Here’s how to tell if your hair straightener has reached its expiry date

If your tresses usually undergo a round with the hair straighteners for preened perfection, you need to check if your tools have passed their expiration date.

As with any electrical appliance, hair straighteners will wear out over time, but using an iron that has already passed its sell-by-date could really be damaging your hair. If you’re not sure how to tell if you need a new set of straighteners, it all boils down to the appliance’s plates. Always opt for a straightener with tourmaline or ceramic plates to resist damage from falls. If the plates are scratched, or appear to have worn thin in one part, it’s time to ditch your straightener. Speaking to Cosmopolitan, expert hair stylist Fabio Scalia says damaged plates can expose your hair to extreme heat – causing burning, breakage and stripping natural oils from your locks. Definitely not the path to luscious locks. If you find yourself using your straightener on the same patch of hair a number of times, it’s probably time to swap it in for a newer model. Need more proof? Check for a blinking light that indicates when your appliance is at the ideal heat. "A good flat iron has a blinking light that tells you when the ideal temperature is reached. The indicator will also tell you when it's time to start hunting for a new one. “If the light blinks often while in use, your iron has stopped holding heat and is on its way out.” So before you keep using the same GHD you’ve survived on since 2010, it might be time to check if it’s really giving you a hairstyle or setting you up for a series of bad hair days.