If vinegar rinses are not for clarifying...

[buttercupmcgee]

Then why does my hair feel lighter and more de-gunked after a white vinegar rinse than after anything else?

Clarifying shampoo or baking soda leave it feeling either unchanged or too dry....after a vinegar rinse it floats about my head with a mind of its own, super soft and shiny and happy to finally be free of oils/conditioners/products. I understand the PH benefits of vinegar, but are we sure there are no clarifying side effects?

Discuss!

[Anje]

Vinegar gets some stuff off. Soap scum and hard water minerals and cuts sebum a bit. But it's no good at taking off stuff like silicones from conditioners, which is the sort of thing people often need to clarify off.

Ever try rinsing with club soda? You might be having issues with minerals if you get such effects from vinegar, and club soda is supposed to help chelate some minerals away nicely.

[jojo]

Maybe you live in a hard water area and the vinegar has removed the effects of this.

[torrilin]

Agreed with the above posters. I use vinegar rinses a lot for hard water.

[Athena's Owl]

Then why does my hair feel lighter and more de-gunked after a white vinegar rinse than after anything else?

Clarifying shampoo or baking soda leave it feeling either unchanged or too dry....after a vinegar rinse it floats about my head with a mind of its own, super soft and shiny and happy to finally be free of oils/conditioners/products. I understand the PH benefits of vinegar, but are we sure there are no clarifying side effects?

Discuss!

you probably have hard water in your area and so your vinegar rinse helps to remove those minerals. also a vinegar rinse is acidic, so it may be neutralizing a more alkaline water, and hard water is often more alkaline.

I have hard water and I clean the ring out of my toilet bowl with white vinegar. I also spray my shower down with vinegar and water and there are no water spots on the walls. but I only vinegar rinse once a month? I think my logic machine just caught up with me.

[ElusiveMuse]

I've never had to use designated clarifying products, and silicones don't seem to negatively affect my hair. (In fact, it's usually cone-free that is a problem for me.)

However, I do have to deal with really hard water and since I started vinegar rinses, my hair has improved!

So maybe your head and hair are similar to mine and product buildup isn't actually a problem?

[pocketsmall]

What types of vinegar? I think I'll give it a try, I have hard water.

[Anje]

Lots of people use apple cider vinegar. It can leave reddish tones though, so people who don't want warm tones and people like me who don't want to pay for cider vinegar tend to use white vinegar. You'll want to dilute your rinse to roughly 10% of the original strength, give or take.

Some people use citric acid crystals diluted out quite a bit instead, as it doesn't smell vinegary.

[Panth]

Lots of people use apple cider vinegar. It can leave reddish tones though, so people who don't want warm tones and people like me who don't want to pay for cider vinegar tend to use white vinegar. You'll want to dilute your rinse to roughly 10% of the original strength, give or take.

Some people use citric acid crystals diluted out quite a bit instead, as it doesn't smell vinegary.

I use white wine vinegar (a medium-sized bottle is under £1 when it is the shop's own brand) as I'm blonde and don't want to risk the ACV. One teaspoon vinegar to 1 pint lukewarm water is a good dilution for me, though it can go a tad more concentrated without problems (and neat vinegar won't really hurt your hair if you do that once or twice by accident - but I suspect it'd be drying if done regularly).

An important thing to check is that most vinegar you buy in shops for consumption is 5%. So check yours is, cause the dilutions everyone recommends are based on this dilution of commercial vinegar. If yours is weaker/stronger you'll need to alter your diluting.

Another thing people here use is a lemon juice based rinse which has the same acidic properties. However, I believe it can lighten the hair (rather like Sun-in) so be warned!

I've always wondered since ACV can give warm tones could you get pinky tones by using red wine vinegar, raspberry vinegar or similar? Or brown tones by using malt vinegar or balsamic?

[buttercupmcgee]

Thanks all, appreciate the feedback. We do live in a hard water zone, so I bet that's it. I don't really use much product except the rare burst of hairspray.

I love vinegar rinses! How often do you all do them?

[MeganE]

Thanks all, appreciate the feedback. We do live in a hard water zone, so I bet that's it. I don't really use much product except the rare burst of hairspray.

I love vinegar rinses! How often do you all do them?

I use vinegar and distilled water after each and every time I get my hair wet. It's definitely more work, but I hate mineral build-up, and I hate having to chelate. I think it's best to do everything possible to prevent the build-up in the first place. :)