PDA

View Full Version : All Blowdryers Created Equal?



Beatrice
February 8th, 2011, 03:23 PM
I know this is a taboo subject for most, but I also know that there are other LHC members who use blowdryers, so I'm going to go for it!

I've been using one every day because I'm sick, though previously I was air drying at night and just using a diffuser on low heat before bed. When I was home over Christmas, I used the dryer almost every day out of laziness (I was on break, what can I say?)

At my apartment, I have a ceramic dryer, while the one at my parents' house has metal components. To my surprise, the metal one made my hair feel much thicker and dryer. I'm not sure if this is because the air blows harder, or because the metal dryer gets generally hotter (I suspect the latter). When I use my dryer at home, on the other hand, my hair doesn't feel that much different from when I air dry it.

I just thought I'd throw this out there for those who have to use a dryer, either regularly or on occasion. I used to pooh-pooh claims that one dryer could be more or less damaging, but it seems there may be something to the claims. It's just that they don't have anything to do with ions or other pseudo-scientific nonsense. Has anyone else noticed similar differences in their dryers?

(Note: Maybe it goes without saying, but I didn't change any of my products during this time.)

kwaniesiam
February 8th, 2011, 03:25 PM
Hair appliances are definitely NOT all created equal. At work, I had a $150 hair dryer that produced amazing results and never once failed me. My mum uses a $20 dryer from the drug store, she can always tell the difference if I do a blowout for her or if she dries it herself with her dryer.

Same goes with flat irons, curling irons, etc. You get what you pay for, in terms of how well they work, how long they last, and how safe for your hair they are. Granted frequent heat styling is never recommended here, but if you do occasionally heat style it is a good investment to use a quality tool.

Edit: Generally a ceramic tool is best, Sally's has some decent dryers at a more moderate price than what I use in the salon. I'd avoid using anything like Conair or Revlon though.

Malibu Barbie
February 8th, 2011, 03:27 PM
I would like to know this also. I do blowdry my hair also at times. Does anyone know if some are better then others?

lapushka
February 8th, 2011, 04:11 PM
I've used three brands so far: Braun, Babyliss, and Philips. Braun and Philips made me happiest. Babyliss for some reason gets incredibly hot, even the surface. It's not that they're cheap dryers that you expect might overheat. :(

Less powerful, lower wattage, and multiple speed / heat settings are a few things to look out for in a dryer.

born_confused90
February 9th, 2011, 05:12 AM
That's interesting. I've had reallly good results with Babyliss, but when I use a blow dryer with a lower heat setting, my hair has significantly more frizz!

amaiaisabella
February 9th, 2011, 08:05 AM
I have a ceramic dryer from Revlon now that I like, though it is not as good as my professional one I had purchased from my old salon years ago (that I then dropped and broke after 4 years :(). I don't dry fully, though, just to get the worst of the moisture out of the hair, but it always feels silkier than when I use my mom's cheapie dryer.

Anje
February 9th, 2011, 08:48 AM
What is it that makes the difference? Temperature? Dryness of the air coming through?

My major requirement for a hairdryer is that it has cool and warm settings, as well as hot. Since I only occasionally use the thing, mine's about the cheapest I was able to find.

yellowflower
February 9th, 2011, 08:52 AM
I find the bigger the diffuser the better....maybe as its distributing heat over a larger section as apposed to concentrating it in one section

honeyblonde
February 9th, 2011, 10:44 AM
I try not to use a blow dryer, when I do I use an ionic one!!
http://imarketingbiz.net/ionic-hair-dryer-vs-non-ionic-hair-dryer/

Tia2010
February 9th, 2011, 11:07 AM
Hair appliances are definitely NOT all created equal.

Same goes with flat irons, curling irons, etc. You get what you pay for, in terms of how well they work, how long they last, and how safe for your hair they are. Granted frequent heat styling is never recommended here, but if you do occasionally heat style it is a good investment to use a quality tool.

Edit: Generally a ceramic tool is best, Sally's has some decent dryers at a more moderate price than what I use in the salon. I'd avoid using anything like Conair or Revlon though.

I agree ^ While avoiding heat is best if you have to use it ceramic is best IMO.

born_confused90
February 12th, 2011, 09:33 PM
ceramic/ionic products are definitely the way to go! also i quite like that mine has a slim nozzle, though when my sister borrows it she simply takes it off because it's slow in her opinion, i find that it leaves me with significantly less frizz and split ends, probablt because it's smoothing the hair strands down rather than disturbing them. That's also why you should finish using the blow dryer on the cool setting.

I guess my point is, make sure you've perfected your technique as that goes a long way in preventing heat damage too... Use thermal protector sprays/serums and try to make sure that your hair is somewhat dry (50%)before blasting it with the dryer. Also i found that using the round barrel brushes gave me 70% more split ends than usual and i don't know if that's because i bought a rubbish brush or if that's all large barrel brushes in general but sinve discovering that i only use it for the tops of my hair when it really matters that my hair looks good.

Jenn of Pence
February 12th, 2011, 11:05 PM
What is it that makes the difference? Temperature? Dryness of the air coming through?

My major requirement for a hairdryer is that it has cool and warm settings, as well as hot. Since I only occasionally use the thing, mine's about the cheapest I was able to find.

Yeah......this. What exactly makes a difference between a cheap and expensive blow dryer? They both just heat up air and aim it at your skull. :p

I assume we're talking about the properties of the air coming out. First, could be a range of temperatures. I personally, after very much debate on this exact subject, got a cheapo dryer specifically because it was underpowered. Since I never dry completely, just hit it for about two minutes to get the dampness out of my roots, I have no need for a lot of hot air, just the ability to choose "warm" instead of hot. The only thing I think you could do to change the hot air coming out would be to load it with ions or such to help cut the frizz. Do expensive blow dryers have more or better ions?

So, like Anje, for my personal usage of the blow dryer a cheap version actually more completely meets my needs than a pricier one. But for someone else, the properties of a fancier one might actually be beneficial. To be honest, I'm only using mine one or two times a week during the winter; I got in the habit of air drying all summer, which I really like. But I definitely appreciate the help when it's so cold. :)

Beatrice
February 13th, 2011, 07:38 AM
Personally, I've had "good" and "bad" dryers at the cheaper price point. The really gentle one I have now was about $35, as I recall. I think it was marked down about $5. The one at home was $20, so not a huge difference in price. Just my experience!

My dryer does have a "turbo" setting, which I've just discovered. I did use it with my diffuser yesterday, since I'm still getting over the flu. Don't want to sit around with a wet head any more than I absolutely have to. I've noticed that if I use turbo, high heat, and no nozzle attachment, my hair feels more like it did at home.

born_confused, I have the same experience with round brushes. I suspect it's because you're essentially drying a slight curl or wave into your hair. BTW, your profile pic is so cute--I love Tomoyo/Madison!

cubedcoley
February 13th, 2011, 07:07 PM
About 1 year ago, I "invested" in a new ionic blow-dryer, but that was before I stopped blowfrying daily! Now, I use my blow dryer sparingly because of worry about damage. It is nice to know that my ionic blow-dryer is not as bad as I thought! :)

Tia2010
February 13th, 2011, 08:27 PM
Yeah......this. What exactly makes a difference between a cheap and expensive blow dryer? They both just heat up air and aim it at your skull. :p

I assume we're talking about the properties of the air coming out. First, could be a range of temperatures. I personally, after very much debate on this exact subject, got a cheapo dryer specifically because it was underpowered. Since I never dry completely, just hit it for about two minutes to get the dampness out of my roots, I have no need for a lot of hot air, just the ability to choose "warm" instead of hot. The only thing I think you could do to change the hot air coming out would be to load it with ions or such to help cut the frizz. Do expensive blow dryers have more or better ions?

:)

The main difference between high end and low end hair dryers is the heating element. (this is my understanding of it :)) Most high end dryers use ceramic heating elements while lower end ones use metal.

Ceramic produces radiant heat to penetrate the hair and cause less damage while drying while metal heating elements produce uneven heat that cooks the water off the hair.

Also ceramic gives off negative ions which helps give your hair shine , less frizz and reduces static. Metal gives off positive ions which contribute to frizz.


I agree that professional dryers seem to run a lot hotter than normal dryers but you can find ones that have a great constant cool or just slightly warm setting so you don't have to worry about the powerful heat and you still get all the benefits of ceramic. Even though I don't blow dry often I still want to prevent as much damage as I can when/if I do.

Silverhalo
February 13th, 2011, 09:42 PM
Since I started reading this forum during Christmastime, I have cut down on using heat. I still will use my blow dryer some days, but on the no-heat setting. It has ions, too, and I have been turning the ion switch "on" as well.

I also have one of those round brush dryers that blows air from the inside of the round brush. I can use that on no heat, and have been doing so. I sometimes use it just for my bangs. Twice lately, though, I have used it for bangs before combing out my hair, with my hair all messed up and falling forward. I think I was just trying to make sure I got all of the bangs blow dried (since some get plastered back when I comb). With my hair all tumbling, I have tried brush-drying my bangs and have gotten the ends of the other hair SUCKED INTO THE air intake! OMG, the horror! I have been so careful as I have grown out my hair. Trims every 6 to 8 weeks, no styles that might tangle it, no harmful products. It is a beautiful silver white around my face, and I had no frizz. Now, frizz I got.:(

So this is a warning - make sure you know where the blower's air intake is, and keep it away from your hair!