How to Do a Bleach Bath for Your Hair

Bleach is extremely useful for dyeing your hair brighter shades because it's the only product that can lighten hair substantially. In fact, if you've dyed your hair with a permanent dye, it's practically the only way you can lighten it at all. Unfortunately, it can also be quite damaging, but luckily there is a way to limit the damage and still get extensive hair lightening.

Sometimes you don't need to perform a full bleach process to lighten hair effectively, but dye would still be too weak to use as an alternative. This is where the bleach bath technique becomes a useful alternative. A bleach bath is prepared in a way that makes it a gentler option while still producing significantly more lightening than is possible through other methods.

Read on to learn all about the technique, when you should use it, and how to prepare and apply a bleach wash at home for easy results with minimal hassle.

What Is a Bleach Bath?

Usually, when you bleach your hair, you mix bleach powder with developer and apply it to dry hair. This standard application technique is an effective way to lighten your hair, but it can be overkill if you don't need a lot of lightening or you're dealing with fragile hair.

While you can mix the powder with a lower volume of developer to reduce its strength, this can still be very harsh on your hair. A bleach bath—also known as a bleach wash or soap cap—is a milder alternative to this process, and it takes much less knowledge and skill for you to apply one at home compared to traditional methods.

Suppose the idea of lightening your hair intimidates you, or you're worried about your ability to apply the product properly yourself. In that case, a bleach wash is an excellent option because it's less likely to cause significant irritation or lead to uneven results. It can be the ideal way to become more comfortable lightening your hair at home

Bleach Bath vs. Regular Bleaching

Bleach baths differ from regular bleach application in a couple of ways, and every hairdresser has their own method for performing one. The main differences include that:

• A shampoo is added to the bleach mixture
• The formula is applied to wet hair instead of dry hair
• It is generally mixed with a lower volume of peroxide

These qualities lead to a more dilute mixture of bleach that is far gentler on your hair and scalp. On top of this, applying the product to wet hair means you can cover your whole head much more quickly, and the results are very even and consistent throughout your hair.

If you've ever struggled with uneven hair lightening, a bleach wash may be the perfect technique to improve your results and confidence while attempting lighter shades of hair color.

When Should You Use a Bleach Bath?

Bleach baths are handy for a few reasons due to their milder lightening action and ease of application. The best situations to use one include:

• Stripping out hair dye
• Correcting over-toned hair
• Lightening hair one level
• Lightening fragile hair

Stripping Out Traces of Dye

If you dye your hair with bright colors and you change these colors all the time, you can use a bleach bath to remove stubborn traces of color that have yet to wash out. In this case, because the bleach is diluted and isn't in contact with your hair for very long, minimal damage occurs compared to a regular bleach process.

Recommended

The Story of Moustaches

Lifting Stubborn Permanent Dye

A bleach wash can also be used to strip out permanent hair dye when it turns out too dark or in situations where you need to remove a buildup of color. In this case, however, hair dye remover is much more effective and gentle on your strands, so you shouldn't use a bleach bath unless the dye remover fails to lift enough of the color out.

For stubborn color or excessive dye buildup that doesn't respond readily to dye remover, a bleach wash is an effective option that can strip out a lot of the remaining dye while still being gentle on your hair.

Lightening Hair One Level

Of course, you can also lighten your hair with a bleach bath in the same way you can with a regular application of bleach. When used in this way, the technique provides much gentler bleaching action and may cause less damage to fragile hair, but you won't see the same amount of lift that a full bleach process would provide.

The volume of developer used plays a significant role in how much lift is attainable, like with regular bleaching. While it's possible to use a higher strength to achieve more lift, this does also increase potential damage, so you have to make a tradeoff, depending on whether you prefer milder action or superior pigment removal.

Correcting Over-Toned Hair

A bleach wash is a reliable way to deal with hair that has turned out too dark or absorbed too much tone. Unlike dye remover, it works on any kind of dye, including semi-permanent products. You can also apply the mixture for just a few minutes to quickly strip out extra color sooner than it would otherwise wash out naturally.

Lightening Fragile Hair

Use a bleach wash when you have fragile hair and only want to lighten it a little. It is also an ideal method for color correction on hair that is already damaged. Still, you should always be careful working with damaged hair, even with a milder preparation like this.

Wondering which formula is right for your own needs? Check the handy table below for a quick cheatsheet to aid your decision.

What Type of Bleach to Use for Your Hair