Does a Hot Tub Remove Fake Tan?

I have never considered getting a fake tan myself but it occurred to me that if you did have one that it be removed by going into a hot tub? After all, if you have gone to all of the trouble to get a spray tan, it would be a great shame to ruin it by going into the hot tub. I decided to do some research into fake tans and hot tubs and this is what I found out:

So, does a hot tub remove fake tan? Yes, a hot tub will remove or spoil a fake tan. The fake tan will fade the longer you are in the hot tub. It can be very bad for a hot tub to go in with fake tan as it could cause problems with the hot tub’s filtration system.

How does a fake tan work?

Fake tanning is extremely popular as it’s easy and safe to do and is also a natural process as well. I’m just going to talk about the fake tanning solutions that you can buy rather than using a sunbed as it’s the solutions that are problematic when used in combination with hot tubs.

All fake tanning products are primarily made up of a chemical called Dihydroxyacetone or DHA for short. DHA, despite sounding quite exotic, is just a simple carbohydrate that reacts with the skin to cause tanning.

The DHA is usually combined with moisturizers and also various scents and soothing ingredients to give each fake tan it’s own particular character. However, in all tanning products it’s the DHA that does the actual heavy lifting and tans the skin.

So how does the DHA actually tan the skin? Well, it reacts with oxygen and the amino acids found in skin cells and this creates the tan color. It only works with dead skin cells on the very surface of the skin which is why the tan gradually fades as the dead skin cells fall off. The more DHA there is in the tanning lotion the darker the final tan becomes.

What happens when you go into a hot tub with a fake tan?

Getting into any water will have an effect on your fake tan. Contrary to popular belief, the chlorine in a hot tub or pool doesn’t actually effect the fake tan and getting into salty seawater has no different effect from plain water. Chlorine has to be present in very high concentrations to actually bleach the skin and, if your hot tub is correctly chlorinated, this shouldn’t happen. Chlorine will dry out your skin though more quickly than water that isn’t chlorinated and this could have an effect on your tan. Moisturizing after being in the hot tub can help with this.

Remember that the fake tan has reacted with the very top layer of dead skin cells and, as these fall off, the tan will gradually fade. When you get into water, after a time, the skin starts to wrinkle and it is this saturation process that increases the speed at which the dead cells shed and so the tan fades.

If you have just had a fake tan then your body will also be covered in a temporary colorant. This is because the DHA process takes from between 2 – 8 hours to take effect after application so a colorant is added to the tanning solution to give a temporary covering of tan.

This temporary tan is designed to come off in your first shower so if you go into a hot tub straight after applying a tanning solution it will definitely come off in the hot tub!

Does fake tan damage hot tubs?

If you go into a hot tub with a fresh fake tan it will cause problems with your water chemistry. Most fake tan products have a “bronzer” element which basically dyes your skin immediately and is intended to temporarily create a tan whilst the DHA reacts with your skin to provide a more permanent tan.

The bronzer is intended to wash off in the shower and, if you go into a hot tub with it on it will come off in the water and probably cause a foaming problem. In more extreme cases fake tan can stain the hot tub and lead to issues with the filtration system as it tries to remove the tanning molecules from the water.

This is less of a problem if you go into a swimming pool as there is a much larger volume of water to dissipate the tanning solution. The problem with hot tubs is that there is a very small volume of water to bather load ratio and so and contamination such as tanning solution becomes a problem much more quickly.

Once the initial tanning solution has been washed off there isn’t any reason why you shouldn’t get into a hot tub. Using the hot tub will speed up the process whereby your dead skin cells are shed and the tan fades more quickly but it shouldn’t do any damage to the hot tub itself.

How to make a fake tan last longer (even in a hot tub)

So, it’s inevitable that going into your hot tub will shorten the life of your fake tan but, is it possible to do anything to keep tanned for a little longer and still use the hot tub?

Exfoliate before applying the fake tan – If you apply the tanning product to clean exfoliated skin it will last longer. When you exfoliate you remove dead skin cells which means that the tanning solution will react with more firmly attached “less dead” cells and will last longer. You will also remove all traces of other moisturizers, soaps and any other products that could interfere with the tanning process.

Stick to short sessions – Try to just go into the hot tub for short 15 minute sessions. This should limit the amount of wrinkling in your skin as when this happens it accelerates the dead skin shedding process meaning that the tan fades faster.

The recommended maximum time for being in a hot tub is between 15 and 3o minutes anyway so this shouldn’t be too difficult to do.

Pat your skin dry – Inbetween sessions pat your skin dry rather than rubbing it to preserve the layer of tanned cells as much as possible. Choose your towels carefully and avoid rough or worn towels that will be tough on your skin.

Use a thick waterproof sunscreen – Look for “sport” sun creams as these are thicker and tougher. They can provide a waterproof protective layer and, in theory at least, prevent the skin from becoming so waterlogged and the tanned cells from being released.

Related Questions:

Does fake tan come off in swimming pools? A fake tan will fade in a swimmng pool. It isn’t the chlorine in the water that brings the tan off but the fact that, as your skin wrinkles as it soaks up water, the layer of dead cells that are colored by the fake tan, come off more quickly. If you limit your swimming sessions to short sharp bursts and try to prevent your skin from wrinkling this will, in theory at least, allow the fake tan to last longer.

Does Saltwater ruin fake tan? Any water will have an effect on a fake tan. It doesn’t make any difference if the water is saltwater or not. The fake tan starts to fade as the skin soaks up the water and becomes wrinkled. Wrinkled skin ejects the surface layer of dead skin cells that are coloured by the fake tan more quickly so the tan will fade more quickly.