Adelaide Water & Skin: Why Showers Can Leave Skin and Hair Feeling Dry or Irritated

Adelaide Water & Skin: Why Showers Can Leave Skin and Hair Feeling Dry or Irritated

If your skin or scalp feels tight, dry, itchy, or sensitive after showering in Adelaide, you’re not imagining it — and it’s probably not your products.

One of the most common causes of post-shower dryness, flaking, and irritation in Adelaide is the shower water itself.

Adelaide’s tap water is safe to drink, but the mineral hardness + chlorine levels can affect your skin’s moisture barrier — especially on sensitive areas like the arms, legs, chest, scalp, and face.

Let’s break this down simply.

Want the full Australia-wide breakdown?

If you'd like a deeper look at how water quality affects skin and hair across Australia, start here:

→ What’s In Australian Shower Water?

Why Adelaide Water Can Feel Harsh on Skin

Adelaide’s water is sourced from the River Murray and local reservoirs, and it’s treated with chlorine to keep it safe as it travels through long distribution networks.

But chlorine doesn’t just disinfect water — it can interact with your skin.

Chlorine can:

  • Strip your natural skin oils

  • Disrupt the moisture barrier

  • Increase dryness, itching, and irritation

  • Make skin feel “warm” or reactive post-shower

This is why your skin may feel:

  • Tight right after towel drying

  • Itchy or irritated without visible redness

  • Like moisturiser sinks in fast but doesn’t last

  • More reactive after hot showers

If showering makes your skin feel drier — not cleaner, this is usually the reason.

Adelaide Water Hardness: What It Means for Your Skin

Adelaide is known nationally for having some of the hardest water in Australia, often landing in the moderately hard to hard range.

This means the water contains higher levels of calcium and magnesium minerals, which can:

  • Make water feel “grabby”, sticky, or filmy on skin

  • Cause products to rinse less cleanly

  • Reduce hydration levels after showering

  • Leave a residue that disrupts the skin barrier

And when hard minerals + chlorine combine, their effects on dryness and sensitivity become stronger.

Common Signs Your Shower Water Is Affecting Your Skin

If any of these sound familiar, the water might be the underlying cause:

  • Skin feels tight, itchy, or uncomfortable after showering

  • Moisturiser helps but dryness returns quickly

  • Scalp feels sensitive, flaky, or irritated

  • You get “random irritation” with no clear cause

  • Sensitivity worsens after hot showers

  • Skin feels rougher or less elastic over time

It’s not that your skincare or haircare routine is failing —
your skin barrier is being stressed upstream.

And What About Hair? (Adelaide’s Hidden Issue)

Many Adelaide locals report issues with:

  • Brittle or rough-feeling hair

  • Frizz that doesn’t improve with products

  • Lack of shine or bounce

  • Colour fading faster than expected

  • “Product not rinsing out properly”

This happens because mineral-heavy water coats the hair shaft, preventing proper moisture absorption and making strands more fragile.

Short-Term Fixes (That Help… But Only Temporarily)

You may have already tried:

  • Thicker moisturisers

  • Fragrance-free or sensitive-skin cleansers

  • Cooler showers

  • Hair masks or oils

  • Scalp treatments

These can help the symptoms —
but the underlying problem resets every time you shower.

The Long-Term Fix: Make the Water Gentler

Changing the water at the shower supports your skin and scalp directly.

A filtered shower head designed for Adelaide’s conditions can:

  • Reduce chlorine exposure

  • Soften the feel of mineral-rich water

  • Help your skin retain moisture longer

  • Reduce post-shower itchiness or tightness

  • Support scalp comfort & hydration

  • Help hair feel smoother & easier to manage

Over time, people often notice:

  • Skin feels calmer, softer, and less reactive

  • Moisturiser finally works

  • Scalp doesn’t flake or sting as easily

  • Hair becomes smoother and less brittle

  • Showers feel soothing again — not stressful

Your skin finally gets a break.

See How Flowy Helps

The Flowy Filtered Showerhead is designed for Australian water — including Adelaide’s hard mineral + chlorine profile.

It installs in seconds, requires no plumbing, and helps your shower feel naturally gentle again.

→ See how Flowy works

Not Sure How Your Suburb Compares?

Take the quick 60-second quiz to see how your water may be affecting your skin, hair, and scalp.

→ Take the Skin & Hair Quiz

Clear, simple, personalised — no pressure.

Back to blog