My hair in Mallorca: please help me troubleshoot

[Zesty]

So I'm in Mallorca right now studying abroad for five months. Yay Mallorca! Obviously I have a lot of other things to think about now other than my hair, but I've been having frustrating problems. Basically, the water here is really, really hard. The locals don't drink it because if you drink it regularly you can have health problems later in life. My freshly washed clothes come back crunchy because of the minerals. And predictably, it's affecting my hair.

Even right after washing it, it doesn't really feel clean. The hair next to my scalp often feels sticky and strange, like the shampoo hasn't washed out all the way (even though I've rinsed and scrubbed very thoroughly). Sometimes when I scrape my nails over my scalp right after washing, white gunk comes off. My ends feel weird and coated, and sometimes also sticky. Usually these problems go away after my hair has been dry for a while, but sometimes they don't. Sometimes it's worse, sometimes it's better, and I can't really tell what makes it worse or better (though I think shampooing really, really quickly and not taking my head out of the stream of water while I do so helps it not be sticky). It's also difficult to comb it, and gets tangled again quickly.

Basically I've been following the golden rule of Benign Neglect, putting it up and focusing on other things. But if anyone on the LHC has ideas for lessening the damage this might be doing, that would be great. The only thing I can think of is vinegar rinses, which I know nothing about. Normally this is something I'd research myself, but I don't have a lot of free time here, with a heavy course load and a whole island to explore. Any input is much appreciated. :flower:

[heidi w.]

I presume there's no hope of filtering the water. Indeed, you may not even have a shower of the kind we have in the US. Showers and bathing concerns can be done very differently in different areas.

I assume the area offers vinegar, either white distilled vinegar OR Apple Cider Vinegar. If you're a blonde, use white distilled vinegar as ACV can eventually, over long-term use, cause a tint of reddishness in the hair.

I recommend finishing a shampoo/conditioner with a vinegar rinse. This should help, although it sounds as though you have some "build-up". For buildup we recommend clarifying the hair, which can be done either with a purchased product or a homemade recipe. Around 3 Tablespoons of vinegar diluted in an 8 oz cup of water. You can pour some over the head (at the end), and dip the length on the cup of this dilution, THEN pour the remaining amount over the head, THEN rinse it all out. That should help somewhat.

How is your conditioner working? Is it working at all? If it's not working very well, I recommend clarifying and then follow with a deep conditioning treatment such as Snowymoon's Moisture Treatment (SMT). When there's buildup going on, eventually conditioner uptake won't work quite as well as usual.

The other idea is to get in touch with women in the area who have beautiful hair and ask them what they do.

For the laundry, try putting in a bit of vinegar into the washing machine (don't hit the clothes, so probably add it while the tub is filling with water). Vinegar kind of acts as a softener and it removes odors. It may help with the outcome of the condition of clothing.

Make sure to use fairly warm water -- not too tepid of a temperature -- when washing the hair, too.

I don't know if you can install a shower head filter that fits on to the arm of the shower (again, no idea of your setup for showering). But this is what I'd recommend in the US. These units are inexpensive and easily attach to the shower arm sticking out of a wall of the shower. Just a screwdriver or basic tools such as that is all one needs, and a stool to stand on to install it.

Good luck.
heidi w.

[Madora]

Could you try adding a water softening device to your showerhead?

Also, maybe either try diluting your shampoo and conditioner..or finding one that might work better with the type of water you have.

Ktani's article on vinegar rinses:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=184

[mzBANGBANG]

Other than buying a couple gallons of distilled water I can't really think of how else to prevent the hard water situation, however now might be a time to experiment with cones. I have hard water at home and I'm a 100% conehead. :)

[Coan-Teen]

Can your hair handle CO washing? If most of your problems are coming from shampoo, I would say cut shampoo out of your hair care routine, if possible.

Basically it sounds as though for whatever reason, the water there is not sufficiently breaking up your shampoo so it isn't fully rinsed. I don't necessarily think the build up itself is damaging, if that's your concern, but the tangling as a result obviously is. Even if you can't do CO washing, you could clarify as heidi w. suggested and see what results you get from that. Vinegar might just have to be part of your routine while you're there.

Either way, enjoy being abroad! Sorry to hear your hair troubles are messing with your experience.

[Safira]

So I'm in Mallorca right now studying abroad for five months. Yay Mallorca! Obviously I have a lot of other things to think about now other than my hair, but I've been having frustrating problems. Basically, the water here is really, really hard. The locals don't drink it because if you drink it regularly you can have health problems later in life. My freshly washed clothes come back crunchy because of the minerals. And predictably, it's affecting my hair.

Even right after washing it, it doesn't really feel clean. The hair next to my scalp often feels sticky and strange, like the shampoo hasn't washed out all the way (even though I've rinsed and scrubbed very thoroughly). Sometimes when I scrape my nails over my scalp right after washing, white gunk comes off. My ends feel weird and coated, and sometimes also sticky. Usually these problems go away after my hair has been dry for a while, but sometimes they don't. Sometimes it's worse, sometimes it's better, and I can't really tell what makes it worse or better (though I think shampooing really, really quickly and not taking my head out of the stream of water while I do so helps it not be sticky). It's also difficult to comb it, and gets tangled again quickly.

Basically I've been following the golden rule of Benign Neglect, putting it up and focusing on other things. But if anyone on the LHC has ideas for lessening the damage this might be doing, that would be great. The only thing I can think of is vinegar rinses, which I know nothing about. Normally this is something I'd research myself, but I don't have a lot of free time here, with a heavy course load and a whole island to explore. Any input is much appreciated. :flower:


Try chelating shampoo and can you buy water?

[terpentyna]

I say vinegar rinse.

[Kelikea]

I don't think vinegar can remove all the mineral deposits, that is what chelating shampoo is for. Can you buy distilled water? If so, use that as your rinse. Use a chelating shampoo, rinse with distilled water, then do a diluted vinegar rinse, then some leave-in conditioner, don't rinse again with the tap water. Co-ing would involve saturating the hair with the hard water, so I wouldn't recommend that either. Vinegar doesn't have to be rinsed off, that is why I suggested using it after the shampoo-rinse steps, and it helps detangle hair. Then, the leave-in would further help relieve the tangle issue, as well as moisturize the hair, and you wouldn't have to rinse it again. Once you remove what has already been deposited on your hair, you could do distilled water/vinegar rinses and leave-ins, skip the shampoo, just make sure your leave-in doesn't contain cones or you will have build-up of another kind to deal with.

[lapushka]

We have very hard water here, and I use a lot of shampoo (like a palmful). CO-washing is just impossible.

[jeanniet]

There are a few things you can try. Washing with distilled water will work, but may not be feasible. Using a chelating shampoo will also work, but they tend to be pretty stripping, and it sounds like you'd have to use one often, so if you go that route make sure you use a good conditioner afterward. Or you can do some chelating work yourself.

Club soda, if you can get it, is a chelator and would work as a final rinse. You could also wash with Miracle Water (http://archive.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=51184) and see if that helps. You wouldn't need the ascorbic acid unless there's chlorine/chloramine in the water, so just mix about 1/4 tsp. of citric acid into each gallon of water--I imagine that you would be able to find citric acid there. Both club soda and citric acid will chelate a variety of minerals and might be your easiest options.

[Narya]

The locals don't drink it because if you drink it regularly you can have health problems later in life.

As a local, I have to say that I have never heard that about the water :bigeyes:. I mean, it is REALLY hard, lots of calcium specially, so we don't drink it usually because it does taste... well, "minerally". There are places, though, that's it's not only calcium and other mineral deposits, but lots of salt, with being an island with no rivers and all that. Underground water sources many times get water from the sea if much is used, so...

Anyway, it is really hard water, and hair does not like it, I agree. It is worse or better depending on the zone you are in (Palma, I suppose).

What works for me when I am on the other side of the island (on a port where the water is half-salty and so hard that brushing your teeth tastes baaaaaad) are vinegar rinses. We don't have apple cider vinegar at home, so I use white vinegar and do not dilute quite as much as when I am at other places. Maybe one (thin) finger vinegar on a glass of water, fill the glass with water (rain or bottled works better) and rinse with that. It makes a huge difference for me.
Filters would be great, too, but it's not something that, IME, it's done much there, so I don't know how easy or how hard would it be for you to find one locally. I would worry that the filter would get clogged with calcium deposits very easily, too.

That's all I can think of right now, but if you want to know something more, either of hair-washing methods in Mallorca or about the island in general, I'd be glad to help!

[Zesty]

As a local, I have to say that I have never heard that about the water :bigeyes:. I mean, it is REALLY hard, lots of calcium specially, so we don't drink it usually because it does taste... well, "minerally". There are places, though, that's it's not only calcium and other mineral deposits, but lots of salt, with being an island with no rivers and all that. Underground water sources many times get water from the sea if much is used, so...

Anyway, it is really hard water, and hair does not like it, I agree. It is worse or better depending on the zone you are in (Palma, I suppose).

What works for me when I am on the other side of the island (on a port where the water is half-salty and so hard that brushing your teeth tastes baaaaaad) are vinegar rinses. We don't have apple cider vinegar at home, so I use white vinegar and do not dilute quite as much as when I am at other places. Maybe one (thin) finger vinegar on a glass of water, fill the glass with water (rain or bottled works better) and rinse with that. It makes a huge difference for me.
Filters would be great, too, but it's not something that, IME, it's done much there, so I don't know how easy or how hard would it be for you to find one locally. I would worry that the filter would get clogged with calcium deposits very easily, too.

That's all I can think of right now, but if you want to know something more, either of hair-washing methods in Mallorca or about the island in general, I'd be glad to help!
Oh wow, so grateful that someone from Mallorca has seen this! My program director (who was born in Palma) said that bit about the health problems, like there's some mineral in the water that if you drink it regularly over a lifetime can cause issues. I think most people don't drink it because of the taste, though, which is admittedly weird.

Thanks also to everyone else for the responses. I think I'll go to the store on Monday and see whether club soda or white vinegar would be cheaper, as that seems like the easiest option.

Question: Would using tap water filtered with a Brita-type filter work just as well as bottled water for a vinegar final rinse? I have thick hair and while I could spring for bottled water, it would be pretty expensive to rinse with it every time I wash my hair.

[Narya]

Question: Would using tap water filtered with a Brita-type filter work just as well as bottled water for a vinegar final rinse? I have thick hair and while I could spring for bottled water, it would be pretty expensive to rinse with it every time I wash my hair.

I have never used a Brita, but even with regular tap water vinegar rinses make a big difference for me, so I'd say that if it is filtered it has to be even better.