by Kristy Martz

Created on: June 15, 2009   Last Updated: June 16, 2009

I have blonde hair. After I moved to a house that has well water, I found myself battling reddish stains caused by the iron in my hard water.

I googled and yahooed. I consulted hair stylists and my fellow hard water survivors. I tried just about everything to get my hair back to its normal state.

I decided to try a natural approach first. I once had an unfortunate hair dye incident that resulted in myself looking like an anime character with fluorescent purple hair. At that time, a hair stylist told me to try using vinegar on my hair because it removes build-up.

So, I dumped a very large container of vinegar on my head in the hopes of ridding myself of the horrible hard water stains. After gagging a little, I enjoyed hair that was softer, but only slightly less stained.

I decided to step it up a little and purchased a clarifying shampoo. After using this for a few weeks, I did not see any noticeable improvement in the texture or hue of my poor hair.

I googled some more and found a shampoo that is made especially for hard water. I purchased Malibu 2000 Well Water Action Shampoo and Conditioner online from amazon.com. While it didn't completely rid me of the brassy red streaks in my hair, it did improve it more than the clarifying shampoo or the vinegar.

I resigned myself to chopping off my long locks. I sat in the hair stylist's chair and tried to remember what I looked like back when my hair was all one color. The stylist noticed how stained the lower half of my hair was. "Do you dye your hair?" she asked.

With a sad little sigh, I told her of my hard water woes. "Have you tried a Malibu treatment?" she asked.

The makers of the Malibu Shampoo also offer a Malibu Treatment which is available in salons. I had nothing to lose, so I told her to go right ahead and treat my head.

First, the stylist washed my hair with a clarifying shampoo. Next, she applied the treatment to my hair and had my sit under the hair dryer. It takes quite a while, so if you are considering the Malibu Treatment, make sure you bring a magazine. After I had read my fill of People magazine, my hair stylist rinsed my hair and applied a light-weight conditioner.

I wasn't too hopeful as my hair stylist dried and styled my hair. However, when I saw the end result I was extremely pleased. I finally looked like myself again and I was able to keep my long hair!

The ultimate cure for my hard water trouble was purchasing a water softener. I wasn't able to afford one for quite a while and the Malibu products offered an affordable temporary solution.

Until I was able to afford a water softener, I continued to receive Malibu Treatments and use the Malibu 2000 Well Water Action Shampoo and Conditioner. As long as I received Malibu Treatments every couple of months, I was able to keep my blonde hair stain free.

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