Removing a synthetic wax.

skibik

skibik

New member
I am new to this site and I have been doing a lot of reading and searching and was looking for a way to remove synthetic wax. I have read how to remove wax and figured it was for a natural based wax and not sure if they work on synthetic. I have read about the different solutions to use down to washing the car with Dawn which I used to do 20+ years ago as a car wash. My last car I never really did much to it outside the washing thing regularly and have no idea how the paint lasted 8 years on that car and still looked nice. I now have a new car and have waxed it a couple times already but with some wax I had left over from a long time ago called Autofom from Blue Coral if you remember that from the 90's. I love the stuff as it went on nice and came off nice, even after 3 months it still beads and sheds water but that may be due to all the wax based wash and the detailing spray I have used. I want to strip the car and get it prepped so I make it through the winter with a hard coat of wax which I am going to be using FK1000P to coat the thing and didn't want to lay it over the old wax. I also have some swirl marks I would like to remove after stripping and before putting the new coat of wax on. Which is another question, which polish to use? I think most of my marks are from the MF towels I bought for using with the detailing spray (nube bought the cheaper MF towels) and I think they are too thin. I bought more and turned out to be about the same I had so I am placing another order and going with Griot's Speed Shine towels that come with the kit w/detailing spray and clay. I could use some help on the economical solution for removing the wax. For the polish I was looking for something to remove the fine towel or swirl marks and have decided on Meguiars Ultimate polish but if there is something else that is reasonably priced I am open. I have some Meguiars 2.0 swirl remover left but not enough to do the whole car and it has been sitting for over 8 years and seems to be the consistency of water now so plan on tossing it.

Thanks,
Dean.

PS sorry for the long thread and hope you didn't fall asleep reading it but wanted to be thorough. :lol2:
 
I'll be a lot shorter:

2 oz of dawn in 3 gallons of washbucket
isopropyl alcohol
CarPro eraser
Clay the car

take your pick....
 
I would just use a paint cleaner such as Mothers Pre-Wax Cleaner, PB's Pro Polish, etc. since it does more than just strip wax and it really preps (clears up) the paint better than just a chemical strip.
 
Thanks everyone. I am going to do the Dawn thing, then clay it, then use Griot's paint prep cleaner to hopefully get the remaining residue off before waxing. If the Dawn wash doesn't work I will do the IPA solution since that is easily available. I am trying to keep my detail budget down considering I have spent a chunk of money already. Thanks again I appreciate the information.

Dean.
 
skibik said:
I am new to this site and I have been doing a lot of reading and searching and was looking for a way to remove synthetic wax. I have read how to remove wax and figured it was for a natural based wax and not sure if they work on synthetic. I have read about the different solutions to use down to washing the car with Dawn which I used to do 20+ years ago as a car wash. My last car I never really did much to it outside the washing thing regularly and have no idea how the paint lasted 8 years on that car and still looked nice. I now have a new car and have waxed it a couple times already but with some wax I had left over from a long time ago called Autofom from Blue Coral if you remember that from the 90's. I love the stuff as it went on nice and came off nice, even after 3 months it still beads and sheds water but that may be due to all the wax based wash and the detailing spray I have used. I want to strip the car and get it prepped so I make it through the winter with a hard coat of wax which I am going to be using FK1000P to coat the thing and didn't want to lay it over the old wax. I also have some swirl marks I would like to remove after stripping and before putting the new coat of wax on. Which is another question, which polish to use? I think most of my marks are from the MF towels I bought for using with the detailing spray (nube bought the cheaper MF towels) and I think they are too thin. I bought more and turned out to be about the same I had so I am placing another order and going with Griot's Speed Shine towels that come with the kit w/detailing spray and clay. I could use some help on the economical solution for removing the wax. For the polish I was looking for something to remove the fine towel or swirl marks and have decided on Meguiars Ultimate polish but if there is something else that is reasonably priced I am open. I have some Meguiars 2.0 swirl remover left but not enough to do the whole car and it has been sitting for over 8 years and seems to be the consistency of water now so plan on tossing it.

Thanks,
Dean.

PS sorry for the long thread and hope you didn't fall asleep reading it but wanted to be thorough. :lol2:
Click to expand...

Dean, a couple of points I would make...

1) If you polish the paint with either Meguiar's Ultimate Polish or Meguiar's 2.0 Swirl Remover then you will strip the existing protection from the paint in record fashion.

2) Using Dawn/Griot's Paint Prep will remove the existing protection as suggested. It could also help whichever polish you choose perform better as the polish will not become contaminated with the existing wax.

3) I would subsitute Meguiar's #9 or Ultimate Polish for either Menzerna SF4500 or BLACKFIRE SRC Finishing Polish (personal preference)
 
The only thing wrong with the synthetic wax is that its melting temperature is MUCH higher than that of beeswax. This can make a big difference in both application and removal! Both application and removal of wax require a temperature higher than the melting point, in my experience.

I always found removing wax to be intensely frustrating until I started using a liquid castile soap, not detergent, when boiling out my wax. Dr. Bronner's soap works well for me. Dishwashing liquid did not. If you use soap when boiling out your wax, though, you will not be able to reuse your wax.

I hate all those sources that say "just dry clean it!" Easy for them to say, but useless for me. The dry cleaners in my areas use solvents that leave the wax completely untouched. One dry cleaner said it was just impossible to remove wax. A better one charged me $5 a piece to steam out the wax.

The pot I use to boil out wax is a three-gallon stainless steel pot. It is a food-use pot, our brew kettle in fact, so it cannot be used for unwashed freshly dyed garments. It's okay for food-grade wax, though.

If you weight down your clothes under the surface of the water, so that the layer of melted wax is not touching the fabric, don't use a chrome-plated cooling rack. They rust badly and stain the fabric. I had to use a strong acid rust remover the time I did that.
 
Bunky said:
I would just use a paint cleaner such as Mothers Pre-Wax Cleaner, PB's Pro Polish, etc. since it does more than just strip wax and it really preps (clears up) the paint better than just a chemical strip.
Click to expand...

Second this! Clay is also a good process. I would choose these two over a chemical or dish soap strip. These two clean and prep the paint for the next LSP or polishing
 
xtralights said:
The only thing wrong with the synthetic wax is that its melting temperature is MUCH higher than that of beeswax. This can make a big difference in both application and removal! Both application and removal of wax require a temperature higher than the melting point, in my experience.

I always found removing wax to be intensely frustrating until I started using a liquid castile soap, not detergent, when boiling out my wax. Dr. Bronner's soap works well for me. Dishwashing liquid did not. If you use soap when boiling out your wax, though, you will not be able to reuse your wax.

I hate all those sources that say "just dry clean it!" Easy for them to say, but useless for me. The dry cleaners in my areas use solvents that leave the wax completely untouched. One dry cleaner said it was just impossible to remove wax. A better one charged me $5 a piece to steam out the wax.

The pot I use to boil out wax is a three-gallon stainless steel pot. It is a food-use pot, our brew kettle in fact, so it cannot be used for unwashed freshly dyed garments. It's okay for food-grade wax, though.

If you weight down your clothes under the surface of the water, so that the layer of melted wax is not touching the fabric, don't use a chrome-plated cooling rack. They rust badly and stain the fabric. I had to use a strong acid rust remover the time I did that.
Click to expand...


What are you talking about?
 
xtralights said:
The only thing wrong with the synthetic wax is that its melting temperature is MUCH higher than that of beeswax. This can make a big difference in both application and removal! Both application and removal of wax require a temperature higher than the melting point, in my experience.

I always found removing wax to be intensely frustrating until I started using a liquid castile soap, not detergent, when boiling out my wax. Dr. Bronner's soap works well for me. Dishwashing liquid did not. If you use soap when boiling out your wax, though, you will not be able to reuse your wax.

I hate all those sources that say "just dry clean it!" Easy for them to say, but useless for me. The dry cleaners in my areas use solvents that leave the wax completely untouched. One dry cleaner said it was just impossible to remove wax. A better one charged me $5 a piece to steam out the wax.

The pot I use to boil out wax is a three-gallon stainless steel pot. It is a food-use pot, our brew kettle in fact, so it cannot be used for unwashed freshly dyed garments. It's okay for food-grade wax, though.

If you weight down your clothes under the surface of the water, so that the layer of melted wax is not touching the fabric, don't use a chrome-plated cooling rack. They rust badly and stain the fabric. I had to use a strong acid rust remover the time I did that.
Click to expand...

What planet are you from? I can't even understand what you're trying to say.
 
xtralights said:
The only thing wrong with the synthetic wax is that its melting temperature is MUCH higher than that of beeswax. This can make a big difference in both application and removal! Both application and removal of wax require a temperature higher than the melting point, in my experience.

I always found removing wax to be intensely frustrating until I started using a liquid castile soap, not detergent, when boiling out my wax. Dr. Bronner's soap works well for me. Dishwashing liquid did not. If you use soap when boiling out your wax, though, you will not be able to reuse your wax.

I hate all those sources that say "just dry clean it!" Easy for them to say, but useless for me. The dry cleaners in my areas use solvents that leave the wax completely untouched. One dry cleaner said it was just impossible to remove wax. A better one charged me $5 a piece to steam out the wax.

The pot I use to boil out wax is a three-gallon stainless steel pot. It is a food-use pot, our brew kettle in fact, so it cannot be used for unwashed freshly dyed garments. It's okay for food-grade wax, though.

If you weight down your clothes under the surface of the water, so that the layer of melted wax is not touching the fabric, don't use a chrome-plated cooling rack. They rust badly and stain the fabric. I had to use a strong acid rust remover the time I did that.
Click to expand...

Lost for words.......
 
Thanks Todd and Beemerboy, I appreciate the help. Unfortunately I placed an order last night so will have to work with the Ultimate polish. I am hoping to get enough of the wax off with the dawn soap. I just need a warm day now so I can hand wash the car, not too many of them left here. Thanks everyone for the help.

xtralights, I should have mentioned in my starting post that I was looking for advice on how to remove a synthetic wax from an automobile. thanks for trying.
 
A question that just occured to me is whether the Menzerna Top Inspection wipe down removes the sealant that's contained in the KAIO? I'm hoping that it actually removes all of it and whatever polish residue that might still linger behind. And if not, does the KAIO interfere with the Blackfire Crystal Seal bonding properly to the paint. I've come to understand that layering some of these high tech sealants can be a little tricky. Would really appreciate some guidance here.
 
xtralights said:
The only thing wrong with the synthetic wax is that its melting temperature is MUCH higher than that of beeswax. This can make a big difference in both application and removal! Both application and removal of wax require a temperature higher than the melting point, in my experience.

I always found removing wax to be intensely frustrating until I started using a liquid castile soap, not detergent, when boiling out my wax. Dr. Bronner's soap works well for me. Dishwashing liquid did not. If you use soap when boiling out your wax, though, you will not be able to reuse your wax.

I hate all those sources that say "just dry clean it!" Easy for them to say, but useless for me. The dry cleaners in my areas use solvents that leave the wax completely untouched. One dry cleaner said it was just impossible to remove wax. A better one charged me $5 a piece to steam out the wax.

The pot I use to boil out wax is a three-gallon stainless steel pot. It is a food-use pot, our brew kettle in fact, so it cannot be used for unwashed freshly dyed garments. It's okay for food-grade wax, though.

If you weight down your clothes under the surface of the water, so that the layer of melted wax is not touching the fabric, don't use a chrome-plated cooling rack. They rust badly and stain the fabric. I had to use a strong acid rust remover the time I did that.
Click to expand...

He is talking about removing wax from microfiber towels.
 
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