c/M/i and her hair is dyed and regularly heat styled. She got horrible build-up with our water and had to clarify pretty much ever week. It looks a lot brighter and more bouncy now. The change in her hair has been a lot more dramatic than in mine.

[ositarosita]

I come from a country of nice soft water (Bottled water quality) and moved to one with the hardest water I have ever experienced. I didn't notice the change in water for about 6 months, when I first started to feel the mineral buildup. I find that I use more shampoo (harsher shampoo) as well as MUST chelate every 4-6 months otherwise my hair gets fairy knots, starts to get dry and splits, breakage, my curls go wonky, my hair even feels heavy etc.

[Betazed]

Newbie question alert!

What does chelate mean?
Also, how do you know if you have hard water? Is there a way to test for it?

ETA: I googled and found out my city's water supply is 18 grains per gallon, which the city's site claims is "average to high".

[*ReiKa*]

London has really hard water. I was thinking for a while about buying a water softener, until I went back to my native country on holiday (which has softer water) and noticed a huge difference in how my hair was for the whole stay: rougher, drier and much more frizzy. I was using good products as well, so it couldn't be them, it must be the water. Everytime I go there and wash my hair, it becomes like that.
I think hair gets used to the water you've been washing it with, so you MAY experience some differences. As others say, you may not see anything different at all, but I definitely did with my hair.

[Anje]

Newbie question alert!

What does chelate mean?
Also, how do you know if you have hard water? Is there a way to test for it?

ETA: I googled and found out my city's water supply is 18 grains per gallon, which the city's site claims is "average to high".

To chelate is to bind up ions to you can move them or limit/control/use their effects (depending on your goal, what you used, etc). As far as hair and hard water goes, that's pretty much using products containing substances like EDTA or citric acid (more than is necessary to deal with the ions already in the product) to dissolve and remove the calcium, magnesium, iron, copper, etc that can get attached to hair if you have lots in your water. If you have this sort of hardness buildup, using a chelating shampoo or treatment occasionally will leave your hair a lot softer and nicer. It also might remove rusty or greenish discoloration if those are due to things like iron and copper.

[Avital88]

My hair is much better in my native country where the water is soft as opposed to where I live now where the water is very hard. The problem I have w hard water is dry ends, less shine, build up and harder to detangle. Soft warmer just really helps your hair looking healthy

[Betazed]

Thanks, Anje for clearing that up! I'm not sure if the hardness of my water is affecting my hair. I was consitering looking into a shower filter just because I like the idea of using the "cleanest" water on my hair but I have no idea what the cost may be or if I would be willing to pay said cost.

[cathair]

I wouldn't worry, it should be a good thing :) I would imagine using less shampoo, having crunchy ends less often and not having to worry about having a horribly stained bathroom :D

[CoveredByLove]

I noticed a vast difference in my hair after we got a water softener! I love it, and I can't imagine ever being without soft water again! Everything works more efficiently with LESS. I use way less shampoo, laundry detergent, dish detergent...etc. With our hard water my hair would get mineral build up quickly and would start tangling. My hair is build up prone anyways no matter what I use, so it made since that minerals build up on my hair quick also. I had to clarify often, which was drying. I haven't had to "clarify" my hair since we got the water softener. I rinse with very diluted shampoo (knocks the products off my hair to prevent build up) , then CO wash my scalp and hair. Sometimes I pre-poo with an oil. My hair is definitely much happier and so much softer. Shampoo bars never worked for me in my hard water. I can use them now effectively if I want to...I just prefer the convenience of poo and condish and being able to use whatever products/ingredients I want. :flower:

[jennareid]

My water at home is the hardest water I've ever used. All the bottles on the edge of the tub are covered in scale, I have to de-scale my kettle after maybe 6/7 uses max. When I travel and stay with other people or in hotels there's a HUGE difference. I don't have to use as much shampoo, it foams better, rinses more easily. It makes my skin sooo soft and it doesn't get dry and itchy like at home. Same goes for my hair. It's an instant difference. I wish we could get a softener at home, we have the connections but our utility area is so badly designed that there isn't room and we don't have the space to rearrange.

I saw someone mention dishwashers - we put white vinegar in the rinse-aid section and we pour it straight in the washer before each run and it works perfectly. If we don't use the vinegar even once, everything comes out nasty.

[Anje]

Thanks, Anje for clearing that up! I'm not sure if the hardness of my water is affecting my hair. I was consitering looking into a shower filter just because I like the idea of using the "cleanest" water on my hair but I have no idea what the cost may be or if I would be willing to pay said cost.

I know when my husband was in Cincinnati, a shower filter was crucial for his skin. He started getting really itchy all the time and things were very dry, while the chlorine smell was rather overwhelming. I don't know if they're universally beneficial (seems like it probably depends on the water you have and whether it's causing problems), but the Sprite one we got at Home Depot really helped him.

ETA: I haven't actually used one in my current town. Skin is less dry here than there, an inexpensive filter wouldn't do anything about the hardness, and the chloramines they use in this city's water are difficult to take out with most normal shower filters.

[Chromis]

Hard water is great for drinking, soft water is great for washing IMO. While I did use shampoo bars for years with my super hard water, I also had to use a pretty stiff citric acid and ACV rinse. I have a softener now and it does help greatly. I can lather twice instead of thrice and just use ACV (and less of it) for my rinse. My water is still fairly hard, but the difference in the dishes is amazing! We used to have to run a vinegar rinse each wash on top of using Lemi-shine in the dishwasher. I tend to reuse waterglasses, especially in the basement or the office and I do still have to do a vinegar soak if I use the same one too long, but it isn't solid white on the bottom of the glass now!

[endlessly]

Thank you so much for all the helpful responses! I washed my hair tonight with soft water for the first time in probably 18 years and while I don't notice any changes right now, I will say that my shampoo bar lathered up like crazy! I used hardly any of it, which is a big difference considering it normally takes me 3-4 swipes to get any sort of foam. I'm already excited at the prospect of not dealing with mineral buildup in the shower and our other appliances - hopefully, it's going to save me a lot of time cleaning in the future!