Is RO Water Good for Bathing? Let’s Find Out!
Written by: Alexandra Uta // Last Updated: May 10, 2023
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Did you know that the skin is the human body’s largest organ?
It sounds strange, as we tend to think of organs as delicate internal things that need our utmost care. Well, our skin does too. Like other organs, it can absorb things and react to stuff it doesn’t like.
It makes sense that it should be exposed to as few harmful chemicals as possible. So is RO water the best choice for that? Let’s find out.
In this article, we’ll discuss if RO water is good for bathing.
Contents
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Key Takeaways
- RO water is good for bathing and often better than unfiltered water. RO water can resolve skin conditions and hair issues. You may also require less soap.
- In most cases, using RO water for bathing is only practical if you have a whole house reverse osmosis system installed.
Is RO Water Good for Bathing?
So, is RO water good for bathing?
Technically, yes, RO water is ideal for bathing. Though, non-RO municipal water is considered safe in most cases, too.
However, using RO water for bathing isn’t practical unless you have a whole house reverse osmosis system, which comes at a considerable financial and time investment. A whole house RO system means you have RO-purified water at every tap in your home anyway. Filling an entire bathtub with an under sink reverse osmosis system would take ages…
Suppose you use RO water for bathing. In that case, you are avoiding water contaminants absorbing through your skin and adding to the potential toxic load in your body. It can also help reduce hair fall and prevent dry skin and rashes.
Lastly, many of the issues that come with using unfiltered water to bathe come from the fact that most water is hard water – which is an easier fix with a water softener rather than a whole house reverse osmosis system.
Reduces Build-Up of Soap Scum and Residue
Hard water can leave soap scum and residue behind, and it requires more scrubbing to remove. Reverse osmosis water is soft water, which makes cleaning both yourself and the tub much more manageable.
Improves Skin Conditions
Hard water can cause the skin to dry, exacerbating conditions such as psoriasis and eczema. Soft/RO water is gentler and less likely to strip your skin of its natural protective oils. RO water is also free of chemicals or contaminants that may cause skin reactions.
Improves Hair Quality and Reduces Hair Fall
RO water does not contain salts or chlorine that dry out your hair causing breakage and falling.
Use Less Soap
Hard water may form a barrier on your skin that prevents soap from washing you effectively. Soft water that comes with reverse osmosis helps the soap to work more effectively.
Better for Your Plumbing
Hard water can stain your bathroom fixtures and create scale in your plumbing, which may cause the pressure and performance of water to slow, and your home to require more frequent cleaning, maintenance, and repairs.
Contaminants in high amounts in feed water may also cause corrosion of pipes.
Note, however, that these issues can only be avoided using whole house reverse osmosis.
Further Reading:
Should You Be Using RO Waste Water for Bathing?
Reverse osmosis waste water should generally not be used for bathing, as it may contain high levels of toxic chemicals that could be absorbed by the skin (depending on the composition of your feed water).
Even showering has been shown to increase the toxic burden of certain chemicals in the body both from skin exposure and inhalation of vapor found in contaminated water.
If you have any thoughts about the question, can we use RO water for bathing, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below!
About the Author Alexandra Uta
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