Seven months into twist and rip/back comb and my hair looks like a mop head and not at all like dreads..
Dread Maintenance
Anything and everything you put in or on your body has some amount of chemical interaction. The salts effects will be present even after it is washed out. Same way you use ACV to re-balance the pH of your hair after washing it with BS because BS is basic and ACV is an acid.
-Chemistry student.