Bluecatbaby asks…Last year I bought a Remington Wet 2 Straight iron. It is marketed as an iron that can be used on wet hair without causing the damage that other irons cause when used on wet hair. I actually have hardly used it because I am skeptical of its claims and I hate damaging my hair. Still, the user reviews for it are mostly raves. Can it really be used on wet hair without causing damage (beyond that which is caused by any flat iron)?
The Beauty Brains reply
As astute reader AleV pointed out in our Forum: “I don’t think this iron causes less damage than any other flat iron. When you apply the kind of heat an iron produces over the wet hair surface the water in it will also reach high temperatures like boiling, this is going to result in some sort of blisters in the cuticle, that means a lot of damage, more than if you use it on dry hair. This damage will occur no matter if the iron is “special” or not, so you better use it on dry hair with a heat protection product or a silicon serum.”
We’ve seen electron micrographs of the kind of damage that this “blister” phenomena causes so we know that’s accurate. The big question we have is how is this iron different than others?
Here’s what Remington says:
“Steam hydration therapy protects your hair from over-drying during this process by keeping the right amount of moisture locked in, ensuring that your hair stays healthy and sleek. This not only saves you the time of having to blow-dry before straightening, but also is better for your hair.”
We don’t really know what this means because rapidly heating wet hair with an flat iron is still damaging. Unless Remington is forthcoming with additional information about how this technology works, we agree with AleV’s assessment above.
{ 13 comments… add one }
I used this for years with no damage to my hair. My hair was sleek and a shiny. The problem I had is that this straightener doesn’t hold up well and broke twice. After second time I didn’t repurchase.
Will using a hair drying brush (like the babyliss big hair) be less damaging than this flat iron? I’d take a little damage if it means spending less time on my hair
Hi! I was wondering, how is “steam hydration therapy” supposed to work? I can’t say I’ve ever heard of it before.
I think it’s related to using steam to moisturize hair but in all our years in the industry we’ve never come across anything that says this really works.
It works !! I’ve used mine for 8 years, on long hair! Silky, and shiny, Beauticians can’t believe it’s not damaged! I recommend to any one that doesn’t want to spend a lot of time on their hair.
Reads like the steam ‘therapy’ is actually a sign of damage occurring.
I agree, “steam hydration therapy” sounds like a bunch of marketing mumbo jumbo. I fell for the hype and bought one of these a few years ago. I only used it on a short bob, so I figured my hair was healthy enough to withstand a little abuse. but when I grew it out, my ends looked so dry and frizzy and the damage was several inches up. now I just use this on dry hair only.
and like Jinxcat, mine is on the fritz now. it often shuts itself off after only one minute or so. I’ve had other cheap irons (Revlon and Conair) last much longer for me.
I too had this straightener, but I bought it years ago. It lasted for some time…until the cats pulled it off the counter by the cord… But I didn’t utilize the wet to straight aspect. The ONE time I did, it sounded like my hair was sizzling down to a crisp and the steam that came out the holes burned me. Now that I work in this industry, I can confidently say that this product is definitely not the best for your hair. Take the extra time to air dry your hair, or if you have to, blow dry. But, trapping your wet hair in with water that literally boils off, is a terrible idea
I just heard about the Remington 2-wet flat iron & it looked like it made the hair shinier etc. My hair is cut in a wedge so should I try this?
Hi Carolyn. There’s no technical reason it should make your hair shinier but perhaps someone else who has tried will leave a comment about using with a wedge cut.
I prefer Karmin 🙂
Just want to no if I should try it I hate blow drying then straightening buy like my hair straight so have to use a straightener every day my hair has finally gotten thicket due to biotin would useing this be ok or damaging
Sure, you can try it.