The Effects of Hard Water On Hair

You need water to shampoo your hair and hard water makes it harder to wash your hair. Each hair shaft is made up of little scales, like shingles on a roof. Hard water tends to make the scales stand up, which makes your hair feel rough and tangly. Since your hair is tangled and rough, it is more difficult to rinse out all of the soap. Soap is less effective in very hard water because its reacts with the excess minerals to form calcium or magnesium salts. These are not easily soluble in water and can result in soap film. Washing hair in soft water will have a different result because it leaves fewer insoluble deposits on the hair.

If your water is very hard you can use a weak acid rinse, like vinegar or lemon juice. The acid makes the scales lie down flat, and again allows the soap to be rinsed more easily.

Many ask, What is Hard Water?

Rainwater is soft and mineral free. But, when it falls to the ground it seeps through the soil and rocks and dissolves minerals which give it its character. If the rainwater water passes through hard rock, it remains soft. However, if the ground water seeps through softer rocks, like the limestone very common in the Great Lakes Basin, it dissolves lots of minerals, principally calcium and magnesium, along the way. The degree of hardness becomes greater as the calcium and magnesium content increases. The term “hard water” was originally coined to refer to water that was difficult or hard to work with. Hard water requires much more soap, shampoo, or detergent than soft water; and the minerals in hard water can decrease soap’s lathering capabilities.

Credits: Hair and Water