How to Determine Hair Porosity

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Porosity is a fancy term for how much moisture the strands of your hair can take in and retain. It really comes down to the cuticle, which is the outermost layer of hair that’s constructed with thin, overlapping cells. [1] If your cuticle cells are snug and tight against one another, you likely have low porosity hair, meaning that each strand has difficulty naturally absorbing moisture. When your cuticle cells are separated, it means that your hair has high porosity, and absorbs more moisture. [2] There’s no right or wrong hair porosity to have, but it’s important to know your hair type so you can make your hair regimen as effective as possible. Here’s how to properly test your hair porosity so you can make better choices for hair products and get beautiful, healthy hair!

Method 1
Method 1 of 2:

Testing with Water

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  1. Take a drinking glass and fill it up halfway. Make sure that there’s enough water to observe a strand of hair floating or sinking. If the water is cold initially, wait a few minutes so it can settle to room temperature. [3]
    • If you don’t have a glass on hand, consider using something tall and see-through, like a large glass bowl.
  2. Stroke a comb or brush through your hair to remove some hair without needing to pull it out. Don’t worry if you don’t have a lot of loose hair, since you only need one strand for the float test. Take a single strand and drop it into the glass. [4]
    • Make sure that you’ve washed your hair with dry shampoo and nothing else. And there is no product on your hair. [5] If you’ve conditioned your hair with a lot of products, then the results of your float test could be negatively affected. [6]
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  3. Keep an eye on your hair to see what it does. If your hair floats, it likely has low porosity—in other words, your cuticle cells are tight and don’t have a way to quickly absorb the water in the glass. High porosity hair, on the other hand, will rapidly absorb the water and fall to the bottom of the glass. [7] Medium porosity hair won’t immediately soak in or reject the water, causing it to fall more slowly. [8]
  4. Spritz some water over your hair if you don’t have time to do a full float test. As a rule of thumb, low porosity hair won’t absorb any of the water right away, leaving the droplets to sit on top of the hair. High porosity hair, however, will absorb the water immediately. Medium porosity hair falls somewhere in the middle, and tends to absorb water at a moderate pace. [9]
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Method 2
Method 2 of 2:

Caring for Your Hair

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  1. Use a dryer or heat cap when adding a deep conditioner to your hair. If you don’t want to take those extra steps, try conditioning your hair in the shower with hot water. If there’s more heat present, it’ll be easier for low porosity hair to absorb any conditioners. [10]
    • Heat forces the cuticle cells to separate, which makes them soak in more conditioner.
  2. Purchase shampoos, conditioners, and other products that contain natural oils like grape seed, argan, and almond. These oils naturally provide a lot of moisture to low porosity hair, which helps to condition your hair more effectively. [11]
    • Since an excessive amount of hair product might leave some gunk in your hair, try using an apple cider vinegar mixture to cleanse your scalp.
  3. Don’t worry about changing your hair care routine if you have medium porosity hair. Keep your hair products well-rounded, and be sure to have an equal amount of conditioners and protein-heavy strengthening products. [12]
    • Talk to a salon specialist if you have any questions about striking the perfect balance with your medium porosity hair.
  4. Wash out any products thoroughly using cold water, as the colder temperature helps the conditioning and moisturizing products to have a more lasting effect. Unlike hot water, cold temperatures force your hair cuticle cells to close, which keeps the newly-added conditioner inside of each hair strand for longer. [13]
  5. Buy a number of items ranging from conditioning butters to moisturizing hair creams. When purchasing a new shampoo and conditioner, look for products containing coconut oil. Additionally, aloe vera gel is another great moisturizing agent that you can use to rub through your hair. [14]
    • Aim for products that have a lot of protein in them—this helps your high porosity hair become stronger. [15]
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      Things You’ll Need

      Testing with Water

      • Glass
      • Spray bottle
      • Water
      • Hair strand

      Caring for Your Hair’s Porosity

      • Blow dryer
      • Heat cap (optional)
      • Shampoo
      • Conditioner
      • Apple cider vinegar (optional)
      • Deep conditioner
      • Hair strengthener

      Tips

      • If you want a more in-depth look at the makeup of your hair, consider ordering a lab test. [16]
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      Warnings

      • Applying a lot of heat to your hair with curlers and straighteners can damage and raise the porosity of your hair. Keep this in mind whenever you go to use heating devices on your hair. [17]
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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.exploratorium.edu/exploring/hair/hair_2.html
      2. ↑ https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/a28408775/hair-porosity-curls/
      3. ↑ https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/a28408775/hair-porosity-curls/
      4. ↑ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Nvb1082yCzc&t=4m25s
      5. ↑ Kana Ishii. Licensed Cosmetologist. Expert Interview. 22 December 2021.
      6. ↑ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PjOsKWZi-rc&t=2m29s
      7. ↑ Kana Ishii. Licensed Cosmetologist. Expert Interview. 22 December 2021.
      8. ↑ https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/a28408775/hair-porosity-curls/
      9. ↑ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HaAd8syyaOEt=5m3s
      1. ↑ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HaAd8syyaOE&t=6m17s
      2. ↑ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HaAd8syyaOE&t=7m1s
      3. ↑ https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/a28408775/hair-porosity-curls/
      4. ↑ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HaAd8syyaOE&t=8m15s
      5. ↑ https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/a28408775/hair-porosity-curls/
      6. ↑ https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/a28408775/hair-porosity-curls/
      7. ↑ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PjOsKWZi-rc&t=3m25s
      8. ↑ https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/a28408775/hair-porosity-curls/

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