In the beauty community, we dare not leave a stone unturned! That means even the most out-of-the-box questions are looked into, researched, and answered.
For example, there may be a number of you wondering about what the best ways are to store your cosmetic products. You may have heard of people chilling their skincare, but what about your hair care? More specifically, your shampoos and conditioners!
So, does shampoo and conditioner freeze? The answer is yes, it does freeze. But there are some things to keep in mind, especially if you’re thinking of storing your product like this repeatedly. Just because these products can freeze doesn’t mean they’re made to do so.
Keep reading to learn all the ins and outs of freezing your shampoos and conditioners, and whether or not it’s a storage technique worth trying out yourself!
Can Shampoo And Conditioners Freeze?
While you may think otherwise because of the thick consistency, shampoos and conditioners can turn frozen in a standard freezer (or by leaving them outside during a snowy night).
They begin their chilly change at around 26°F, so simply popping your bottles in the freezer for a couple of hours is all it takes to get a serious transformation going.
One of the main ingredients in shampoo and conditioner is water, which is what allows your formulas to freeze after some time in the cold weather. As your products sit in these low temperatures, the water molecules will coagulate and bond with each other, changing the texture of your formula.
Will My Shampoos And Conditioners Turn Rock Solid?
The answer to this question lies in the individual formulation of your shampoo and conditioner.
While it’s not advisable to use this experiment as a method of seeing the quality of your shampoo, it is notable that different ingredient lists may leave you with different freezing consistencies!
For example, if you have a shampoo or conditioner that has a shorter ingredient list, or one made of “cleaner” or more naturally derived additives, it’s likely that your product will freeze into an ice-like form, and will take less time to harden overall.
If you put your bottles in the freezer and find that the consistency turns more slushy, or if they don’t harden entirely, it could be possible that your shampoo and conditioner have higher percentages of alcohol in their formulas.
Should you be curious about the freezing time of your products, we recommend squeezing some product into a plastic cup (like the kind you use for condiments) and placing it in the freezer. That way, you don’t compromise the rest of your formula if it doesn’t work out.
Will My Products Change After They Defrost?
Because shampoos and conditioners aren’t meant to be placed in the freezer, doing so can change the formulas of your product entirely. Even trying this out once can compromise the integrity of your cleanser and conditioner, so this may not be an experiment you want to try on items you’ve splurged on.
One of the biggest reasons we would lean more towards the avoidance of this method is because of the changes your products undergo when they freeze. Like we mentioned earlier, all of the water in your shampoo and conditioner formulas will consolidate, leaving for an uneven distribution of preservatives throughout the rest of your product.
While some of your products can return back to their normal state if you shake them after defrosting, others may be more susceptible to the growth of bacteria and other contaminants.
Are Thawed Shampoo And Conditioner Safe For My Hair?
If you’ve defrosted your shampoos and conditioners and can’t seem to get them back to their original consistency, we would advise against using them on your hair.
Taking the risk and using your products in their compromised state may not make your hair fall out at the root, but it could keep you from cleaning your hair effectively since the ingredients aren’t properly distributed throughout the bottle.
Repeatedly storing your products in the freezer could shorten their shelf life by a substantial amount. If you freeze a shampoo or conditioner that’s already nearing it’s expiration date, you may discover a foul smelling odor coming from your bottles post-defrost.
Of course, if you’re not a fan of the smell of your products once they’re out of the freezer, they’re probably not going to be effective in cleansing your hair!
Final Thoughts
While popping your favorite hair care products into the freezer isn’t standard by any means, curiosity can get the best of you, and you may find yourself wondering what could become of your shampoo and conditioner after a couple of hours chilling out.
After this read, we hope you understand the potential risks involved with this unorthodox beauty experiment (but that you have fun if you try it out anyway).
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