1 year dreading but with wax...
Help! Save My Dreads
I can't see the white stuff you're talking about, but hopefully, hopefully, it's just wax and not mold. When you wash, does your hair smell? I mean, Smell. Kind of like a wet dog. This isn't uncommon when they are wet, but does the smell linger after they dry? That would be a sign of mold.
Before you do anything you need to do some wax removal sessions. Because it's been a year, and because you tried to melt it out with hot water, you'll have to do quite a few.
Get a dish soap that is tough on grease. If they sell Dawn in the UK, get that. What you need to do is fill a big bowl, or pot with the hottest water you can keep your hands in for a while. Squirt in a generous amount of the soap. Then, one at a time, dunk your locks into the pot and massage the soap into the lock for about a minute. When you're done, wash normally. You'll have to do this 2-3 times a week for at least a month.
What the hot water did was melt the wax which didn't actually strip it out of your hair. What it did was melt it so that it seeped deeper into your locks.
In Ireland, it's called bread soda, it might be in the UK, too. But get some baking soda and use that and apple cider vinegar to wash your hair. You can find recipe's all over this site, but if you need, we can help you with the ratios and how to do it. You don't mix the BS and ACV together.
I know it may seemexpensiveto ship overseas, but that company uses flat rate shipping, so if you buy a few things from them, the shipping wont go up. You can probably get 5-6 bars from them for the same shipping cost. That makes it a bit more worth it. If you go that route, get the wax-b-gone too. It's the best stuff out there for removing wax