new here, to naturally curly AND hard water.

Aly G. · 04-18-2012, 10:25 AM

hi all. i'm aly.

for the most part, i've been O.K. managing my hair in the past. up until recently, it was sitting at about 2c/3a, but it seems that it's been closer to an irritated 2b lately.

i recently relocated to San Antonio, and the extremely hard water has been causing all kinds of trouble! my skin has gone crazy, and i now have to scrub my shower about 4 times a week to not feel like it looks like a salt mine. gross!

my hair has become a lot more limp and dry, with varying definition. common sense says, "get a water softener". i've learned that this is more difficult than you'd think! most softeners only filter out certain things, and apparently san antonio has dang near the entire periodic table floating in it!

has anyone made the move to hard water, seen hell on their hair, and come out the other side?

i'd love to hear your advice!

jakrussel3 · 04-18-2012, 03:27 PM

I've grown up with hard water, so maybe my hair is just used to it and it doesn't mess it up too much. Or maybe my hair could just be 10 times better than it is!

Would vinegar rinses help clarify your hair?

Curlymandy22 · 06-26-2012, 09:55 PM

I've lived in Phoenix for most of my life and I've recently started using This hard water shampoo from Sally beauty supply (ion brand). It's not CG but so far I have been using it one every week and a half to clarify and I have had some really nice results (and it's way cheaper than dealing with a softner system)

naturalblondie88 · 06-27-2012, 03:56 PM

I visited my aunt in TX once for two weeks, and my hair went crazy after showering with the hard water! Same thing happened when I moved for college.

Eventually your hair should adjust to the water (mine did in college, then it would freak out when I came home).

I'm no expert, but maybe mod-CG and poo your roots (to help with limpness) and the usual CG CO routine for dryness? That's what I would do.. Hope this helps a little!

imrightw · 06-27-2012, 04:47 PM

I have been adding 1/2 teaspoon citric acid to a gallon of my hard water (I live in SE New Mexico). I use that gallon of water to wash and rinse my hair. It has helped. Supposedly the citric acid chelates the minerals. I ran across this tip on the Long Hair Community Discussion Board.

naturallycreole · 06-27-2012, 05:58 PM

I'm in San Antonio too and I bought a shower filter a while ago. It made a big difference. Also, I am a big ACV and AVJ user. All of these keep my hair in check

Will you look back on life and say I wish I had or I'm glad I did. -Sent from my iPod touch using CurlTalk-

raindear · 06-30-2012, 10:24 AM

The EDTA in (some, all?) Suave Naturals conditioners is also supposed to remove hard water/chlorine from the hair.

I looked into the shower filter, but we are on a well, not a municipal system and don't have enough water pressure for it.

naturallycreole · 07-01-2012, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by raindear

The EDTA in (some, all?) Suave Naturals conditioners is also supposed to remove hard water/chlorine from the hair.

I looked into the shower filter, but we are on a well, not a municipal system and don't have enough water pressure for it.

My opportunity to learn something- are you saying you can't use a filter in your shower head?

If love is truly patient and kind, but our actions or words aren't, then maybe It's self reflection time. -Sent from my iPod touch using CurlTalk-

raindear · 07-01-2012, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by naturallycreole

Quote:

Originally Posted by raindear

The EDTA in (some, all?) Suave Naturals conditioners is also supposed to remove hard water/chlorine from the hair.

I looked into the shower filter, but we are on a well, not a municipal system and don't have enough water pressure for it.

My opportunity to learn something- are you saying you can't use a filter in your shower head?

If love is truly patient and kind, but our actions or words aren't, then maybe It's self reflection time. -Sent from my iPod touch using CurlTalk-

Yes, that is what I am saying. The specs for the shower filter say you need 125 psi for it, and with our well pump, we have about 25 psi. Apparently, a municipal water system will support it, but not our system.

anneh · 07-02-2012, 08:47 PM

I have hard well water (we use a conditioner in it but not a softener) and I warm up a small saucepan of distilled water to use as a last rinse. Seems to be working

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aly G.

hi all. i'm aly.

for the most part, i've been O.K. managing my hair in the past. up until recently, it was sitting at about 2c/3a, but it seems that it's been closer to an irritated 2b lately.

i recently relocated to San Antonio, and the extremely hard water has been causing all kinds of trouble! my skin has gone crazy, and i now have to scrub my shower about 4 times a week to not feel like it looks like a salt mine. gross!

my hair has become a lot more limp and dry, with varying definition. common sense says, "get a water softener". i've learned that this is more difficult than you'd think! most softeners only filter out certain things, and apparently san antonio has dang near the entire periodic table floating in it!

has anyone made the move to hard water, seen hell on their hair, and come out the other side?

i'd love to hear your advice!

BreesyCurls · 07-04-2012, 08:07 PM

I'm in Tucson, and we have insanely hard water. I'm also a clinical esthetician- and I see it wreak havoc on my clients' skin. I always recommend a shower head water filter. They're $20 at Home Depot or Lowe's.

If its an option for anyone with hard water, I'd recommend it. All those metals, etc are on your hair and skin. The filters aren't perfect, but they do help!