Is your shower ruining your hair?

Hard Water is More then likely the problem!

Is your hair hard to brush out? Is there no amount of at home conditioning treatments, natural conditioners or leave-in sprays making it any easier for you to get a brush through your rats nest? Is your scalp itchy? Do you have small dry flakes all over your shoulders? Do you love your highlights when you get home from the salon, but after a few weeks it starts to turn a horrible shade of orange? Is your hair breaking for no reason?

Then you probably have Hard Water or Well water

Did you know, that 85% of house holds have hard water. And it doesn’t matter if you live in a huge city, the suburbs, or out in the sticks.

Both hard water and well water can negatively affect both the color and texture of your hair. It causes color fading and dryness.

What is happening is that Calcium and Magnesium are building up on your hair to prevent the moisture from entering your hair. The result is dull, dry, frizzy, weighed down, tangly and off colored hair. Whether it is your natural color or you bought it.

Water softness can also have an effect.

If your tap water tastes salty and you don't have buildup, you might have soft water. This could be a natural occurrence, or it might happen because you have a water softener installed in your home.

Water Softener

A water softener is a good, but an expensive way to solve your hard water worries. It removes calcium and magnesium (limescale) and certain other metals from the hard water – making the water soft.

When you touch the soft water, it will not look or feel any different, although your skin and hair will be much happier. Soft water doesn't pose as tough a problem for hair as hard water, it still comes with its own set of challenges. Soft water can be useful for people experiencing hair build up, eczema, dandruff and other hard water-related conditions. But, it takes longer to thoroughly cleanse hair of hairspray and other styling products, which results in product buildup on the scalp. This is especially an issue if you have naturally oily or fine hair—leftover products remaining on the scalp can weigh the hair down and make it feel greasier. Although soft water doesn't pose as tough a problem for hair as hard water, it still comes with its own set of challenges. You and your hair never feel truly clean. You have to buy salt all of the time. As well as monitor if our salt levels are getting low.

Shower Filter

A shower filter is a cheaper alternative to the water softener. It can reduce limescale, chlorine and many other chemicals from hard water considerably. It also filters out the calcium and magnesium (limescale) and certain other metals from the hard water There are many different types of shower filter's that attach to your shower unit. Click here to see what the team at The Hair Loft in Mandarin recommend. Its cheap and easy to install These are pictures of the owner of The Hair Loft in Mandarin's shower head and filter. This is only one of many different types of filters, so do some research before you buy.

Bottled Water or Filter Jug

Another option is to use bottled mineral/spring water for final rinse. Although not that expensive, you will have plastic bottles piling up (and one plastic bottle can take up to 400 years to biodegrade). It can be a temp solution especially if your hair is giving you a hard time, or when you are visiting the hard water area for a few days.

We are color specialists. Our advise is this " If you want to keep your hair true to tone then get a filter"