Water hardness

[Ondina]

After a quick search I didn't manage find any thread exclusively on water hardness, so I thought I'd start one. I started wondering about this precisely today, after washing my hair with the usual things, but at my mom's place in my hometown instead of where I normally live. Now my hair is at the softest it's been for months and the only explanation I could find after a little research is that it must be softer water. Do you know how hard water is in your area and how it affects your hair? Moreover, are there any ways to counter the effects of hard water on hair?

[lapushka]

I think commercial products often are designed to go with the kind of water you have. I have very hard water and never had any issues with my hair not feeling soft or the like. :shrug:

[Wusel]

I've experienced the same here in Germany. My hair was a mess when I washed it up in the Ruhr region (Recklinghausen / Essen /Dortmund / Bochum). It was tagled, dry, crunchy... HORRIBLE! Because they have very hard water there. It was such a HUGE difference.
Here in Bremen we have Germany's softest water and my hair is soft and sleek. :)

[lapushka]

I must be an exception to the rule. :lol:

Vinegar or lemon rinses can help with the hard water issue.

[Anje]

It seems to me that people who come from hard water tend to not have much problem with it. I've lived in some very hard water places, sometimes with a softener and sometimes without. The only difference I've noticed is how fast scum builds up in the shower and dishwasher. My hair seems fine with it, though I need pretty concentrated vinegar rinses if I use shampoo bars.

[Dommydomdom]

Did a lot of research on hard water for a client I used to write for...the main issue with hard water and any type of detergent or washing liquid is that it prevents it from creating suds and from washing properly. Of course, there is also the chance of buildup (either of the minerals from the water or of the products you use on your hair and dust from the air not washing off properly). To combat hard water you can use dilute acid rinses (any type of vinegar, citrus juice, or citric acid) or you can buy a water softener for your whole home or just a shower head with a built-in filter.

However, your problem might not be that the water is hard. It could also be that there is a lot of chlorine in your water. We have this problem where I come from because our water is, in fact, very soft and soft water damages pipes and gutters. So the municipality uses chemicals (including chlorine) to treat our water and "harden" it up. This results in people suffering from brittle and dry hair, nails, and skin and asthma and other sensitivities.

If you want to find out about the quality of your water, you can call a local plumber (they should be able to tell you and suggest possible solutions) or look online for your city's water report (they should publish one every year or so).

[yogagirl]

I didn't notice the ill effects of hard water until I traveled to places with soft water! Maybe because I have coarse hair with slightly kinky structure? The residual hard water deposits from washing really make my hair dry and frizzy. I still live with hard water, so I now use filtered water for the last rinse and it makes a huge difference. I have to clarify/chelate much less frequently (every few months instead of monthly). Once in a while I will forget to take the filtered water bottle in the shower with me, so I can't do my filtered water rinse and I can definitely see the difference in my hair. Dry feeling and frizz galore, necessitating a leave-in to feel decent.

OP, give filtered water rinse a try if you are up for it! Also try to find a clarifying AND cheating shampoo to remove and build up you currently have.

[Dommydomdom]

Oh! Just another thought...the change in your hair quality could also be from a lot of other things, not just the products or water you use. It could also be the air quality (pollution/air conditioners/heaters/etc.), the food you are eating and drinking, changes in your hormones or stress levels, a change in how much water you drink, touching/brushing your hair more or less, temperature, etc.

[butter52]

Yup I forget how different my hair looks when I go back to my parents house where the water is much softer. Hair is much softer, less frizzy and less "sticky"

[yogagirl]

Yup I forget how different my hair looks when I go back to my parents house where the water is much softer. Hair is much softer, less frizzy and less "sticky"
oh yeah, I've noticed that too! More tangles after washing with hard water and my hair is generally pretty tangle resistant.

[Petulia]

Has anyone tried washing with mineral/bottled water before? I've heard of people doing this before to avoid the effects of hard tap water but I'm not sure whether it's worth spending money on bottled water just for my hair. :confused:

[lapushka]

Has anyone tried washing with mineral/bottled water before? I've heard of people doing this before to avoid the effects of hard tap water but I'm not sure whether it's worth spending money on bottled water just for my hair. :confused:

Yep, distilled water here. Didn't notice anything different (plus it was cold brrrrr), so I just went back to my hard water. :)

[Dommydomdom]

Has anyone tried washing with mineral/bottled water before? I've heard of people doing this before to avoid the effects of hard tap water but I'm not sure whether it's worth spending money on bottled water just for my hair. :confused:

You can use distilled water (make your own by boiling water and leaving it overnight to dissipate the minerals and cool down, collect rain water and let it settle overnight, or buy it super cheap by the gallon at a mechanic or garage)

[Deborah]

The water where I now live is very hard. When we first moved here I did not know what the issue was, but noticed that my shampoos, conditioners and soaps all seemed to stop working. I learned to compensate for the change, after researching and finding that the water is so hard. The thing that has helped the most with my hair is to end with a final rinse using a 40 ounce bottle of very cold water into which I have premixed at least a teaspoon of citric acid powder. I don't rinse this out. This helps a lot.

[meteor]

Yes, water mineral composition and pH are important. AFAIK, manufacturers sometimes adjust their products for that, depending on the markets where they are selling them.

I think it's hard to notice a difference if one doesn't travel, but if you travel a lot with your products, you will often see quite a difference (I always do :) ).

Hard water build up can make hair feel more dry than normal or more rigid/coarse to touch. It may cause hair to look more dull and frizzy.
Chlorine can be pretty drying, and its concentrations in some water areas are higher. The highest concentrations tend to be in chlorinated pools, which is why chelating/swimmers' shampoos/packs, rinsing and conditioning after-pool, and oiling/conditioning pre-pool are good practice for swimmers.
Copper can leave more brassy greyish-greenish tones, iron can leave more brassy tones - this is an issue for light-colored hair, especially after long-term exposure without chelating.

Hair tends to have negative charge along cuticle edges and in damaged areas (the more damaged, the more pronounced this effect is). Because positive and negative charges attract - both cationic conditioners AND mineral cations from hard water can bind to hair. So damaged hair (e.g. bleached, relaxed, etc) not only absorbs more conditioners, it also absorbs more metals from water.

I've read a few studies related to this issue, and the most pertinent ones IMHO are these:

- Preserving fibre health: reducing oxidative stress throughout the life of the hair fibre: (P&G study) http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ics.12285/full
"Exogenous copper is both present inside hair coming from tap water and causes oxidative degradation to proteins."
"It is well known that even very low levels of metals such as copper can accelerate free radical generation due to their catalytic nature. This is supported by the fact that we do see a correlation between self-perception of hair damage and level of copper in hair."
P&G has done some research into the connection between water minerals and oxidative damage, and AFAIK, that was the research background behind their Pantene "Damage Detox" line (particularly focused on removing copper and other mineral deposits (calcium, magnesium, iron) - more critical for chemically treated hair).


- The uptake of water hardness metals by human hair: http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc2011/cc062n04/p00383-p00392.pdf
Summary: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21982353

The most-damaged hair showed the highest mineral uptake, because of reduction in fatty-acid 18-MEA layer (which repels water and cations). But lightly damaged and virgin hair also took up mineral cations.

"Upon treatment with alkaline hydrogen peroxide products, peptide and disulfide bonds inside the hair and 18-methyleicosanoic acid (18-MEA) on the hair’s surface are cleaved. This exposes anionic carboxylate and sulfonate (of cysteic acid) groups, which render the hair an ideal cation exchange resin. It should be noted that the calcium and magnesium levels of the highly damaged hair are comparable to the levels found in the hair of consumers who regularly use oxidative colorant products." (p. 386)

The harder the water, the more minerals bonded with all hair - but in the same pattern - more damaged hair takes up more mineral cations.
The higher the pH of your water, the more minerals will bind to your hair from hard water. In pH 7 ("neutral") water, both bleached and unbleached hair took up lesser amounts of mineral cations than in pH 8 and pH 9 water (see Figure 3 on p. 389 of the study for details). As the pH of water goes up, the amount of minerals that will bind to hair (or penetrate hair) goes up too, but more significantly for already damaged hair.
"A positive relationship between water pH and metal uptake was observed. This can be related to the binding capacity of the hair because as pH increases, more groups become available for metal interaction due to the progressive ionization of carboxyl groups and amino groups participating in electrostatic interactions with carboxyl groups. Similar pH-dependent increases in the uptake of cationic moieties by keratin and other charged macromolecules have been reported. "

From Conclusion:
"Hair that contains more anionic moieties, the result of chemical treatments such as bleaching and chemical relaxing, has a higher cationic binding capacity and is thus more susceptible to water hardness metal uptake than virgin hair. At a certain level, this binding capacity dominates the effect of water hardness levels, such that the hair will attract significant levels of metal from water that has even a low degree of hardness. This suggests that the effects of water hardness are not just confined to consumers that reside in areas of very hard water, but to a much wider population that encompasses residents of lower water hardness areas. Additionally, the pH of the rinse water can also influence uptake." (p. 390)

[yogagirl]

I didn't notice the ill effects of hard water until I traveled to places with soft water! Maybe because I have coarse hair with slightly kinky structure? The residual hard water deposits from washing really make my hair dry and frizzy. I still live with hard water, so I now use filtered water for the last rinse and it makes a huge difference. I have to clarify/chelate much less frequently (every few months instead of monthly). Once in a while I will forget to take the filtered water bottle in the shower with me, so I can't do my filtered water rinse and I can definitely see the difference in my hair. Dry feeling and frizz galore, necessitating a leave-in to feel decent.

OP, give filtered water rinse a try if you are up for it! Also try to find a clarifying AND cheating shampoo to remove and build up you currently have.


oh yeah, I've noticed that too! More tangles after washing with hard water and my hair is generally pretty tangle resistant.


Has anyone tried washing with mineral/bottled water before? I've heard of people doing this before to avoid the effects of hard tap water but I'm not sure whether it's worth spending money on bottled water just for my hair. :confused:
Petulia, it makes a huge difference for my hair, see my posts above. How dramatic the difference is will depend on quite how hard your water is and you hair type, the products you use, etc. If you want to try it, I strongly suggest you use a chelating shampoo first, so you have a clean slate. Just try for a few washes and see if it makes a difference for you!

Personally I only use the filtered water for the last rinse. Yes, doing all of the wetting and rinsing with filtered water is even better, but too fussy for me!

[Anje]

You can use distilled water (make your own by boiling water and leaving it overnight to dissipate the minerals and cool down, collect rain water and let it settle overnight, or buy it super cheap by the gallon at a mechanic or garage)

Technically, boiling isn't distilling it. (You have to collect only the steam that comes off for that.) But it can get one form of hardness (they call it "temporary hardness" among brewers, which is where I've learned most of what I know about water chemistry). That's the hardness from Ca(HCO3)2, and it forms a white precipitate (CaCO3) that's less soluble. If your water is hard from CaSO4, it will remain hard after boiling.

[meteor]

^ Yes. :agree:

Of course, one could make distilled water by boiling water and then collecting condensed steam (say, from the lid on top), but that would be PITA to do for huge amounts of water, of course.

Distilled water is usually sold at very affordable prices at gas stations, since it's used for cars.

[Qz]

We have a hard water well here and before we started softening the water there was a whitish haze on all of the metallic items the water normally touched, so my husband put in a water softener. The big difference for me having the softer water wasn't in how my hair feels, oddly enough it was in rinsing out soap. As it turns out, softened water makes everything feel slippery and it's difficult to tell when the soap is actually rinsed out!

[Garnetgem]

I used to live in a hard water area then once i moved without knowing the water was softer in my new home,i washed my hair and noticed how soft it was from the wash i gave it the week before in my old home despite using same products shampoos/conditioners and so on,so when i moved again later to a hard water area i bought a special filter for my shower it had the same affect it helped to soften the water so i always do that now and they are not at all expensive either...

[Anje]

We have a hard water well here and before we started softening the water there was a whitish haze on all of the metallic items the water normally touched, so my husband put in a water softener. The big difference for me having the softer water wasn't in how my hair feels, oddly enough it was in rinsing out soap. As it turns out, softened water makes everything feel slippery and it's difficult to tell when the soap is actually rinsed out!
Try turning down the softening setting a bit. It's possible to over-soften and get slimy-feeling water. :)

[Qz]

Try turning down the softening setting a bit. It's possible to over-soften and get slimy-feeling water. :)

I'll try that, thanks!

[Wusel]

Try turning down the softening setting a bit. It's possible to over-soften and get slimy-feeling water. :)

Our water here is a bit slimy... It's so soft, it's really difficult to feel the leather of the shampoo and feel if it's rinsed out. In the Ruhr area it was very easy because instantly after the first rinse the hair felt... don't know how to describe it... hard (?)... like you rinsed hay...

[Platzhalter]

I've experienced the same here in Germany. My hair was a mess when I washed it up in the Ruhr region (Recklinghausen / Essen /Dortmund / Bochum). It was tagled, dry, crunchy... HORRIBLE! Because they have very hard water there. It was such a HUGE difference.
Here in Bremen we have Germany's softest water and my hair is soft and sleek. :)

Funny... because that's my former home region which gave me no issues so far (still love washing my hair there when visiting any relatives because it's less effort), but the area where I am now (Munich and surroundings) is horrible regarding hardness. Though it's probably just a case of how "even worse" makes something bad look acceptable in comparison ;)

[Frankenstein]

Our water comes from a well but my dad says it isn't "hard". Does this sound correct or is he wrong?

[Anje]

Our water comes from a well but my dad says it isn't "hard". Does this sound correct or is he wrong?

It completely depends on your location and the bedrock near your well. Some well water is very hard, some is soft, some is sulfury and smells like eggs. There's no automatic answer.

[Dommydomdom]

Technically, boiling isn't distilling it. (You have to collect only the steam that comes off for that.) But it can get one form of hardness (they call it "temporary hardness" among brewers, which is where I've learned most of what I know about water chemistry). That's the hardness from CaHCO3, and it forms a white precipitate. If your water is hard from CaSO4, it will remain hard after boiling.

Actually had this discussion with my sister and mom the other day (regarding distilling water) - I don't see how mineral deposits in water will simply "disappear" from boiling it, but they both insisted (with the help of a little Google search) that boiling is the way to distill water :shrug: will be passing on your info next time the topic comes up :D

[lithostoic]

My city's water is categorized as "very hard". But we were the first city in the U.S. to purify our water through reverse osmosis, which is pretty cool c:

[Ligeia Noire]

Water here is very hard too and I am going to try and rinse my hair with white vinegar and boiled water to see if it helps until I have money to buy a shower head filter

[Hairkay]

Actually had this discussion with my sister and mom the other day (regarding distilling water) - I don't see how mineral deposits in water will simply "disappear" from boiling it, but they both insisted (with the help of a little Google search) that boiling is the way to distill water :shrug: will be passing on your info next time the topic comes up :D

There are some kettles that have filters to deal with hard water.

[SparrowWings]

I get that everything is YMMV, but just in case there's some starting estimate, I'm asking anyhow!

From lots of background reading lately, it sounds like vinegars and citric acid both can chelate, but it sounds like they target different minerals and different stages -- vinegar for freshly-deposited and/or to prevent deposits, citric acid to remove older deposits. (I don't remember which minerals were supposedly targetted by each one.)

That in mind, I tried an ACV rinse for the past two showers, and saw a color change of my length the first time but not much else, and nothing the second. I still have a bit of the solution left, so I'll use that up tonight and see what happens this time.

I'm considering trying a citric acid rinse for the next batch of experiments, and it sounds like a miniscule amount of dissolved citric acid is enough to accomplish the stated goal. How fast is a citric acid rinse supposed to chelate, however? As in, should full chelation happen after a single rinse, or does it take a few rinses? I'm just trying to figure out how much change I might expect to see to help decide if it did anything useful or not, after having never chelated (knowingly, at least, aside from the above-mentioned ACV rinses) in my life, with hard (I don't think it's super hard, but definitely not soft) water the entire time.

[missrandie]

Our water comes from a well but my dad says it isn't "hard". Does this sound correct or is he wrong?

It depends. Our well water back home isn't hard at all. Heck I'm not even sure why we have a water softener there.

They are on the edge of the Ogallala Aquifer.

A few miles down the road, the water is hard and nasty and sulfurous.

[Dommydomdom]

This is a recipe for Melika's Miracle Water from the WO page - it might help and do a little more in one wash than just plain citric acid:


Miracle Water is 1/4 Citric Acid and 1/32 Ascorbic Acid powders dissolved in 1 gallon of water to combat hard water. I haven't had to play with the amounts, though some people do depending on the hardness of the water. I use it as a rinse after washing with tap water, or anything else.

[Dommydomdom]

There are some kettles that have filters to deal with hard water.

That is awesome!! I wonder if you have to clean it out and if the maintenance is more than with a normal kettle

[Sarahm]

I've noticed that too. And my dad's house is only a thrity minute drive from where I live..

[meteor]

I get that everything is YMMV, but just in case there's some starting estimate, I'm asking anyhow!

From lots of background reading lately, it sounds like vinegars and citric acid both can chelate, but it sounds like they target different minerals and different stages -- vinegar for freshly-deposited and/or to prevent deposits, citric acid to remove older deposits. (I don't remember which minerals were supposedly targetted by each one.)

That in mind, I tried an ACV rinse for the past two showers, and saw a color change of my length the first time but not much else, and nothing the second. I still have a bit of the solution left, so I'll use that up tonight and see what happens this time.

I'm considering trying a citric acid rinse for the next batch of experiments, and it sounds like a miniscule amount of dissolved citric acid is enough to accomplish the stated goal. How fast is a citric acid rinse supposed to chelate, however? As in, should full chelation happen after a single rinse, or does it take a few rinses? I'm just trying to figure out how much change I might expect to see to help decide if it did anything useful or not, after having never chelated (knowingly, at least, aside from the above-mentioned ACV rinses) in my life, with hard (I don't think it's super hard, but definitely not soft) water the entire time.

Great questions! I don't know enough about this, and hopefully others will jump in on this question, too, but yes, my understanding is the same: that citric acid in enough concentration can chelate, but vinegars can only help reduce mineral uptake as it's happening, but not really remove accumulated mineral build-up.

I did notice ACV giving my color a slight warm reddish tint temporarily, and I've read other people reporting this, too (especially on lighter hair), which is why it's often recommended to stick to simple white vinegar, if you don't want any color change. Lemon juice can lighten hair, so that's also something to be aware of (some blondes like it, darker haired folks might want to avoid it, if they worry about brassiness...)
White vinegar (pH ~ 2.4) is more acidic than ACV (though it depends on specific product), and lemon juice is significantly more acidic (pH ~2) than ACV (pH 2.8 - 3 but may be higher). If in doubt, it's always safer to use pH test strips on concoctions and rinses, because both high acidity and high alkalinity are not great for hair and scalp. :flower:



As for the overall question about dealing with water hardness, honestly, I think using a chelating/swimmers shampoo once in a blue moon (when the build-up is present judging by color and/or feel/slip) is a much easier and cheaper alternative to hauling distilled water or doing regular rinses that may help only a little bit and at the right pH, especially if one needs to wash hair frequently and quickly, IMHO. :flower:

[casiopeia]

I experienced this last year in may when I moved back to my parent's house. My hair was horribly dry and tangled for a few weeks and I tried e everything to combat it (acv and some other stuff) . Nothing worked. Eventually, my hair "adjusted" and it's just like where I used to live before. I don''t know the explanation for this.

[celtic]

how do i know/find out if i have hard water?

[Tosca]

Having white residue on your shower door (limescale) is often a telltale sign.

[Hairkay]

how do i know/find out if i have hard water?

There's also finding white spots on glassware after you've had your dishes washed and dried.

[littlestarface]

how do i know/find out if i have hard water?

You'll always see white stuff built up around your sinks and you'll see rust in your shower and toilet too.

[Anje]

Thankfully, the iron/rust stains aren't a given. We didn't have them in Lafayette, despite the super-hard water; I assume it depends on the water composition and maybe on the pipes. We do tend to get blue copper stains, though.

With hard water, if you happen to splash a bit from the kitchen sink onto a window, you'll see spots there when it dries. If you wash a dark car in the driveway, you'll see spots when it dries if you don't use a rinse aid or dry it by hand. You'll get soap scum building up if you use bar soap (but not body wash, generally).

[Decoy24601]

Thankfully, the iron/rust stains aren't a given. We didn't have them in Lafayette, despite the super-hard water; I assume it depends on the water composition and maybe on the pipes. We do tend to get blue copper stains, though.

With hard water, if you happen to splash a bit from the kitchen sink onto a window, you'll see spots there when it dries. If you wash a dark car in the driveway, you'll see spots when it dries if you don't use a rinse aid or dry it by hand. You'll get soap scum building up if you use bar soap (but not body wash, generally).

So that's why the area directly under the faucet in my tub/shower is blue...

[Kimberly]

I don't like how my hair looks washed in soft water. It becomes lank and looks thinner. The first time I washed my hair in hard water, on a vacation, was a revelation. Now I am fortunate to live in an area where there are caves with springs running from them (can see one out the window from here) and the water is so hard that my tea kettle builds a thick crust (which I remove with an overnight ACV soak).

I use ACV in my rinse (which I don't leave in), but my goal isn't to replicate soft-water washing results. It's just to keep the buildup to a manageable level. A little limestone in the hair is great for adding thickness and manageability (for me -- maybe it's just my hair type, or maybe it's my taste in hair). But if I don't ACV-rinse some of it out, it's as if I went crazy with dry shampoo. In fact, if I don't use ACV for a couple weeks, I can then stretch washes for a couple of weeks, with the mineral buildup in my hair soaking up all the oil. Too bad my scalp doesn't like it! Once I figured this out, I had to redo all of my oiling experiments, finding that my hair actually doesn't soak up much of treatments -- it's the mineral buildup that does it, and I actually seem to have non-porous hair when isn't damaged.

ACV will leave a reddish stain, but I find it washes out of my hair readily in a shampoo or two, and these days it only shows up on the ends of my hair where there is still always some damage. My silvers don't pick up the red, for whatever reason, and I had some reddish highlights I liked to start with, so I consider it a bonus.

Not hair related, but I prefer drinking water with tasty minerals in it. And I think if I moved to a soft-water area again, I would not only be drinking Pellegrino, but also might try it as a hair rinse, in hopes of getting some of the buildup everyone else seems to want to avoid. I think I am very lucky to like things that most people don't like that I happen to have.

[Tosca]

Just be careful with drinking hard water, and keep an eye on your kidneys. Drinking hard water can be a contributing factor to getting kidney stones.

[Pamberpestana]

My water I think is rather soft but is loaded with chlorine. How can I protect my hair? Same things as normal hard water? Rinses?

[Kimberly]

Just be careful with drinking hard water, and keep an eye on your kidneys. Drinking hard water can be a contributing factor to getting kidney stones.

Thanks! I think I will check into this.

[brickworld13]

The type of hard water can make a pretty big difference too. My dad has hard water that is full of iron and lime. I used it for years with no issues. I moved to a different area with a different variety of hard water and my hair freaked out. Finally settled down. Then I moved again and repeat hair freakouts. I try not to bring shampoo with me from place to place as it is reformulated for the water hardness of the area. Conditioner from other areas appears to not be as big of an issue. Even when traveling, I try not to bring hair products with me if I know I can make a trip to the store for the tiny travel bottles while I'm there. The hair products there will work a whole lot better than anything I've brought with me.

[brickworld13]

There's also finding white spots on glassware after you've had your dishes washed and dried.

That could be a sign of a dirty dishwasher if you're using a dishwasher. However, it generally means hard water even with a dirty dishwasher.

[Hairkay]

That could be a sign of a dirty dishwasher if you're using a dishwasher. However, it generally means hard water even with a dirty dishwasher.

I don't own a dishwasher.

[brickworld13]

I don't own a dishwasher.

I have one that is a giant piece of junk. I just wash by hand. It's much less frustration that having to wash everything twice. The joys of renting. Appliances only work half the time. If at all.

[Hairkay]

I have one that is a giant piece of junk. I just wash by hand. It's much less frustration that having to wash everything twice. The joys of renting. Appliances only work half the time. If at all.

I've no more room in the kitchen to add a dishwasher, the kitchen is tiny. I have a good size sitting room and dining room but I guess when they fit the kitchen it was an after thought.

[Frankenstein]

Apparently the water in my area is hard but my hair seems just fine with it. It's when I wash my hair in soft water (on vacation and such) that my hair looks terrible. :confused:

[rmani]

I live in a heavily chlorinated area. I drink tap water without issues but my skin and hair become dry and scaly. I bought a filtered shower head http://www.sephora.com/source-showerhead-filter-P399685?skuId=1463330&icid2=products%20grid:p399685

It works well! Low maintenance - change the filter every 6 months and the filter contents can be used in the garden with compost. I've had the filter for 7 years and moved it to 2 houses without issue. The only frustrating part is in Canada we can't get the filters in store so I need to purchase online.

Most home renovation stores carry similar products.

[Creaky_Girl]

We have really hard water where I live - to the point where people moving into the area from softer water places often get psoriasis of the scalp (the GP's all mention it when you move here!). I noticed a huge difference when we had a water softener installed - not only is my skin and scalp much less dry but my hair got softer. I definitely use less shampoo and soap products now - perhaps that's part of it?

If I go somewhere where the water is really soft, I turn into an enormous ball of fluff if I don't use extra conditioner :) I moved from a hard water area to a super hard area so I think it's the only thing my body knows how to handle!

[calmyogi]

I must be an exception to the rule. :lol:

Vinegar or lemon rinses can help with the hard water issue.

Lapushka I'm pretty sure it's because you use a clarifying shampoo when you wash your hair.

[Mya]

I noticed a huge difference when we had a water softener installed - not only is my skin and scalp much less dry but my hair got softer. I definitely use less shampoo and soap products now - perhaps that's part of it?

If I go somewhere where the water is really soft, I turn into an enormous ball of fluff

Same here! I definitely cannot relate to those whose hair gets limp and flat in soft water. Mine gets effortlessly voluminous, which is a blessing for a curly/wurly like me. It also gets much smoother and less tangly (but it's not very tangly to start with) and seems to be a lot less dependent on conditioning products.

I live in a hard water area too. I feel hard water makes my hair grabbier and weighs it down. For a couple of months I've been doing a final rinse with demineralized water (yes, the one for steam irons) and it seems to work, although it's not the same as washing in a soft water area (with a different climate too). It's cheap and I think it's more practical and effective than lemon or ACV. You might want to try! :flower:

[Floh]

The water here is very very hard and so I have to use a bottle of Auqa.dest. as a rinse. If I am a way and there the water is soft, I only doing the procedure when chlorine is added.
I really don't like chlorine-water.

[HairPlease]

I live most of the time in a hard water area. My hair, amazingly, behaves 10x better there than it does where the water is soft. With soft water, my hair gets frizzy, straw like, and tangly. Funny.

[BlueSky]

Which is exactly at me the same. With softly water it looks like cotton candy. :-)

[Floh]

I live most of the time in a hard water area. My hair, amazingly, behaves 10x better there than it does where the water is soft. With soft water, my hair gets frizzy, straw like, and tangly. Funny.

It may also can has to do with our different hair texture. I am not sure but it really could.
What do you think?

[Wildcat Diva]

I didn't read all the pages.

It's a bit complicated this issue, involves the ph of the water too!

Anyone link this?
http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2016/03/hard-water-and-your-hair.html?m=1

[Floh]

Great link :D thank you