Explain the Slimy Feeling With Soft Water
Question:
Dear Mr. Timmons, You may have received questions similar to the one that I will pose to you from others, but I am quite confused as to what I have read on the internet. Please allow me to provide you with details. When I take a shower, I want to feel as if all of the soap, body oils, and grime will come off my body immediately. I do not mind if my skin comes out extremely dry after showering. I want to feel clean and I can always put on lotion if my skin is too dry. I have lived in southeastern Kentucky for many years and I have never had any issues while showering. I contacted my municipal water manager here in Hazard, Kentucky and he informed me that the water hardness of our town is usually around 180 parts per million and runs a range of 160-240 ppm at the extremes. The pH is usually around 7.4. During my college and medical training, I have lived in Lexington, KY; Louisville, KY; Cincinnati, OH; Cleveland, OH; Silver Spring, MD; and Burbank, CA. I have never had any problems while showering in those communities.
One time, we visited family friends in rural Iowa and taking a shower was an unpleasant experience. It felt as if the soap would not come off my body no matter how much water I used. When I visit my brother in Las Vegas, NV, it is the same problem with taking a shower - the soap does not feel as if it is coming off at all. I do not know if he has a water softener. When I visit my parents in New Tampa, FL the same situation as with my brother - I can't stand taking a shower as it feels that the soap will not come off no matter how much water that I use. I have read conflicting information on the internet. Some sources state that hard water causes the problems that I experience with showering in IA, NV, and my parents home in FL. Other sources say that it is probably a water softener used to lessen spots on dishes, etc., that cause that slimy feeling of not being able to get soap off of me during showering.
I read your article that states that it is actually a "silky" feeling. I respectfully disagree with your characterization of "silky" as it is a markedly uncomfortable feeling and I have noted that acne seems to be worse when I am visiting my parents as the oils are not effectively removed from my skin. My parents told me that they have a filter for their home, but I am not certain that it is "softening" the water and that is why showering is such an unpleasant experience. The reason that I am sending this e-mail is that I will be moving to the Tampa area to work. I will be renting an apartment in Brandon, FL and I am not certain as to whether I should get some sort of water treatment system or if I should just try the city water first. Most of the literature seems to point to "soft" water as the culprit for the markedly uncomfortable feeling while showering. Some say it is "hard" water. Please explain and advise.
Thank you very much. -G
The Water Doctor's Response:
Dear G, First of all, I will just deal with the facts. Whether the water is silky or slimy is a perception, not a fact. I know many people who feel it is silky and I know many who think it is slimy. Do you like Coke or Pepsi? That's personal taste - you can't say one is better than another to everyone - just you. I love baseball and another person may hate it, so when we go to a game together, he is bored and I am engaged. We are in the same place, so it is our own perception that changes everything. I just wanted to make that point.
Here are the FACTS:
1. Calcium and magnesium are “hard” minerals which combine with soap and form “curd” and suds.
2. This calcium and magnesium and soap curd does lodge in the pores of your skin in hard water.
3. Since there is no calcium or magnesium in soft water, the sodium which is a “soft” mineral, combines with the soap to form suds, without curd.
4. There is no calcium and magnesium in the water and no curd, and sodium does not stick in your skins' pores.
5. Use a pure soap like Ivory - wash one hand with soft water and rinse - it will fell slick - then wash the other with hard water - it will feel “squeaky clean.” Then taste both hands. You will taste soap only on the hard water side. Therefore the soap is gone.
6. Many people with sensitive skin break out when they bathe in hard water. I have seen people with eczema-like skin problems have clear skin after a few days with soft water.
7. There is no soap residue left when you shower in soft water.
8. There is soap residue left on the skin when you shower in hard water.
9. I cannot say why acne would occur in soft water unless the skin is stimulated by the lack of calcium and magnesium in the pores to produce oil.
10. Some people love the slick feeling - others hate the slimy feeling - it's all about perception!
11. With soft water, you get the following benefits over hard water:
b. 30% saving on water heating energy.
c. Dramatically increases the life of all water using appliances and plumbing appliances.
d. Delivers spot-free dishes in the dishwasher.
e. Cuts cleaning time in showers and sinks. Those are the facts.
This is why we offer traditional salt based water softener solutions as well as salt free water conditioners
135 Comments
I believe it was Lever 2000…was left in my new apt. and I used it. And I now have discovered that my new heart medication is the cause of my itching. Did more research. So far I feel better about soft water.
You will love it. Good luck!
I too find the slick water to be a pain . I have a hand held shower head and when I use soap, it is soooooo slippery I can not hold the shower so I have to find something to tape on the handle so hopefully I can hold it. Also, when I wash my hair and the soap hits the tub floor I slip and slide. The worse part of it is when I do dishes in the kitchen sink I can’t hold on to glasses etc.. as the soap and soft water make it sooooo slippery I can’t hold the glasses and other dishes as well. Is there anything I can do?
You can install a tee on each side of inlet and outlet of the softener with a valve in between and blend some hard water back in to eliminate the slickness.
You can use something like this: https://www.uswatersystems.com/water-softener-blending-valve-fits-any-softener.html
I had an interesting experience after just moving to a new house that had a water softener system. Loved the soft water at first. Needed salt so I added 4 bags of salt pellets. After about a week, my hair and hands had a waxy feeling to them. Hair was waxy feeling and not smooth at all even tho I used conditioners. Called the water softener system man to come check system. He said not to use the pellets – they don’t recommend them and that they had some kind of glue in them. He scooped them all out and put solar salt crystals in. After one day, my hair felt a lot better. Now after a week, everything feels back to normal.
It’s not glue, just a binding agent, but it can plug the injectors at time which will render the water hard. Solar salt is always a good choice.
Can you use solar salt in any of the softner including Water Boss to help the drinking water?
Yes.
Hi, thanks for all the info.
We just moved to a home with a water softener system and an RO system. They are early 90’s systems. We had the RO serviced, and all the membranes changed.
The only thing we did to the water softener system was to have the tank cleaned, and add salts . My question is, when I first started showering, my hair was incredibly soft, but the water did not have that slippery feeling. However, all of a sudden, the water feels slippery to the point where I’m not sure if I rinsed the soap off, and my skin feels great, however my hair feels rough , it tangles, and feels like it has build up in it. What could be causing it?
The softener may have lost a lot of it’s capacity over time. You could replace the resin or consider a new softener since the new ones are much more reliable and efficient.
It sounds like soft water. Your hair will adjust nicely.
Recently moved to a house with a water softening system. Loved it. Then I turned on oil boiler and after washing hair, it felt like it had wax on it (and also my hands). Was told the water heater could be run with oil or electric. Had softener system serviced. He said not to use the salt pellets, use the crystals. He scooped all the pellets out and put in salt crystals. Within a couple days hair felt normal again (but I had also turned the boiler off by then). Had the oil boiler serviced too then. The next chilly morning, I turned on the oil burner again and washed hair also. Hair felt waxy again . Any ideas about what is going on?
Maybe there is such a buildup of hardness in the boiler that the water is not soft?
“cut twice. Measure once?” You might want to take that off.
Thanks for sharing your expertise. There’s one part that I’m having difficulty wrapping my brain around and would love further explanation. If it isn’t soap residue causing the slick feeling of my soft water, why do I perceive that sensation only after applying soap? Also, after excessive rinsing and rubbing of hands, why does that slick feeling dissipate?