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View Full Version : Curly battling extreme hard water...



lilin
September 10th, 2015, 03:41 PM
Hey guys! So after I did The Big Shave, I decided to see how long I could go WO, and switch back to soapnuts if I needed a real cleanser, which worked wonderfully for me in the past.

At a few inches, WO scrubbing just got to be too intense with too little pay off. So, back to soapnuts.

...Except now they aren't working.

In the time between last using soapnuts and now, I moved from Minnesota to London. London has some of the hardest water imaginable -- so hard it's completely off the end of the scale of most hard water charts. We're talking floating bits of scale in the tea kettle if you go a couple weeks without cleaning it.

Soapnuts not only stopped working for my hair, but also for our clothes and dishes (we used it for both). It just can't cope.

Yes, I tried clarifying. Yes, I tried adding and taking away other ingrediants. Yes, I tried a shower filter. Yes, I tried using it different ways (on dry hair, on wet hair, before conditioning, after conditioning, with a thickener, without one...).

Unfortunately, soapnuts are the strongest DIY cleanser I know of. I have tried all the others. None of them did the job for me in Minnesota, so I don't need to try again to know they won't here.

I think I have to give up on DIY hair care. No choice, with this kind of water. Has this happened to anyone else? Just in case I'm missing something, does anyone have a solution?

But in the mean time, I need to clean my hair.

I can't use SLS. It gives me cystic acne and, if the concentration is high, a rash on my jaw. So I went for SLES... and it's starting to do the same thing to me. Not as bad, but my face definitely broke out.

*sigh*

I am getting so frustrated with the simple task of trying to clean my hair, at this point.

So, my flatmate let me borrow her bottle of WEN cleansing conditioner, which she doesn't use -- too heavy for her fine, straight hair.

I am a rare curly for whom co-washing never went extremely well. I didn't expect it to go any better, with the kind of water we have here. But why not -- it was there, and there was nothing else in our shower that worked without offending my face, so whatever.

For some reason, WEN worked well for me. My hair feels really nice, and what little curlies I have at pixie length are actually quite nicely shaped. If anything, I think I could get away with leaving it on a little less time for less cleaning power.

I am so deeply confused by this, but whatever! Apparently my hair is insane and likes or doesn't like things based on whatever is the opposite of my expectations.

I know WEN is exceptionally expensive, so I don't plan to buy any more once I've used this up. Does anyone have good CO suggestions available in the UK? I tried the much-loved VO5 Naturals in the US, in two different states (thus different water), and I didn't like it. It didn't rinse well and pulled out my curl. My hair is generally very grabby and I have a tough time getting most conditioners out of it.

Altneratively, is there any hope for a DIY solution? I'm guessing not, but maybe someone has some kind of suggestion I haven't thought of yet.

I just want a routine that will work and to stop having to mess with stuff! Thanks, guys.

sumidha
September 10th, 2015, 06:33 PM
Maybe a citric acid or vinegar rinse?

Hairkay
September 10th, 2015, 06:49 PM
I water only wash with London water without a filter and I'm a super curly. I do have some mild vinegar rinses sometimes. I also use a mild vinegar rinse on my dishes especially glassware and cutlery. Even the laundry will get some vinegar along side detergent or soapnuts. Kettles get vinegar too, half a bottle of it with water, boil the kettle, leave to cool and rinse it out. Kettle descaled. I keep a bottle of vinegar in the bathroom too. It's for cleaning the tiles, mirror, taps and a little of it goes for hair. There are purpose made cleaning descalers but they're harsh and stink worse than vinegar fumes which dissipate quickly. I didn't bother getting a shower filter because that'd only cover showers and I take baths as well. Plus I'd have to get a new filter every month. Yes I've seen that they say a filter is supposed to last 3 - 6 months but I don't think they can last that long with this water.

When I use fruit hair masks I expect the vitamin C helps deal with the hard water.

lilin
September 10th, 2015, 07:23 PM
I water only wash with London water without a filter and I'm a super curly. I do have some mild vinegar rinses sometimes. I also use a mild vinegar rinse on my dishes especially glassware and cutlery. Even the laundry will get some vinegar along side detergent or soapnuts. Kettles get vinegar too, half a bottle of it with water, boil the kettle, leave to cool and rinse it out. Kettle descaled. I keep a bottle of vinegar in the bathroom too. It's for cleaning the tiles, mirror, taps and a little of it goes for hair. There are purpose made cleaning descalers but they're harsh and stink worse than vinegar fumes which dissipate quickly. I didn't bother getting a shower filter because that'd only cover showers and I take baths as well. Plus I'd have to get a new filter every month. Yes I've seen that they say a filter is supposed to last 3 - 6 months but I don't think they can last that long with this water.

When I use fruit hair masks I expect the vitamin C helps deal with the hard water.

Thank you for all the tips! I suspect my hair doesn't deal with it as well because it's a much looser texture than yours. I just couldn't get rid of it without a ton of mechanical manipulation. Mechanical stuff beat my hair up pretty badly last time, so I just ditched it.

So right on the shower filters. Ours was rated for 12 months with 4 people using it. We only had 2 people using it, and it started giving out after 3 months. *sigh*

meteor
September 11th, 2015, 03:15 PM
Have you tried making so-called "Miracle Water" : water + citric acid + vitamin C ? http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=128756

Another alternative would be to wash with distilled water. I think it might work for pixie length, especially if you don't use too much water when washing.

Or get a chelating/swimmer's shampoo, there are some by Ion, Pantene Damage Detox line, L'Anza, Kenra, Joico, Redken...
I think what might help is asking people locally what they do about hard water and hair. The thing is, shampoo formulations sold locally should take water composition into account, so I would ask locally, if possible.

lapushka
September 12th, 2015, 06:08 AM
For some reason, WEN worked well for me. My hair feels really nice, and what little curlies I have at pixie length are actually quite nicely shaped. If anything, I think I could get away with leaving it on a little less time for less cleaning power.

I am so deeply confused by this, but whatever! Apparently my hair is insane and likes or doesn't like things based on whatever is the opposite of my expectations.

I know WEN is exceptionally expensive, so I don't plan to buy any more once I've used this up. Does anyone have good CO suggestions available in the UK? I tried the much-loved VO5 Naturals in the US, in two different states (thus different water), and I didn't like it. It didn't rinse well and pulled out my curl. My hair is generally very grabby and I have a tough time getting most conditioners out of it.

Altneratively, is there any hope for a DIY solution? I'm guessing not, but maybe someone has some kind of suggestion I haven't thought of yet.

I just want a routine that will work and to stop having to mess with stuff! Thanks, guys.

Try a sulfate free cleanser with only Cocomidopropyl Betaine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocamidopropyl_betaine as that might be cleansing enough for hard water and not give you issues.

WEN is comparable to the CO cleanser by Herbal Essences. I don't know if you have access to that in the UK, though.

chen bao jun
September 12th, 2015, 07:25 AM
Seconding the miracle water. And Lapushka's advice is also great. Lapushka, you should name the other cleanser anyway as people in the US who lurk may well look at this post now or later.

lapushka
September 12th, 2015, 08:31 AM
Seconding the miracle water. And Lapushka's advice is also great. Lapushka, you should name the other cleanser anyway as people in the US who lurk may well look at this post now or later.

This is the CO-wash by HE
http://www.makeupalley.com/product/showreview.asp/ItemId=168278/Herbal-Essences-Naked-Cleansing-Conditioner/Clairol/Hair

Deborah
September 12th, 2015, 09:52 AM
I know how you feel. Before LHC existed I moved from a town with reasonably soft water to one with very hard water. I could not figure out at first why my shampoo, conditioner and everything I washed our clothing with did not work any more. It was a pain! I just experimented around with different brands until I found things that worked reasonably well.

Eventually I learned about the water hardness and compensated for that. Through LHC I tried lots of different things, some just for fun, some to deal with the hard water. I now wash my hair with Indian herbs, ending with a final rinse of citric acid powder dissolved in 40 ounces of cold water, and my hair does very well on this. Then again, I have straight hair, so maybe you need something different.

Keep trying! You will find what you need and like. Water hardness really does make a big difference in hair care (laundry too!)

lilin
September 13th, 2015, 12:53 AM
Try a sulfate free cleanser with only Cocomidopropyl Betaine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocamidopropyl_betaine as that might be cleansing enough for hard water and not give you issues.

WEN is comparable to the CO cleanser by Herbal Essences. I don't know if you have access to that in the UK, though.

Thanks! Yeah, I've seen Herbal Essences around. I'll take a look. :)

lilin
September 13th, 2015, 12:56 AM
Seconding the miracle water. And Lapushka's advice is also great. Lapushka, you should name the other cleanser anyway as people in the US who lurk may well look at this post now or later.

Thank you, I'll give that a try. :) I was also suggested to add a touch of vinegar to my wash when I went to the UK meet. Think that would help too?