Could my hair be porous?

[Tene]

I wash my hair and squeeze the water out and let it airdry. A few hours later and I can squeeze my hair and notice I still have a lot of water in it. It's like my hair holds on to water. But my hair will be soft and then when I wake up my hair is very dry.

 

[dimpalz]

I guess hair is kinda "porous" that's how it gets the moisture. You could be getting this problem because you aren't sealing the cuticle well enough after you wash it. It sort of goes like this: when you wash it the hair strand swells and the cuticle layer lifts, the hair shaft is full of water when your hair is moisurised which gets in through gaps (which is why it's not a good idea to wash with water too hot as it can expand inside and cause damage) This also explains why oil can't moisturise because it cannot get through the gaps. Some people recommend cold rinses to "close" the cuticle and seal in the water and others use oil and heat the seal it.

If you're airdying without any product and it's quite warm the moisture can easily evaporate so it's always a good idea to use a small amount of oil to seal and smooth the hair, you don't need to use heat. You can also use a moisturising headress or a humectant which should also help it stay moisurised.

HTH, sorry it wasn't very scientific but I hope you got the general idea =)