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Original poster

Water hardness and how it affects your hair (+ link to you area's hardness)

36 replies

Thedarklady · 14/03/2019 17:06

Hard water has a high mineral content.

Levels:
0 to 60 mg/L Soft water
60 to 120 mg/L Moderately hard water
120 to 180 mg/L Hard water
180 mg/L or higher Very hard water

Link to the calculater for your area:
www.kinetico.co.uk/hard-and-soft-water-explained/hard-and-soft-water-uk
(Scroll down and enter your postcode in the box).

Hard water can affect the skin on your scalp causing dryness and itching. It may feel like it does when you haven't thoroughly rinsed out all of your shampoo.

Soft water is better at penetrating the hair shaft than hard water. This means that hair washed in soft water tends to be shinier and softer as the water helps the hair shaft to remold itself properly. In contrast, hard water can be drying to the hair, making it appear dull and potentially more brittle as the shafts cannot remold in the same way, leaving them with a rougher exterior.

Hard water also reduces voulme, removes colour from the hair quickly and can mean that products aren't washed away from the skin properly (leading to dryness and irritation).

OP posts:
JustGettingStarted · 14/03/2019 17:07

Whenever I travel down South, my hair feels like straw and my face breaks out.

myidentitymycrisis · 14/03/2019 18:10

I live in London and suffer with build up in my scalp it’s horrible ( hard water)

Theknacktoflying · 14/03/2019 18:14

Water softener all the way ..
Live in the SE and need it to combat the limescale and have the ability to get some lather and use less product.

YouveCatToBeKittenMe · 14/03/2019 18:16

Mine came out at 367.5 which doesn’t surprise me as most of my house seems to be caked in limescale and I use about 40000000000 gallons of viakal a week

YouveCatToBeKittenMe · 14/03/2019 18:19

I had a water softener, It cost mega bucks and was shit and we had to buy filtery salt stuff to fill a large self built box thing by the outside tap and kept getting phone calls advising us it needed servicing every year for £80.....it was a pain in the arse

Theknacktoflying · 14/03/2019 18:21

there is also an option of using a reverse osmosis system ....

FromEden · 14/03/2019 18:25

Where I live in the US has some of the hardest water in the country. I'm convinced my hair was thinning because of it. As well as limescale buildup on taps/appliances etc. Recently bought a house and a water softener was one of the first things we put in. The difference is amazing. I'd heartily recommend it to anyone

Original poster
Thedarklady · 14/03/2019 19:20

@YouveCatToBeKittenMe 367.5, Christ! Mine was 90.

@FromEden I was shocked to see that the whole of the US is hard water! Varies from hard to extremely hard.

OP posts:
PatchworkElmer · 14/03/2019 19:23

352.5 here!

MontanaSky · 14/03/2019 19:36

377 here!
South Norfolk UK - notorious hard water area.

Original poster
Thedarklady · 14/03/2019 19:39

@MontanaSky I think East Anglia has the hardest water in the UK.

OP posts:
XingMing · 14/03/2019 19:43

Here in Cornwall, our water is very soft, under 20. But the rocks are all granite. And it tastes nearly as good as Scottish water (though the water around Glenlivet is the best I have ever tasted) apart from the blasted chemicals that are mandated additions. It's one reason there are so many craft distilleries locally. I hate going to the SE because the water makes my hair totally unmanageable.

MissDai5y · 14/03/2019 20:10

352.5 here. My dp always jokes it's so hard it comes out in rocks. Probably related to chalk hills.

My skin and hair has never been a problem, maybe I'm used to it. Dp's from Devon (32.5 for water hardness apparently) and whenever we travel back to see his family his skin and scalp drastically improve.

Doobigetta · 14/03/2019 20:31

17.65 here in Manchester. I always notice if I wash my hair while staying down south that it comes out feeling horrible- strawlike and sticky at the same time.

LunaLovesgood · 14/03/2019 20:31

Ours is 30. To he honest I have noticed I get awful breakouts when visiting London and other southern cities. Never really put two and two together before now though.

megletthesecond · 14/03/2019 20:32

My curls come back when I wash my hair with soft water.

HouseOfGoldandBones · 14/03/2019 20:39

Mine is 15. I'm in Sunny Scotland.

I used to live in London & it played havoc with my hair & my skin, and the water tasted "funny"

The water up here is fabulous there has to be some compensation for all the rain

iMatter · 14/03/2019 20:40

305 here.

Nacreous · 14/03/2019 20:45

Winning at water hardness top trumps here with 417.5

I really ought to buy a softener. I use a filter for the kettle or the tea is vile.

Snog · 14/03/2019 20:45

300 total pita washing machines don't last long

CatToddlerUprising · 14/03/2019 20:56

247.5 where I am (London)

DivisionBell · 14/03/2019 20:58

32.5 here in Cornwall. My fine hair hates it when we visit family in the SE. It goes all flat and rubbish.

peachgreen · 14/03/2019 22:32

Weirdly, my hair is much happier in hard water.

StatisticallyChallenged · 14/03/2019 22:40

22.5 here (Scotland) - I was aware of this as my hair hates London, and the US. Never feels properly clean!

Hoolahoophop · 14/03/2019 22:44

447 Shock no wonder the curly girl method and co-wash dosent work for me!