sticky / waxy hair after washing

[pamela123]

Hello! I need some help and I hope I'm posting in the right place.
I moved from a place with soft water to a place with hard water about a week ago. When I washed my hair in my old place after straightening it was beautiful, shiny and clean. After i washed it my hair at my new place and it was drying it I was unable to run my fingers through it (yeah i know that its difficult to do it with wet hair but it was partially dry at this point and usually i can run my fingers through it no problem) I could also feel the stickiness on my fingers as if there was still remnants of shampoo / conditioner on my hair that did not wash out. I read about hard water on the internet and I know it can cause this. Some people suggested using dish soap but I'm not sure about that... Just wondering if anyone has experienced something like this? When I wash my hair and have to style it literally makes me cry because it is so hard to seperate or brush or even straighten... After I straighten my hair it feels/looks greasy and still VERY sticky/waxy. I am desperate for a solution because living like this is going to be hell.

[manticore]

I live in a place with hard water. I’ve got waist+ hair, coarse, normal thickness.

here’s my recommendation:
1. If it’s been a while since you’ve clarified/cheleated, try that, and then condition heavily. It could be mineral buildup in your hair causing it to feel tacky.
2. End your wash with an acidic rinse. I like to use a little bit of vinegar diluted in a bunch of water. Diluted Apple Cider Vinegar is also popular for this. Recently I also tried fermented rice water, to good effect. Soak the acidic rinse throughout your hair and scalp. Some people rinse this out with water afterwards, but I just squeeze it out.

edit: I believe some folks also rinse out with distilled water, which could be a way for you to simulate a softer water environment?

hopefully that helps?

[MusicalSpoons]

If you use the search function on this site and type in 'hard water' you'll find lots and lots of info :) probably the best way to work out where to start is to think about which technique out of all the masses of info would be easiest/most practical for you to try. Well, except dish soap - don't use it, it's far too alkaline for hair :wink:

[Deborah]

I have extremely hard water where I live. After I have washed and fully rinsed my hair I pour a large bottle of cold water into which I have added a couple of teaspoons of citric acid powder. I shake the heck out of it to make sure the powder is fully dissolved, then dump all of it over my wet hair. I DON'T RINSE IT OUT. This leaves my hair very nice.

[lapushka]

I have had hard water all my life - no problem.

Did you bring your products from your old place to the new place? Maybe the products in the new place account for the fact that there is hard water in that area (with ingredients). Maybe go buy something locally?

What's your overall routine like?

[Ligeia Noire]

You need a good chelate shampoo to get your hair rid of the mineral build up. Acidic rinses do not help when there is too much build up. They help keeping your hair from accumulating as much minerals for longer periods of time if you use distilled water as your final rinse but i do still need to chelate every couple of months. Shower filters will help with the chlorine too, which helps a bunch, but in a perfect world, a water softner is the only thing that solves the issue. Chelating is definetely the cheapest solution.

[EdG]

I could also feel the stickiness on my fingers as if there was still remnants of shampoo / conditioner on my hair that did not wash out.Stickiness/waxiness on the fingers is what old accumulated sebum feels like. The change in water may be causing it to come out.

If this is the case, you need to remove the accumulated sebum mechanically by combing. Clean your comb frequently. The waxy parts of sebum are too heavy for shampoo alone to remove.
Ed

[pamela123]

I live in a place with hard water. I’ve got waist+ hair, coarse, normal thickness.

here’s my recommendation:
1. If it’s been a while since you’ve clarified/cheleated, try that, and then condition heavily. It could be mineral buildup in your hair causing it to feel tacky.
2. End your wash with an acidic rinse. I like to use a little bit of vinegar diluted in a bunch of water. Diluted Apple Cider Vinegar is also popular for this. Recently I also tried fermented rice water, to good effect. Soak the acidic rinse throughout your hair and scalp. Some people rinse this out with water afterwards, but I just squeeze it out.

edit: I believe some folks also rinse out with distilled water, which could be a way for you to simulate a softer water environment?

hopefully that helps?
thank you will try this out, do you do the acidic rinse every time you wash or just when using the clarifying shampoo?




I have had hard water all my life - no problem.

Did you bring your products from your old place to the new place? Maybe the products in the new place account for the fact that there is hard water in that area (with ingredients). Maybe go buy something locally?

What's your overall routine like?
I bought new products when I got here. I use tresemme moisture rich shampoo & conditioner. Few times a week I use either the john freida frizz ease serum or moroccan oil but stopped to see if it made a difference (it doesn't) I let my hair air dry and then straighten it (i use a tresemme heat protect spray). I realise I don't use high quality shampoo but it was never a problem and i am a student so can't afford to splurge on haircare but i bought the joico k-pak clarifying shampoo which I will use monthly and milk_shake argan shampoo which is sulphate and sodium chloride free so hopefully they help.


Thank you everyone else will try all the suggestions

[GrowingGlory]

Temperature and humidity may create a sticky and waxy feel. Bar soap usually seems to rinse off of my skin easily, but on very hot and humid days there seems to be a sticky film on my skin later. The same thing happened with hair care products in my hair. It might go away when temperatures fall and humidity decreases. It might help to use "miracle water" to wash your hair.

[lapushka]

I bought new products when I got here. I use tresemme moisture rich shampoo & conditioner. Few times a week I use either the john freida frizz ease serum or moroccan oil but stopped to see if it made a difference (it doesn't) I let my hair air dry and then straighten it (i use a tresemme heat protect spray). I realise I don't use high quality shampoo but it was never a problem and i am a student so can't afford to splurge on haircare but i bought the joico k-pak clarifying shampoo which I will use monthly and milk_shake argan shampoo which is sulphate and sodium chloride free so hopefully they help.


Thank you everyone else will try all the suggestions

Higher price doesn't always equal better quality. ;) Just FYI.

I use the cheapest stuff I can find where I live, which is Pantene and Herbal Essences for shampoo. And I love them because they are about the harshest detergents on the market. That I have found. I also use Head & Shoulders sometimes, but I have a scalp condition and I have medicated shampoo for that (Nizoral 2%) as well, should the need arise.

Clarifying right now with the hard water is a great idea!

Good luck to you.
Oh, and keep us posted.

We might think of other things along the way. :)

[pamela123]

Ah, okay thanks for the info lapushka!! :)
I had to buy the clarifying shampo online so it will hopefully come soon!
Update on the hair: shampooed and conditioned as normal then I made a acv rinse (2tablespoons acv + 500ml warm water) and dunked the ends first then poured the rest over my hair. my hair is definitely less sticky and way more easy to brush out but there is also some stickiness which I think i should try to distribute the rinse more evenly. One problem I have with this is my hair feels way more dry and frizzy than usual..im thinking maybe I should condition my hair after the acv rinse but then i think it defies the whole purpose of the rinse as the conditioner might not wash off :(

[MusicalSpoons]

Depending on the chemistry of your water, some people find citric acid more effective than ACV. That said, you should probably persevere for at least couple of weeks to give it a proper go first (unless it's doing any obvious harm, which it doesn't sound like it is so far) before trying anything else :)

[Obsidian]

You might try mixing 50/50 water/vinegar and applying that for 15 min before washing. It will do a lot more to break up the build up then a quick rinse will.
Its what I used to do before I got chelating shampoo.

[pamela123]

You might try mixing 50/50 water/vinegar and applying that for 15 min before washing. It will do a lot more to break up the build up then a quick rinse will.
Its what I used to do before I got chelating shampoo.

okay will try this next time thank you
will also try citric acid if it doesnt work ty musicalspoons

[spidermom]

We recently moved from soft water to hard water. I find that I have to clarify-shampoo more often. After washing/rinsing, I use 1 tbsp of white vinegar in a container that holds about 2 cups of water. I lower as much of my length as I can get into the cup and hold it there for about a minute. Then I slowly pour the rest over my scalp in a bent-forward position, give myself a scalp massage for a couple of minutes, then rinse. I condition and rinse again after that because the vinegar scent lingers in my hair otherwise. I do a deep treatment once per week. So far, it's working.

[pamela123]

so i tried washing with clarifying shampoo it helped a little but the back of my hair still has a sticky feel which might be due to the condtioner..im going to try using shampoo only and see if that does anything..i cried multiple times because i feel like nothing will make my hair how it used to be apart from getting soft water which is not an option at the moment

[MusicalSpoons]

How far up are you using conditioner? And does it have silicones? Some people with hard water find they really need silicones, but others don't. (Personally I have very hard water and my hair likes water-soluble silicones in moderation but not any others - kind of a compromise!).

Edit: don't despair, you'll get there :flower: it will take patience and it sounds like it will be difficult while you work out what's best for you and your hair, but it is possible to have happy hair with hard water :)

[Also if you're still straightening your hair, that means the damage allows your hair to bond with more minerals in the water so it will be more difficult to work through than with virgin hair that's not particularly damaged. Source: https://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2016/03/hard-water-and-your-hair.html BUT you will find a routine that works, in time.]

[pamela123]

How far up are you using conditioner? And does it have silicones? Some people with hard water find they really need silicones, but others don't. (Personally I have very hard water and my hair likes water-soluble silicones in moderation but not any others - kind of a compromise!).

Edit: don't despair, you'll get there :flower: it will take patience and it sounds like it will be difficult while you work out what's best for you and your hair, but it is possible to have happy hair with hard water :)

[Also if you're still straightening your hair, that means the damage allows your hair to bond with more minerals in the water so it will be more difficult to work through than with virgin hair that's not particularly damaged. Source: https://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2016/03/hard-water-and-your-hair.html BUT you will find a routine that works, in time.]

I put it on my ends but then i brush the ends out and i actually kinda end up brushing all of my hair so i guess all of it. This has been working really well for me back home and i'm not sure if it's the issue because the top 1/3 of my hair feels really smooth and nice just just middle that still feels sticky and only about 3 or 4 inches of it from the head (not the ends) if that makes sense.
Thank you for linking the post i've been reading through it and its helping me understand the situation a little more and i found some other products that i will probably eventually try out that people recommended in the comments.
Do you use any hair treatments? I've noticed my hair is more dry and prone to breakage with hard water and also after the acv rinse so I was thinking of doing a coconut oil treatment on it but not sure how well that would work with the current situation

[pamela123]

Forgot to add I checked the ingredients and the conditioner does not contain silicones so i will try one that does

[MusicalSpoons]

Hmm, I wonder whether it's to do with product distribution then. Either not enough shampoo there (it can be hard to get all in that area of hair) or the water's not penetrating enough to rinse shampoo/conditioner off properly? If so, there are a few potential solutions (and/or, you probably wouldn't need to do all of them!):
- dilute shampoo with a little water in a nozzle bottle to apply it directly to the scalp so it's definitely penetrated there;
- use a shampoo brush to help distribute shampoo and thoroughly work it through the hair and on the scalp; or
- tilt your head slightly, part the hair in the problem area and use a blob directly there.
As for rinsing, it would be a case of parting the hair around that area to make sure the water gets all the way through, or maybe even using a shampoo brush while rinsing to make sure.

I do a full wash weekly and use the CWC method, though my first C I leave on for an hour or more before getting in the shower so it's kind of a deep treatment. Also I do a bit of an oil rinse on my lengths between shampoo and the 2nd conditioner - the 2nd C also sits on my hair for a few minutes while I wash my body. The oil I find helps keep my lengths feeling moisturised enough to go a week between washing (though I do have to wash my just scalp once or twice in between full washes to keep it happy, keeping the lengths dry). I have always had very hard water though, so in finding what worked best I was automatically 'compensating' for that - it's a very different thing if you're not used to it and kind of have to start again.

[Obsidian]

Did you let the joico sit on your hair for any length of time or just wash regular?
When chelating, it needs to sit for 10-15 minutes to really break up the mineral deposits. Then you need to gently rub the problem areas to further break it up before rinsing.

[NicoleJean]

Sounds like product build up. I agree with others about clarifying and less is more with the leave in hair products. I don’t
Like leave in products so much because they tend to build up and leave my hair sticky which causes more knots and tangles which than causes more hair to be ripped out when I comb or brush.

[01]

You need a good chelate shampoo to get your hair rid of the mineral build up. Acidic rinses do not help when there is too much build up. They help keeping your hair from accumulating as much minerals for longer periods of time if you use distilled water as your final rinse but i do still need to chelate every couple of months. Shower filters will help with the chlorine too, which helps a bunch, but in a perfect world, a water softner is the only thing that solves the issue. Chelating is definetely the cheapest solution.

Yup, acidic rinses do nothing for me. I don't know, I feel like I'd have to clarify during each wash but I can't do that, it'd kill my hair... Ahhh -___-

[pamela123]

Okay so I took your guys' advice and let the clarifying shampoo sit in my hair for ~10 minutes afterwards I put conditioner ONLY on the bottom of my hair and did not comb my hair any higher than that with the conditioner in and made sure to rinse everything off really thoroughly and it worked!!! My hair is no longer weird and sticky but my scalp is pretty itchy and I seem to have some dandruff or maybe it's just left over product i'm not sure. I'm going to avoid using heat for a while and see how it goes. Thank you so much everyone who helped. Before I knew what was happening I felt so clueless, sad and helpless because I really love my hair so thank you guys you really saved my life.


Yup, acidic rinses do nothing for me. I don't know, I feel like I'd have to clarify during each wash but I can't do that, it'd kill my hair... Ahhh -___-

The joico k-pak clarifying shampoo says it can be used up to twice a week. I'm guessing it's more gentle than other clarifying shampoos but I don't really know if it's advised to use it that often...probably not! MusicalSpoons linked a blog and the comments seem to have some solutions like shampoos which can be used more often and some treatments https://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2016/03/hard-water-and-your-hair.html hopefully some of this can help :)

[MamaLou]

I'm so happy for you that you found the solution!!! I would recommend to only clarify when your hair needs it (when it becomes sticky/waxy again). I personally get build up more easily when I use a leave in that contains a lot of silicones, but you have a different head of hair than I do so I can't tell you if that is the problem for you.

[renia22]

Yup, acidic rinses do nothing for me. I don't know, I feel like I'd have to clarify during each wash but I can't do that, it'd kill my hair... Ahhh -___-


Is it your water, or possibly from product build up?

The Beauty Brains & Sciencey Hair Blog have some good info on what types of cleansers/ products to use to depending on what type of build up. But one thing I learned, is these days, it really has to do with marketing. Prior to the 90s, you didn’t really have to call a shampoo “clarifying”, because shampoos were meant to clean, and they didn’t add a bunch of conditioning agents to begin with (Neutrogena Anti- Residue was one of the first ones to do it in the late 80s, which was smart marketing with all of the mousses and gels of that decade). I think a some of today’s “clarifying” shampoos are also simply cleansing shampoos without additional conditioning agents. It doesn’t necessarily mean it will be stripping (it really depends on your hair and your needs).

Also, the overall formula of the shampoo matters, but if you find it a little too concentrated, you can dilute it a little and it will make the shampoo gentler simply by doing that. I use ones like Prell, that aren’t marketed as “clarifying”, but serve that purpose because they have a good cleansing formula without the addition of silicones or polyquats (or oils and butters- I hate when stuff like that is in a shampoo :/ ). I use ones like that all the time and personally don’t find them drying. Whatever works for you.