How to Take Care of Synthetic Hair Extensions

Co-authored by Nikia Londy

Last Updated: November 10, 2022 References Approved

Synthetic hair has made lots of technological advancements in recent years. In many cases, the texture and look of the hair feels and looks just like human hair. It also can be worn straight out of the box, unlike human hair, which usually needs styling first. Wave and curl patterns in synthetic hair have a “memory” wave, which allows the curls to bounce back without much effort, and it won’t frizz or droop in humid weather. However, because synthetic hair has different properties from human hair, you have to care for the hair differently in order to make it last as long as possible.^{[1]
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Part 1

Part 1 of 4:

Washing Your Synthetic Hair Extensions

1
Purchase a mild shampoo. The shampoo should be a shampoo specifically formulated for synthetic hair. A shampoo for synthetic wigs works fine on synthetic extensions as well. However, if you cannot find a shampoo for synthetic hair, then a mild shampoo works fine too.
- Not all shampoos are labeled mild or strong, so look for a shampoo without “sulfates,” which is a strong cleansing agent. Shampoos without sulfates are much gentler on the hair, and they’re usually labeled as “sulfate-free” on the front of the bottle.^{[2]
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- You should be able to buy shampoos for synthetic wigs and extensions at a beauty supply store or wig store. (Try only to use conditioner if you can.) That said, you should only wash synthetic hair if it is smelly or visibly dirty. Washing will not add shine or strengthen the hair, and you should not wash it too often.
2
Comb out tangles with a wide tooth comb gently. A wide tooth comb won’t snag the hair like a comb with smaller teeth does. Work from the ends of the hair to the roots as you gently comb the tangles out. In other words, work from the bottom up.
- To make the combing process easier, wet the hair by spritzing it with a spray bottle filled with water or detangling spray. Then, comb the hair.
- If the hair has a really tight curl pattern, use your fingers to comb the hair. Your fingers are much gentler, won’t snag the hair and won’t disrupt the curl pattern like a comb does.
- If you are wearing a wig or clip-in extensions, you might find it easier to take them off and then comb them. Purchase a wig block at a beauty supply store, and set the wig on the block with T-pins. This will help you comb the hair.
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3
Fill up a sink basin with water. The water should be cool to lukewarm -- not hot. Make sure that the water is not too hot or it might affect the smoothness or texture of the hair. Fill up the sink to a level high enough to immerse all of the hair in the water.
4
Mix a capful of shampoo formulated for synthetic hair into the water. If you are washing a lot of hair, then mix two capfuls of shampoo into the water. Use your best judgment to decide if you need one or two capfuls. You don’t want to use too much shampoo because you don’t want the cleanser to strip the hair of any coatings that give it a sheen or change the look and feel of the hair.
- Using too much shampoo or a harsh shampoo can make the hair look dull.
5
Immerse your wig or hair extensions in the water. The hair should be fully submerged. Make sure it absorbs the water. Push it down under the water if necessary. If the hair is not wet enough, then the shampoo won’t be able to cleanse the hair.
6
Swish the hair around in the water by moving it from side to side. This is a method of agitating the hair without rubbing or scrubbing. Then, dunk the hair up and down. Go back and forth between swishing and dunking the hair until you think it is clean.^{[3]
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- Avoid rubbing the hair in circles, as this may cause more tangles.
7
Rinse the hair with cool water. Cool water closes the hair cuticles on human hair. On synthetic hair, cool water won’t disrupt any of the coatings on the hair or alter the curl pattern like hot water can. So, rinse out the hair thoroughly with cool water until all of the lather has rinsed out and the water runs clear.

Part 2

Part 2 of 4:

Conditioning the Hair

1
Purchase a detangling conditioner. You want to prevent the hair from detangling at all costs. If the hair gets tangled, then you will have to painstakingly detangle it without messing up the texture, curl or wave pattern of the hair. Since the hair is not natural, moisturizing conditioner won’t be as effective as it is on human hair because the synthetic hair can’t absorb it.
- Conditioners are usually labeled by type. So, they will say moisturizing, volumizing, or detangling on the front of the bottle.
- If you are still having trouble finding a detangling shampoo, check the children’s section. Several companies make shampoos and detangling conditioners for children.
- If you want to add some sheen back to the hair, purchase a conditioner with some natural oils such as avocado or jojoba oil.
2
Refill the sink basin with water. Use cool water. Cool water is the best temperature to use for synthetic hair. Fill it up to a level high enough to cover all of your hair once you put it in the sink.
- If you're wearing your extensions, your hair should still be wet after rinsing out the shampoo.
3
Add a capful of conditioner to the water. Again, if you are washing and conditioning a lot of hair, use your best judgement. Add two capfuls of conditioner. You don’t want to add too much though. Too much conditioner can weigh the hair down.^{[4]
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- If you are wearing your extensions as you condition them, add one or two capfuls directly to your hair and distribute evenly.
4
Swish the hair back and forth in the water. Agitate the hair by gently moving it back and forth in the water, just as you did before. You want just a bit of the conditioner to grab hold of the hair and condition it. Too much will weigh the hair down and make it look greasy since synthetic hair can’t absorb the conditioner the way human hair can. Keep swishing the hair around for a few minutes until you think the hair is conditioned.
5
Let the conditioner sit in the hair. Do not rinse it out.The conditioner should remain in the hair even if it is not a leave-in. If you prefer, use a leave-in conditioner on the hair instead. Use a water-based leave-in that typically comes in a spritz-style spray bottle.^{[5]
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- You also can let the hair sit in the conditioner water for 10 to 15 minutes if you're washing the extensions in the sink.
- You can make your own leave-in conditioner by pouring a cap of detangling conditioner into a spray bottle and filling the bottle with water. Shake to combine the two ingredients, and spray on hair as needed.
- If you think that you have added a bit too much conditioner to the hair, spritz the hair with water from a spray bottle to gently rinse out some of it.

Part 3

Part 3 of 4:

Drying

1
Squeeze the excess water out of the hair. Simply place the hair in the palm of your hand. Then, close your hand as if you’re making a fist to squeeze out the excess water. Work from the ends of the hair to the top while gently squeezing. Don’t rub the hair against a towel, and don’t ring the hair the way you would ring out a towel.
2
Place the hair extensions on a towel. Place each extension on a towel with space between each track so that the pieces don’t overlap. They will take longer to dry if you pile them on top of each other. Don’t disturb the hair by brushing or combing it while it is wet
- If you’re drying a wig, place it on a wig stand to dry.
3
Air-dry the hair. Don’t use a blowdryer. Blow drying the hair can permanently change the curl or wave pattern of the hair. In other words, it can damage the hair. Some synthetic hair has been specially formulated to work with hot tools, but most have not. It should say if you can use hot tools on your synthetic hair on the package . Even then, check the label to see if you can blow dry the hair.
- For best results, allow the hair to air dry even if you can use hot tools on the hair.
- This applies to clip-in and non-clip-in extensions.

Part 4

Part 4 of 4:

Styling

1
Comb with a wide-toothed comb. Using a wide-toothed comb ensures that you’ll have far fewer snags when you’re combing the hair since the teeth are wider. If the curl pattern is especially tightly curled, use your fingers to finger comb the hair. In this case, your fingers are your best tool.
- Don’t brush curly or wavy synthetic hair with bristled brushes such as boar bristle brushes. These kinds of brushes can mess up the pattern and texture of the hair.
2
Spritz the hair with water to comb it. If the hair is curly, wavy or textured, this will be especially helpful. Water helps add slip so that you can move the comb through the hair easily. If you need more slip, add a little bit of leave-in conditioner to the water in the spray bottle. You also can purchase wig spray to comb the hair.
- Lots of synthetic hair is tightly curled textured hair because synthetic hair can recreate the texture and curls of specific types of hair that is difficult to recreate with straight human hair -- the original state of most extensions. Synthetic hair creates texture and holds the curl and waves better than human hair does. So, if you’re using curly and wavy synthetic hair and you want it to last longer, spritz the hair with water and comb through with your fingers.
3
Set hot tools to a cool setting. If you have synthetic hair that you can use hot tools on, make sure you use a cool setting on the flat iron or curling iron. Otherwise, you might melt the hair. Also, styling changes that you make with hot tools can set the hair permanently. So, be careful when you’re using flat irons and curling irons.^{[6]
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- You also can curl straight synthetic hair with hot water. Set the hair on rollers, or whatever you’re using as a curling rod. Then, dip the hair in very hot water, or spray hot water on the hair if you're wearing them. Place the hair on a towel to dry or let it air dry, and then remove the curling rods once it’s dry. Only do this if you really want to change the style of the hair. It’s not recommended to curl it and then try to straighten it. Synthetic hair can’t undergo frequent style changes so easily without damaging the hair.
- If your synthetic hair does not say that you can use hot tools on it, then don’t. You might ruin or melt the hair.
4
Trim frizzy ends. Uneven, tangled and knotted ends can make your extensions look damaged and unkempt. Trim off the ends when they start to look bad. It will instantly revive the look of the hair and make it look better.
5
Rub some oil onto your extensions and comb it through. When your extensions start to look dry or without sheen, rub a light weight oil such as jojoba oil through the hair. Leave it for an hour, and then wipe off excess oil by blotting with a towel.. If necessary, wash out the excess with a dollop of mild shampoo and rinse.
- Most synthetic extensions are naturally shinier than human hair, so only do this if they appear dull.
6
Remove the hair extensions before they look ratty. Hair extensions tend to move up the hair shaft at around the six week point, making them become loose or uneven. After a while, even if you take good care of them, eventually they will have to be removed. They don't last forever. So, plan a return trip to the hairdresser to get some replacements reinstalled.

Expert Q&A
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Question

Can you wash your hair with synthetic braids?

Laura Martin
Licensed Cosmetologist
Laura Martin is a Licensed Cosmetologist in Georgia. She has been a hair stylist since 2007 and a cosmetology teacher since 2013.

Laura Martin

Licensed Cosmetologist

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Yes, but you should use a mild shampoo and focus on washing the scalp, not the braids.
Question

How do you take care of human hair extensions?

Laura Martin
Licensed Cosmetologist
Laura Martin is a Licensed Cosmetologist in Georgia. She has been a hair stylist since 2007 and a cosmetology teacher since 2013.

Laura Martin

Licensed Cosmetologist

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You wash them with wig shampoo, swirling them in soapy water, rinsing, and conditioning. You should only do this when they look or smell dirty.
Question

How do you clean synthetic hair extensions?

Laura Martin
Licensed Cosmetologist
Laura Martin is a Licensed Cosmetologist in Georgia. She has been a hair stylist since 2007 and a cosmetology teacher since 2013.

Laura Martin

Licensed Cosmetologist

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You should wash them gently with wig shampoo. Don't scrub the extensions, instead add a capful of the shampoo to a sink full of water and swish, then rinse. Always take synthetic extensions out of your hair first.

Things You Need

Spray bottle
Water
Detangling spray ( optional)
wig spray (optional)
Mild shampoo
Detangling conditioner or leave-in conditioner
Towel
Microfiber towel (optional)
Wide tooth comb

Warnings

If you do not brush your extensions gently, you could break some of the fibers, cause tangling or frizzing.

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Daily care of hair extensions can be time consuming; set aside at least a half an hour a day to tend to them.

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Do not use hot tools or a blowdryer on 100% synthetic extensions.

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