While chelating shampoos are not as harsh as clarifying shampoos, they must still be used sparingly to avoid over-drying the hair and prevent discoloration. Chelating products are designed specifically to remove minerals,” he says. These work by actually attaching to the mineral buildup in the hair and washing it away. On the other hand, he says that clarifying shampoos often contain stronger detergents which make them great for breaking down all residue, including excess oil and product buildup in addition to mineral residue. However, clarifying shampoos can also be quite stripping and potentially fade color-treated hair.

The treatment readies the hair, making it a clean canvas for chemical services like color and keratin treatments. Although it contains some mild sulfates like sodium C14-C16 olefin sulfonate and sodium lauryl sulfoacetate, if you follow the correct usage instructions, it won’t strip your hair due to its balanced formula. Due to its early success in using vitamin C to improve skin and hair conditions, Malibu C’s original wellness hair remedy line became famous in households and professional salons worldwide. The treatment removes the oxidizers and restores the hair’s natural pH, preventing hair color from turning brassy, ashy, or muddy. To Prepare the Hair for Color ProcessingKey ingredients: sodium c14-16 olefin sulfonate (sulfate-free clarifier); sodium gluconate and disodium EDTA (chelating agents) However, it is essential not to overuse it and follow the directions correctly. What Is It Used for? Usually listed as Ascorbic acid, vitamin C is a natural chelator that can bind to minerals to make them soluble. A demineralizing shampoo traps minerals, chemicals, metals, chlorine, and oxidizers to flush them out and restore the pH balance while eliminating buildup and other hard water hair issues.

In terms of the scent, some people may notice a slight iron smell when using the Malibu crystal gel. This is because it removes iron and minerals from the hair. The iron smell may be more noticeable if your hair has severe hard water minerals buildup. Malibu Crystal Gel Ingredients Whether you're dealing with build-up from hard water or well water, this cult-favorite (seriously) shampoo from Ion will get your hair clean with two chelating ingredients: EDTA and sodium gluconate. It's also ~technically~ sulfate free (though still uses some strong clarifying cleansers), making a slightly milder choice on the spectrum of hard-water shampoos. It all has to do with the geography and how rain water is collected and distributed in the area you live in. Although the water goes through layers of filtering, it’s impossible to extract all the minerals through the common large-scale water filtration methods. To effectively remove dissolved minerals from water, the water must go through an ion exchange or reverse osmosis process for further purification and decontamination. Because these systems cost a lot of money to implement on a large scale, and they are not always feasible, it’s essentially down to individuals to make the choice if they want to have one fitted in their homes. Water is classified into 2 categories: hard and soft. Hard water contains high levels of minerals like calcium, magnesium, iron, copper, chlorides, and sulphates, while soft water has low levels of these minerals.

What Is It Used for?

Typically, most shampoos—even the bottle you've got sitting in your shower right now— will contain one or two ingredients (known as chelators) to help break down minerals. But the difference between your regular shampoo and a hard-water or clarifying shampoo is the amount and strength of each chelator in the formula. Yes. A shampoo made for hard water will not only eliminate minerals build-up, but also protect your hair dye from fading. Hair and scalp stay healthy in a low pH range because acidity protects the mantle of the scalp from bacterial growth. The hair’s protective outer layer (cuticle) at low pH also stays flat and smooth. Mark DeBolt, celebrity colorist and co-founder of Mark Ryan Salon, counts this shampoo as the best product in the world for hair affected by hard water—and we’d have to agree. By simultaneously removing the waterborne minerals that damage and discolor your hair and depositing strengthening proteins and essential moisture, this formula takes a two-pronged approach to getting your hair into tip-top shape, making it the true standout of this list.