How to Wash & Condition a Human Hair Wig

In this article, you will learn how to correctly wash your human hair wig.  Here is what you’ll need:

  1. Sink or wash basin.
  2. A sulfate-free shampoo & conditioner (these should not contain alcohols or propylene glycol).
  3. Either a wide-tooth comb, or preferably, a wet brush.
  4. A towel.
  5. Styrofoam head or wig rack.

Shampooing

First, fill a sink with warm water. You don’t want it to cold if the hair is remy hair because hair cuticles respond better with warm water. The water should be comfortably warm, if it burns your hand, it’s too hot! Fill the sink high enough so that the wig can be completely submerged.

Next, add roughly an ounce of shampoo to the water. Mix the water really well. We don’t strictly recommend shampooing the wig while it’s on a head. The reason for this is because it can be frustrating and not as easy to wash properly.  It is also very difficult to keep the head steady in the sink!

The best way to wash the wigs is by sectioning it.

  • Hold the wig the wig from inside the cap.
  • Place your thumb over the hair part so that most of the wig is distributed into the back over your fingers.
  • Take the wig and begin submerging it into the water; let it soak for a few seconds.
  • Do not scrub the wig or swish it around.
  • Remove the wig from the water by pulling it straight up.
  • Using a dipping motion, gently run your hand down the hair to remove excess water.

If you feel like your wig is very dirty you can let it soak for a few minutes, but do not leave it in for too long.

Now you may drain the water from the sink or basin. Run the water and start rinsing the wig. Make sure that you keep all the hair running the same direction. Whether the wig is long or short, always try to rinse from the top down. After doing this for 10-15 seconds, flip the cap inside out to ensure you rinse it well.

Conditioning

For the conditioning phase, we are going to fill the sink up with water again. However, this time, we only need just enough to dilute the conditioner.

  • When the sink or basin is ready, squeeze a decent amount of conditioner directly into the water.
  • Mix it well to ensure it diluted into the water. Do not apply the conditioner directly onto the base of the wig, as that can cause premature hair loss if the conditioner gets stuck.

Begin the dipping process once again. If you feel  the wig needs extra conditioning dip the hair and then let it set out and stay in the hair for up to about three minutes.

Rinsing

After you feel the wig is well conditioned, you’re going to then rinse with cold water. If done properly, there should few to no tangles in the hair.

If there are tangles in various area in your wig, you can take your wide tooth comb and gently work it through the ends. While holding the wig very well from the base. To ensure the wig is tangle free, use the wet brush , which is a great detangling brush for wet hair.

Combing

Do not hold the wig from the cap and start combing it from the top. If you do this, you risk pulling hair out and causing damage. Instead, grasp the hair mid-way down and begin brushing the ends. Slowly and gently work your way upward until you reach the hand holding the hair (mid-length).

Now that that process is complete, you are going to use cold water to really rinse all the base material, and get rid of any conditioner that may be left over. You will find this easier by turning the wig inside out.

Rinse until the water runs clean.

Drying

The final step is to gently squeeze your hand down from the top of the wig to the bottom. This will remove the excess water. After this step, lay the wig in a towel and gently fold the ends underneath it. Loosely roll it into the towel, and then give it a nice press. Not very firm, but just enough to remove the excess water.

At this point, your wig is clean!  You can either put it on a wig drying rack to dry, on your foam head, or you put it on your head and begin styling it as usual. Before you store the wig or air dry it, brush it out as straight as possible while it on the head. Then, let it dry overnight.

This will make the hair very flat. Human hair wigs can be blow dried, but be careful not to burn the hair or expose it to excessive heat which can damage and reduce he longevity of the hair. If you’re going for a straight sleek look, you can use an anti-frizz product.

How Often Do You Need to Wash Your Wig?

Now that the process is done, you may be wondering how often you need to wash you wig. The answer depends on how often you wear it. This could mean you should wash your wig anywhere between every two to four weeks. If you’re someone who only wears it maybe once or twice a week, probably only do it if you shampoo it once a month.

If the wig is worn more often, it may need to be washed more often. Of course, you may need to account for environmental factors in you are as well, such as humidity.

Regardless, you can save money by washing your human hair wig by yourself. Just follow our steps!