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Do you desire lighter hair but don’t want to go to the salon? You could be motivated to bleach your hair, which involves removing the color from your hair to lighten it. While hair specialists do not recommend it, it is possible to do it yourself.
This article will teach you how to bleach your hair at home, including how long you let the bleach sit in your hair and avoid serious damage.
So, how long do you keep bleach in your hair? Can you leave bleach in your hair for 2 hours? Generally, at-home bleaching should not take more than 45 minutes. You’ll be disappointed if you assume that leaving the bleach on for an extra 15 minutes would result in a brighter blonde. The bleach will cease lifting your hair color after 45 minutes and begin destroying your strands.
How Long Do You Keep Bleach In Your Hair?
There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all method of bleaching. How long can you leave bleach in your hair? 30 minutes is the maximum time to keep the bleach on your hair. Any longer than that, you risk serious injury, including brittle strands.
How long should hair bleach be left on? It depends on several things, including the color and texture of your hair.
How Long Do You Leave Bleach In Blonde Hair?
You can leave bleach for 15 to 20 minutes on your blonde hair.
How Long Do You Leave Bleach In Dark Hair?
You can leave bleach for 30 minutes on your dark hair. It is suggested that you divide the process into many sessions.
How Long Do You Leave Bleach In Fine Hair?
You can leave bleach for 15 to 20 minutes on your fine hairs. This hair type will process faster because it has a thinner cuticle layer.
How Long Do You Leave Bleach In Coarse Hair?
You can leave bleach for 30 minutes on your coarse hair. This hair type is more difficult to work with and may take two applications at the very minimum.
Other elements that influence how long you keep the bleach in your hair are:
- The result that you want to achieve.
- You’ve previously colored your hair or not.
What’s The Longest You Can Leave Bleach In Your Hair?
How long should you leave the bleach on your hair? It’s a common myth that the longer you leave the bleach on, the better it will work. Thirty minutes is the maximum time to let the bleach on the hair. Any longer than that, you risk significant damage, including weak strands.
Harmful Effects of Bleaching If leaving It For Long

There are many risks associated with keeping the bleach on your hair for too long.
Hair Lose Its Pigments
The oxidation process may cause your hair to turn white, de-coloring the pigment.
Hair Become Dry And Weaker
According to one reliable source, bleaching made the hair much weaker. Even skin that had come into contact with the bleach was damaged. Bleach has also been reported to cause hair to become extremely porous. When the hair cuticle is too widely separated, the strands have difficulty absorbing moisture.
Goddard said: “Moderate porosity gives the mane a voluminous appearance and makes curling easy. On the other hand, excessive porosity and dehydration destroy the hair shaft and may result in irreversible destruction.”
Hair Loss Keratin
The loss of keratin, a specific protein that makes up the hair, is one of the last and most significant risks of bleaching.
The hair’s structure is weakened without keratin, making it dry and tough to style. Unfortunately, when bleaching, keratin loss is difficult to ignore.
Are There Any Other Precautions To Take?
There are three things to keep in mind before going the DIY route and bleaching your hair at home.
1. Take Patch Test
Complete a patch test before bleaching your hair at home. You could be allergic to something you’re not aware of.
Hair testing reveals whether or not your hair is too harmed for bleaching.
“Do not lighten your hair if the ends kink up, look frizzy, or ragged,” Kerry E. Yates, creator of Color Collective and trichologist in training, warns.
“Instead, go get a clear gloss to smooth things out till your ends are clipped away, and you get more healthy-looking strands,” says the expert.
Patch tests allow you to see how a topically applied chemical, such as hair dye interacts on your skin before applying it in a complete application.
How To Do A Patch Test?
Use a soft, unscented soap to wash your forearm and pat it dry. Apply a few drops of hair dye to a tiny area on the inside of your forearm. Wait at least 24 hours. If you’ve experienced an allergic response to the dye, you shouldn’t use it if the skin area is red, itching, blistering, or swollen.
Note: If the test area on the forearm becomes red and itchy before the 24-hour time is over, wash it with soap and warm water right once and avoid using the bleach on your head or hair.
2. Carefully Read & Follow Instructions
According to Vincent De Marco, hairstylist and owner of Vincent Hair Artistry, “always take professional steps, such as using gloves and protective glasses.”
Check the lightness of the hair, just as you would in a professional salon. According to Yates, after 10 minutes, check again, and then every 5 minutes until you reach 30 minutes.
“If the results you want aren’t present after 30 minutes, rinse it out and make a new supply,” Yates suggests. “Use the same instructions and apply them.” Bleach should never be left on your head for more than one hour.
3. Your Hair Type Considerable Factor
Some hair types are just unable to resist the bleaching process if your hair has been relaxed, straightened, or chemically altered.
“This product is not for you, and if you use lightener, your hair will turn to dust,” Yates adds.
While bleaching can be used on curly hair, you’ll want to go easy on it to protect your texture. When applying the product, don’t pull on the hair, for example.
Aftercare Of Bleaching Process
Purple shampoo is a good investment. Yes, there is such a thing. It is, after all, purple. Let’s take a trip back to elementary school for a quick refresh on the color wheel.
Colors that are precisely opposite each other are known as complementary colors. Complementary shades, according to Color Matters, will balance each other out. Purple and yellow are colors that complement each other. As a result, using purple shampoo on bleached hair will assist in toning down any persistent yellowness.
Just a friendly reminder: purple shampoo is pricey, but it’s a worthwhile investment. It’s vital to maintain your hair looking its finest for as long as possible if you’ve gone to the trouble of bleaching it. This will reduce the number of times you need to bleach your hair, resulting in healthier hair in the long term.
The FDA suggests waiting at least 14 days before bleaching it again or using additional dyes or relaxers to avoid further harm to your hair. Bleaching your hair too frequently has the same impact as leaving it bleached for too long; it will weaken your hair. The more damaged your hair is, the more difficult it will be to restore it to a healthy state once you’ve finished bleaching.
How Long Should You Leave The Bleach On Your Hair?
If you’re bleaching your hair and aren’t sure what to do, “Can you leave bleach in your hair for 2 hours?” No, is the quick answer. Bleach is a powerful product on the hair or skin.
If you leave it on the hair for too long, it can cause serious harm. Bleach can produce severe reactions or even burn on your scalp if exposed to it for an extended period. When using bleach, it’s preferable to come down on the side of caution and apply it for a shorter period. Your hair and skin will both love it.
Bleach lightens your hair by removing the melanin (a technical term for hair color) from the strands. Unfortunately, it can’t be stopped because this process is so aggressive. It may be tempting to keep bleach in your hair for an extended time if you want to lighten it dramatically. However, even 30 minutes is sufficient to bleach even the darkest hair. Any further delay might have serious consequences.
How Long Can Bleach Stay In Hair?
It’s vital not to start with the scalp because body heat speeds up the process. After you’ve finished with the rest of your hair, go back and bleach the roots. Allow 20-45 minutes for the bleach hair time process, based on your hair type, expected outcome, and package instructions.
When Does Bleach Stop Processing?
However, as Bleach dries out, it becomes less active and will normally stop processing after 45 minutes. Maintaining a full head of hair will help to prevent the bleach from drying out too quickly.
Now that you’ve read everything, I’m sure you understand why you shouldn’t leave the bleach on your hair for too long. It can irritate, burn, flake, and various other unpleasant symptoms. The most crucial thing is to follow the box’s instructions. You can always do a patch test on the bleach you wish to use on the part of your hair, as I previously mentioned. This way, you’ll be able to observe if the bleach is harming your hair or what kind of results you’re obtaining.