TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands Water conservation/ hair care

I've been reading the thread about water usage and it got me a little nervous! We'll be on a 48 ft cat with 4 teenage girls with long hair and who like to shower every day. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Yikes.gif" alt="" /> I've never lived on a boat - how do you take care of long hair when it gets all tangled from swimming every day?

Luckily we will also have two boys ages 9 & 10 who hate to shower so maybe they will balance out the girls! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Wink.gif" alt="" />

There's no problem showering every day - turn on the water, get hair wet - turn it off - shampoo (or just condition as my wife does sometimes) and then rinse.

Hasn't seemed to be a problem for anyone that has joined us.

When I had long hair first day or so I got it braided. So easy to swim, rinse, dry. They have numerous places to have it done. My favorite is Strawberry at Sidney's Peace and Love JVD.

Lots of people end up showering off the transom, on the scoops. (the French and I do it naked) There is fresh water available all over these islands. And some of the newer boats have watermakers on board. Trying to conserve water seems silly considering it is so easy to replenish.

Well.. there's conservation and then there's uncommon sense. It's not that hard to keep usage down without being ridiculous about it.. Just don't keep it running unnecessarily and keep showers short. Same goes for dishes. We always do it this way and its no big deal and we only fill up every few days with large groups.

With 4 long haired teenagers I'd surrender! Actually, maytrix is right, a little fresh water rinse, some suds then rinse. Doesn't use much water. Didn't they call that a Navy shower? If you anticipate at least 4 20-30 minute showers a day you should be asking where to stop for water. Like they said in the other post it's easy to get water in the BVI and not expensive.

What amazes, and bugs me personally, is all the hair that builds up in the cockpit after all that brushing/combing. You might advise them to try to do that on the sugar scoop as much as possible.

Phew- you're making me feel much better about it! I did think of the hair braiding but not sure if any of the girls will go for it. I had it done when I lived on an island for a summer (1 shower with 10 teenagers!) and it made things so simple.

Matt- we were up by you for Christmas- my kids were SO disappointed with the warm weather! Of course now that we are back in FL my mom is sending us snow pictures.

Yeah, it was snowing, now it seems to be more sleet. I'd much prefer all snow.. going to be an ugly mess to clean up in the morning.

Please tell me they aren't counting on blow dryers and curling irons as well? <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Rofl.gif" alt="" />

Quick showers are key....planning a stop somewhere to refill your water tanks isn't a bad idea either. I'm assuming you have a generator on a cat that big?

This is a great idea...

Haha- no, they aren't that bad! They are all pretty low maintenance, I just know my girls hate when their hair gets all tangled from the salt water/snorkeling. Once it is untangled they will all be fine with air dry and ponytails. . I feel like I've heard that some swimmers put conditioner in their hair before they swim to keep it smooth- I'll have to look into that too.

My 14 yr old braids hers. I would prepare them.

There is always another solution - haircut prior to the trip

I've always agreed with Matt but this time, blasphemy!!!

Don't over worry about water.
1) verify that tanks are full before you leave the dock.
2) monitor water use, party by guages if they work and also by when a tank runs out.
3) know where you can get water and don't take chances when you are on your final tank.

Keep track of

I have long hair and it gets very tangled out snorkeling. I have discovered the 'silk' serums work perfectly for combing out hair after a boat shower.

For long hair, try to encourage them to brush their hair topside as much as possible, otherwise a lot of hair down below that gets stuck to all the bare feet and inevitably ends up in the bunks.

Showers on the stern, or at least washing hair on the stern is required on our boat. Then use the silk serum as the conditioner - it is a 'leave in' type product and then you don't have to use a lot of water to rinse out conditioner. The comb or brush will just glide through the hair, all tangles gone. It is miracle stuff!

I also have long tangly prone hair, the buddy system top side is best. Mostly for the rinsing part. Just make sure they are lathering while the water is off, have another crew member hold the stern shower head to get a good rinse. I find the snorkle masks always tangle my hair the most but either way the salt water will make brushing a nightmare without a decent fresh water wash and conditioner. They make a great brush that my daughter and I use that helps detangle also, it's purple, but don't know the name. I'll have to look up the link. Definitely have them brush on the stern scoops as others have mentioned. They can still shower privately but always do the hair portion topside, it's just so much easier.

The transom shower has been a godsend for me too. Long hair is a pain but the ability to throw it into a ponytail while sailing makes it so low maintenance. This time I will bring my serum along. What a great idea. I use it at home all of the time but would never had thought to bring it with me. This forum is fantastic. I have always gotten great ideas here. Thanks!

I have very tangly hair even though it is now shorter. Mine gets very tangly with sailing due to the wind and with swimming and snorkeling. All here have good suggestions. I dd the braiding once and it was easy but not for everyone. I like to use a spray in conditioner after towel drying (also use a regular conditioner after shampoo) that is made for detangling. This makes the comb out much easier and I always bring a very wide tooth comb. Getting a neoprene piece that slips on the back of the mask also helps keep the strap from getting tangled up in your hair.. Most dive shops sell these and they also make it easy to identify your mask from others. Doing one long braid (or two) or a ponytail most of the time when exposed to wind and in the water also helps.

I agree with the braiding. First item on my list is a visit to Marcia on the beach in CGB to have my beard reworked. Actually will be all new ones this February, cut them off in May (8 inches). Eliminates the need for a hairdryer too <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" />

Some of the good leave-in conditioners are a good idea too.

I recommend wetting hair with fresh water before entering the salt water. It helps to prevent the hair from soaking up the salt.

My go-to hair style when sailing is a pony tail with a baseball cap. For evenings, I might use a clip to put my hair up.

Karen

this is the brush, it really works great on wet hair. The Wet Brush

Be careful. Conditioner makes the deck and scoops slippery.

So does the spray suntan lotion - I try to discourage that from being used on the boat.

I always do the conditioner on the scoop only and then the crazy brushing extravaganza and at the end the loose hairs and any residues can be rinsed down pretty easily with a bucket of salt water and some Dawn if needed. It's just a matter of being mindful and I agree, a newbie would need to be told to do this.

I hate that stuff - gets everywhere but on you. And it empties after about two days of use.

Spray on sunscreen? Permanently discolors cushions and seat covers with orange streaks. The only thing worse is DEET dissolving your plastic bits.

Cheers, RickG

I have long thick curly hair. Just spent a week on a cat in Nov for sailing school.
The snorkel mask headband was awful for pulling out & tangling my hair. I just ordered a neoprene snorkel head strap for our upcoming trip in March (less than $10 on Amazon)
My routine was: jump in the water to get wet. Soap up - including hair - on the transom/steps. Jump in and rinse. Climb out & use conditioner and then rinse off completely - hair too - with fresh water. Left my hair down and let it air dry in the evening and it was pretty dry by bedtime. I wore it in a ponytail during the day to keep it out of my face. The ocean breezes at night were enough to air dry my hair.

We always keep Lemon Joy on the swim platform.
Soaps up nicely in salt water!

i have 3 words - moroccan hair oil - a dime size amount everyday leaves my long hair silky and easy to comb through no matter what the activity, get the real stuff from the salon not the stuff from walmart, target, etc. which I believe is called aragon. in canada the large bottle in a salon costs $40, there's also a small bottle which is enough for me for 2 weeks and at a lower price.

When I would SCUBA I would use leave in conditioner on dry hair before we went down to prevent it from attaching to the mask. THAT was painful even with a pony tail in and it's easily preventable. Have them use a 2 in 1 to speed it up and then have some leave-in conditioner to get a brush through it.

When I braided my hair I almost always wore a do-rag for snorkeling and diving. Even with a good strap it was easier not to pull the braids and it protected the scalp from sunburn.

You guys are the best! I will play around with a few of these options before we go.

Glad to learn that the spray sunscreen isn't good for the boat - I'll pack lots of the regular stuff.

Yup - this stuff is indeed a miracle-worker - worth every cent!

I have a teenage daughter who has long hair and takes extremely long showers at home. Best way to conserve water is to do what CottageGirl said: jump in water, soap, jump in again to rinse, apply conditioner, jump in again to rinse, come out and rinse with fresh water, brush it out. Viola, clean, fresh hair. My daughter also keeps her hair in a long braid down her back for most of the trip to prevent tangling and split ends.

Sounds like a whole lot of work to me!! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Laugh.gif" alt="" /> That's one of the reasons why I'm not a sailboat person--I love my showers! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" />

After 10's of charters all over the world. In the BVI do not worry about it. Do not waste any emotion or drama over water. There are plenty of places to get water. Start by putting an extra gallon of jug water on the boat for each person if you should happen to run out. Until you figure out your crews consumption habits and preferences. Get water whenever you can. Make sure everyone gets a turn holding the hose. I find once you hold the hose filling the tanks. Everyone gains a better respect for water. The same goes once you have to clean up sand by the way. Use of the aft shower and buddy rinse approach can also be a big help on the water frugality efforts. The key whether you are rinsing dishes or bathing is to never leave the water running. Turn it on, turn it off the open running tap is the threat or the enemy. Note: I said do not waste your energy worrying about this in the BVI. But, with today younger set. I am not sure the measure of gallons or liters means anything to them. Most do get minutes. Take a bucket or jug and time how long it takes to fill one gallon. Divide by your capacity and determine the estimated number of minutes of water the boat has. That make the amount of water relative to a wider group. Then there is that reminder that someone must hold the hose to put every gallon back in. Have fun! All the teenagers who have traveled with us have without issue.

We have 2, 5 gallon showers. You can get these sun showers at Walmart and they fold up nicely. You can use the boom or a spare halyard. If you strap them on the deck they get quite warm