Hard water help!

[xcrunr2go]

So I rent currently & have hard water. I didn't realize it until my hair started acting very dry & brittle! I feel like it's killing my hair! Any hard water tips much appreciated! My predicament is a water softener & neutralizer for my hard well water will cost $1,350. My landlord is offering to do the drainage but that is the firm price. Is it worth it to invest in a softener if I'm a renter? I don't know how long I plan on staying here either although I've been here for the past 4 years...thoughts?

[Finallymajor]

Im not super familiar but can't you get a filtering shower head? That would be an idea and you could take it with you when you move?

[spidermom]

What has helped my hair in the hard water around here is white vinegar soaks. I also use Ion hard water shampoo and conditioner, although not every wash, plus I'm nearly out of it. I use a splash of vinegar (maybe 2 tbsp) in 32 ounces of warm water. What I do is wash, then bend forward with my hair falling toward my feet, rinse, lower my hair into the vinegar water, and let it soak for awhile - a minute or two. Then I pour the vinegar water slowly over my scalp, do a scalp massage with my fingers for another minute or two, rinse, then use conditioner and rinse. This made an immediate difference in the way my hair felt and behaved.

[Pearly~91]

Have you seen/heard of vinegar rinses? They can help clarify and eliminate hard water build-up.

I use a diluted apple cider vinegar (ACV) rinse after I finish washing my hair about once a month. I use about 1 teaspoon of ACV in a quart of water and dunk my hair in/ dump the rinse over my head after I condition but before I get out of the shower, then proceed as usual. The water where I live is hard, but not as bad as some well water I've seen. You may have to use it more often. I would just beware the amount of ACV you use each application, as it can be drying.

Also, I know I've seen this question before, so you could probably try a search

[jrmviola]

Ive not had to deal with hard water, but what about swimmers shampoo/Conditioner? If its made to help clean chemicals out of hair then surely it can clean Iron, etc...

[Anje]

Vinegar rinses are good. So is occasional use of a chelating shampoo, especially one geared toward hard water. If you've been OK for 4 years, though, my guess is that it's not doing tons to your hair. You might just be due to clarify and deep condition.

I'm a big advocate for water softeners because around here the water is crazy-hard and we get scum on everything. My glasses get etched in no time. Detergents barely lather. You need to chisel the gunk out of the dishwasher, and I'm afraid to look in my hotpot. But I can't say truly that my hair has ever suffered much for it.

ETA: Shower head filters are fantastic if you've got excessive chlorine. Living in downtown Cincinnati, my husband had an issue with that to the point where his skin and hair were really drying out badly. Shower head filter fixed it beautifully. But it's not going to have much effect on hard water, unfortunately.

[yogagirl]

Do a search for the miracle water thread.

Another option is to rinse with distilled/filtered water. That can get expensive if you don't have a good source for it.

When I looked into simple, screw on shower head filters it said they clean out chlorine etc, but not minerals and iron I believe. Definitely look into it though, maybe I just didn't look at the right ones. They're available at hardware stores and Amazon for example.

[xcrunr2go]

I've had a Sprite shower filter on since I've moved in however not sure how effective it has been. I think I'll try distilled/purified bottled water for now & see where that takes me....

[lapushka]

I live in an area with very hard water (Belgium, depends on region, though) and I have no issues - at all. It might be something else, so what is your routine now? Any protein in your products? What are you using?

[Seeshami]

I love my filtered shower head so I ditto the people who have already mentioned them.