Hey Everyone!
Well my wife and I are counting down to the closing date on our house. I just hope and pray that everything goes as planned, and there are no problems or delays. We have been really busy packing, signing papers, and so forth.
If everything goes smoothly, I should be in my new house within 3 weeks from today (although it could be sooner if we get lucky and they hurry with title searches and inspections). That also means I should be installing and experimenting with water filtration within a week or so after moving in.
Anyway, I have recently made a “vow” to not take 1 more shower in this nasty water I have in this city. It is just terribly hard water as I have posted before. The last time I took a shower here was September 4th, and afterwards my skin felt so tight, dry, and itchy (not the hives kind). It also made the hives more reactive.
So since September 4th, I have not showered, and only washed my hair using the nasty water here, and spot washed as needed. Then, yesterday, I was really wishing I could take a shower, and my wife and I decided to simply buy some distilled water, warm it, and use that to give me a “bath.”
So we went to our local grocery store, bought some distilled water, and headed home. Distilled water should naturally be soft and chemical free, because the distillation process removes trace minerals and chemicals.
Anyway, we got home and we poured about 2 1/2 gallons of this stuff into a pot, and heated it on the stove for a few minutes. I then got into the bath, and stood there and used a cup to pour the heated water on me, and then washed my hair with shampoo, rinsed, and then used soap.
After that, I rinsed several times with the pure distilled water. It felt much better on my skin, and left my skin feeling much more soft. Usually, my skin itches me to death afterwards, and feels so dry and tight. It was quite a dramatic difference once I used the distilled water, and I can’t wait to get a water softener.
Nasty Soap Curd Scum, Chemicals, and Dead Skin
My wife was in the bathroom with me helping me rinse, and when I was done she noticed something odd: My skin was very very flaky.
No big deal, right? But then she took her fingernails (she has long ones), and pressed her nail up against my stomach, and then made a long scratch down to my belly button.
She then looked at the inside of her fingernail, and the whole inside of her nail was filled with this strange white gunk. It looked kinda like white putty or something. She was like, “Oh my gosh…”
She then did this over and over, several times in different spots, and each time it would completely fill her nail with gunk. I have no idea what it was, but I suspect it was a combination of soap curd left on from soap residue, dead skin cells, and dried minerals from the hard water.
She did it to her arm and stomach, but nothing. She even washed it with water and so forth to make it wet to see if that was the reason…still nothing. Eventually, she was able to get some of it from the top of her scalp, and her leg, but it wasn’t near the quantity I had. The only thing we can figure is that the water is so hard here it has caused a nice “film” of gunk to gather on our skin.
At this point, my wife and I have a very strong reason to believe this is the cause of my hives. If it isn’t the direct cause, it at least is making it worse. But I suspect it could be the direct cause.
I think it is causing my hives in 2 ways: First my immune system is probably sensitive to one of the dissolved minerals in the tap water, which is coating my entire skin’s surface on what used to be a daily basis. This accounts for why it doesn’t affect everyone (like my wife).
Second, I think this soap curd is causing a film on my skin. Soap curd forms when the hard water minerals (calcium, magnesium, etc.) combine with soap to form a sticky substance called “curd” or “scum.” This sticks to everything (the shower, your skin, your pipes, etc.). It clogs pores, and also helps bacteria multiply and stay on your skin.
So if the water is behind this, it could be due to simple chemical sensitivity, and poral occlusion by the soap curd and/or bacteria. Again, I may be completely wrong, but it is sure worth it to me to test this theory myself.
The water softener will remove the dissolved minerals and metals in the water, replacing them with sodium ions. This should solve both the potential chemical sensitivity issue, and it will also prevent soap curd from forming (since there will be no minerals to form the curd). So I am super interested in trying this out, and experimenting with other filtration systems.
My Shower Plans for the Future: Distilled Water and Scrubbing
I am not taking 1 more shower in this place, unless it is distilled water from a jug. I will not let this nasty water touch my skin again (except to wash my hands).
My plans are to simply shower less often, and when I do shower, I will use distilled water from a jug. My wife said she is going to buy one of those really tough scrubbing pads from walmart, and scrub my skin really hard to try and remove that white film later this week.
The water is so much better on my skin, and feels incredible. I am interested to see if it helps my hives over time until I get the water softener. I know that as of right now, I am not quite as reactive as I was. However, it is difficult to tell because:
- I have only done this with distilled water 1 time so far, and
- I still have that nasty film on the majority of my body, which I hope to scrub off soon.
Once I do this for a while, and scrub that film off, it will be interesting to see if the hives improve. Of course, I will definitely update you with anything that I experience as always.
One thing is for sure: I am really excited about moving, and I can’t wait to install a water softening system. It will be expensive, but if it does cure or help the hives, it will be worth every penny.
I can’t wait to buy one, and give a full tutorial with pictures of how to install it. As I said, I am hopefully a month or so away at the most…wish me luck! Hopefully it will help my Cholinergic Urticaria.
Nick says
If you haven’t washed yourself for some time, then you skin will feel soft/smooth, even with hard water. Thats due to sebum that builds up a protective layer.
Ben says
Hey Nick,
Thanks for the comment. You are right in saying that the skin will naturally be softer if the oils have been on longer without being washed off.
However, I have gone a period of about 5 days before without showering. My skin was very oily feeling, and after the shower in the hard water, it felt terribly dry and itchy. Not so this time, and it felt much more smooth and so much less itchy.
So the water definitely has something to do with it. Furthermore, water softeners are very well known to give a slick and slimy feeling, leaving the skin feeling much more soft and supple due to no minerals being left on the surface (as opposed to the hard water).
If you could see my shower and feel my water, you would know just what I mean. It is just terrible here. The water department even got a really bad rating a couple of years ago during testing, and so the water quality is just terrible.
I will try to post more picks in the future showing how bad it is here. Even my family that lives just a few miles away (but they have a different water supply), is in utter shock when they see the pics I show them.
Again, I don’t know if this is the cause of my hives, but in the very least it can’t be helping them.
Maria says
I’m glad I found your blog. I moved in with my bf two years ago and we have THE WORST water here. From day one it burned my skin…it burns alll day long and itches and breaks out into a rash! It’s so awful. As soon as I shower elsewhere my skin feels better! (except for the local gym which also burns my skin). It’s damaged my skin so much. I have tried shower water softener and a filter combination. It helped for a few months…I’ve just refreshed the filter and it’s burning my skin again. I know our water source is ground water, there must be something I am allergic/sensitive too. My bf’s skin is also awful and rashy but he doesn’t complain about it as it seems his nerve endings aren’t as sensitive as mine (maybe cos he’s lived here longer?).
No matter what temperature the shower or bath is, even if I use ZERO product (I use all dermatological stuff etc) it STILL burns!!! HELP!
Hivesguy says
Hello, Maria.
Sorry to hear of your water and skin issues. The only advice I could give is this: Make sure you’re using a good non-drying, hypoallergenic soap. I use Dove sensitive skin. It is a moisturizing soap. There are other brands that would work as well.
Next, use a good lotion. I use Eucerin Calming Creme. It is pretty much the best lotion I’ve ever used to keep the skin moisturized. It is also highly recommended for people with skin issues.
You said you already tried changing the filter and that it didn’t help, but it’s important to use a good filter and change it regularly.
Finally, if any of the above doesn’t work, then you may consider buying distilled jugs of water at the store, heating it in a pot on the stove (don’t make it too hot), and then use that pot of water to simply sponge and rinse off. Try to only bathe 2-3 times per week.
It could also be that you have a food allergy or intolerance you don’t know about, which could be making your skin more reactive to the water.
I hope those suggestions help, and I hope you can get your skin feeling better soon.
God bless,
hivesguy
Maria says
Thanks Hivesguy! How did your skin go after moving house?
I am beginning to think it’s a contact allergy with metal in the water. If I stay at other houses were the water is not ground water, my skin is fine (even with the chlorine, I have no reaction). Last night I just had the water running over my wrist for a few seconds and loads of circle/flat hives started popping up and I get those raised lines that look like scratches. The burning all day long is unbearable. (Dr said it’s not ringworm)
Or I am wondering if I am also allergic to the KDF filter, it converts the chlorine into ‘harmless zinc chloride’. Is it possible? I need a filter that truly removes the metals and chemicals.
Thank you for your suggestions. I think I may spot bathe with distilled water for a couple of days. and see how I go. I am using ‘Kenkay Shower Gel’. I believe being ground water the levels of metals etc must change during the seasons. As sometimes the water feels softer and other times it’s harder. Something over the past few months has made bathing unbearable (as my filter was eliminating the problem for me in the past).
Hivesguy says
You’re welcome, Maria.
My skin did improve some after moving, but I still had cholinergic urticaria after that. What eventually solved that was changes in my diet.
It is possible that something in the water (or that filter) is breaking you out since you don’t have the issue when bathing elsewhere. I’m sorry to hear it, and I hope you can figure out a good solution to avoid (large water softener or reverse osmosis filter, perhaps?).
God bless,
Hivesguy
Maria says
Cheers. What did you change in your diet? I saw an immunologist, I do have the Celiacs gene so trying to stay away from gluten. The rash is so painful. I noticed the water pressure is very high, I don’t think that helps either (although I did try a luke-warm bath).
It freaks me out how my bf has the same rash and he has dermatographism. Do you think we were both bit by a bug or something? The rash looks like lyme disease or contact dermatitis (probably the latter) :S. I need a break somewhere else to see if drinking different water and bathing in different water my skin returns to normal, it’s never been quite this bad!! I need the water tested properly again as the test done only showed levels of hardness/chlorine etc and not what was actually in the water in terms of metals etc. I’m considering moving back to NZ (great water, never come across hard water there before).
Hivesguy says
Hey Maria. You can find my current diet on that page (just click the link). It’s hard to say what could be causing you and your boyfriends skin symptoms. It could be water, food allergies, and other factors. It can be very frustrating trying to pinpoint the cause sometimes.
I hope you both find relief from your skin problem soon.