OMG! My hair is GREEN

[sgray]

My wife is concerned about her dyed blonde hair turning green in Typhoon Lagoon. How strong is the chlorine in their water. Has anyone had any problems???

 

[cinderella73]

Im no longer blonde and not sure of the chlorine levels but baking soda shampooed into hair after can help reduce and or prevent that effect.

 

[teachingmyown]

Our friends just had a pool put in this summer and their daughter's naturally blond hair promptly began turning a distinct shade of green. In their case chlorine wasn't the culprit because they are using the saline system rather than a chlorine one. Apparently the green is caused by the copper content (copper is used in the filtering system). In any case, slathering it up with tomato ketchup, letting it sit for about 10-15 minutes and then shampooing as usual took care of the problem. She was instantly transformed back into a little blond beauty.

 

[shyjade]

No personal experience, but salons do sell specially formulated shampoos to prevent damage from chlorine. If she's concerned or prone to her hair turning green, it might be worth the small investment.

The shampoo I bought for my daughter's hair (she swims a lot in the summer) cost under $10.

 

[Maine-iac]

My wife is concerned about her dyed blonde hair turning green in Typhoon Lagoon. How strong is the chlorine in their water. Has anyone had any problems???

When we went in April I had just gotten my highlights done and was told to not get too much chlorine in my hair. When we went on the family raft ride at BB some how we got drenched at the end. I just went and walked into a shower to rinse my hair. I tried to avoid getting it wet the rest of the trip. A quick rinse right after getting it wet should take care of it.

 

[ghoulishgirl]

Brunette here, but I heard to be sure to rinse your hair with fresh water before going into any chlorinated water, because dry hair can only soak up so much. You want the water it does soak in to be fresh!

 

[disnut8]

Don't use dye here but based on the number of "blondes" I've seen at Disney World if this was a problem, there would be a heck of a lot of green haired women walking around.

 

[Fawkes]

I dye my hair blonde. I have a swimming pool. My family usually keeps the chlorine levels preety high. As long as I take a shower afterwards, I don't have any problem with my hair turning green. I don't think your wife would have alot of trouble.

 

[dizmomof2]

I'm a natural blonde (and very light blonde during the summer. I've never had a problem with the chlorine levels turning my hair green at Disney. That being said I have had my hair dyed a bright (somewhat florecent) green from a hot tub that had been shocked and they forgot to put the closed sign up! (Thank goodness it was St. Patrick's day so I just looked REALLY festive! )

I washed with lemon juice and then rinsed with vinager. My hair was back to normal. I now use KMS Daily Fixx Clarifying treatment. It smells like oranges (much better then vinager! ) and leaves your hair really soft. Best of all it's not that expensive! I've used all sorts of the anti chlorine shampoos, conditioners and treatments but this is better then the ones at the drug store by far!

BTW my husband uses it and he has brown hair. It just makes it less stiff.

 

[CarolA]

As a person who used to get Green hair every summer....

It generally takes more then one trip to a Disney water park to accomplish this effect. It takes a LOT of exposure over a few weeks!

And Disney doesn't use Chlorine to keep thier water clean. They use a newer technology whose name I can't remember.

 

[BostonRob]

When we went in April I had just gotten my highlights done and was told to not get too much chlorine in my hair. When we went on the family raft ride at BB some how we got drenched at the end. I just went and walked into a shower to rinse my hair. I tried to avoid getting it wet the rest of the trip. A quick rinse right after getting it wet should take care of it.

You were in florida in april and you tried not to get you hair wet for the whole trip? Wow, the things you ladies endure. Another reason why its easier to be a guy.

 

[PrincessTigerLily]

My daughter's hair stylist said that before you go into any pool, wet your hair. Damp hair fills the follicles with clean water, blocking the chlorine from getting into the hair shaft. Fact or fiction, I don't know, but it sounds reasonable to me!

 

[Kae]

My daughter's hair stylist said that before you go into any pool, wet your hair. Damp hair fills the follicles with clean water, blocking the chlorine from getting into the hair shaft. Fact or fiction, I don't know, but it sounds reasonable to me!

You are correct. your hair is like a sponge & a sponge will only absorb so much, so by pre wetting your hair does not absorb as much of the pool water. For some more money she can have her stylist put a clear shades on her hair, that helps shield the hair.

Kae

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

If worse comes to worst, you can just tell people that her hair is green to represent the DIS!

 

[Sleeping Becca]

We use John Amico Clorimed shampoo, conditioner, and spray. You spray your hair BEFORE you swim and the spray prevents harmful chemicals from being absorbed into your hair. The shampoo and conditioner further treat your hair, so it is not brittle, discolored, or damaged.

Works like a charm, we swim everyday, and our hair looks great.

BTW I'm not a JA salesperson, I just really like the stuff, you can get it from your hair dresser or place that sells high quality salon products. I buy my stuff at Trade Secret.

 

[jenseib]

Anotehr trick is to put a leave in conditoner in her hair before she goes in, and if she wants, spray it in peridically.
The follicle is then already covered.

 

[goofy4tink]

Brunette here, but I heard to be sure to rinse your hair with fresh water before going into any chlorinated water, because dry hair can only soak up so much. You want the water it does soak in to be fresh!

My dd is a natural redhead, me 'not so natural' with highlites...we both wet our heads down before hitting most pools. My hairdresser agrees with that also. I also have a spray I spritz on that keeps the sun from affecting it too much also.....I think it's Paul Mitchell.

 

[Maine-iac]

You were in florida in april and you tried not to get you hair wet for the whole trip? Wow, the things you ladies endure. Another reason why its easier to be a guy.

I guess I failed to mention that I do not like to go under water. I don't like water too much so my head always stays above. Just a fear thing I guess.

 

[happymickey464]

This question comes up every summer. Swimmers and spa goers complain that the chlorine in the pool or spa has caused
their hair to turn green. The short answer is: It’s NOT the chlorine, it’s the copper.
A simple explanation: Chlorine after all, is a bleach. When you add laundry bleach to the washing machine, it makes
clothes whiter, removes discoloration and stains, and kills organisms – it does not make your clothes green, blue, turquoise
or any other color. Any amount of chlorine in water more than about 15 ppm (parts per million) starts the bleaching
process. Although typically a load of laundry in a washing machine has about 600 ppm of chlorine.
If it is the copper, where does the copper come from?
Copper can get into the pool or spa a number of different ways. First, drinking water (source or tap water) has a small
amount of copper in it already. So each time makeup water is added due to evaporation, a little more copper is added. Since
copper does not biodegrade or go away on its own, it builds up.
Second, some algaecides have as their active ingredient copper. The copper in algaecides usually has a special ingredient
added to it that prevents it from staining people and vessels. This ingredient is called a chelating agent (pronounced KEYlating)
and copper algaecides that have this ingredient are said to be chelated. However, sunlight, constant high levels of
chlorine or bromine, ozone, superchlorination and even non-chlorine shock treatments can oxidize the chelating agent.
Once this happens, the copper stain protecting ability is decreased.
A third way copper gets into the pool is from the equipment. Water that has a low pH actually dissolves a small portion of
the copper metal in components such as copper pipes, heater headers, heater heat sinks, bronze or brass pump parts such as
impellers or volute assemblies, and even metals used in the filters. This is called corrosion. This small amount of copper
gets dissolved from the equipment or components and then mixes with the main body of water in the pool or spa.
Another related way copper gets into the water is by water velocity through copper pipes and fittings. Water that is moving
faster than the recommended velocity through a pipe will erode the pipe. This happens when too large of a pump is used on
a system than it was designed for and sometimes when a solar water heating system is used for a pool or spa.
The final way that copper can get into the water also comes from the equipment but for a different reason. A common
practice is to chlorinate a pool by placing a trichlor tablet (trichloro-s-triazinetrione) into the pool or spa skimmer. Also,
some pool owners have placed bromine tablets in their skimmers. Water flowing over the tablet dissolves a small portion of
the tablet and carries it through the equipment and back to the pool or spa. Trichlor tablets have a very low pH of about 2.8
while bromine tablets are about 4.0. If enough of the tablet dissolves, the pH of the water flowing over the tablet acquires a
low pH too. We have seen pHs from 3.0 to 7.0 – all of which can cause metal components to dissolve. Please note: Some
manufacturers have produced special trichlor tablets and sticks that are designed to placed in the skimmer. These products
will not be a problem if used properly.

 

[shyjade]

Wow, I can't believe how much I've learned about "green hair" (and how to prevent it) on a Disney forum. The DIS never ceases to amaze me!