Removing old wax

aztec1987

aztec1987

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Hello everyone, I been away from this site for a while since I been traveling across the globe.......I been away from home about two months and finally glad to say that I am back. My question is how can I remove old wax residue from a car? Lately I been seen that my brother left some wax in his car in which I cannot remove. I tried washing it, claying, and nothing.....anyone can advice me what to do?
 
If the wax is on a panel, try re-waxing the area to remove the wax he left behind

Usually works well

If it is stuck in cracks it around emblems, you can start with detail spray and a soft toothbrush
 
isopropyl alcohol. Will strip anything you have on the paint. I use rubbing alcohol (70% IPA) mixed 50/50 with water. Dip a waffle weave mf towel in it and gently wipe away. If you are targeting a bigger area, you could spray it onto the surface and then wipe with the towel
 
:nomore:
sberk1012 said:
isopropyl alcohol. Will strip anything you have on the paint. I use rubbing alcohol (70% IPA) mixed 50/50 with water. Dip a waffle weave mf towel in it and gently wipe away. If you are targeting a bigger area, you could spray it onto the surface and then wipe with the towel
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Why waffle weave?

Why 35% concentration?

IPA will strip "anything" you have on the paint"?
- Does this include coatings and synthetic sealants?


Do you use this technique even if you do not plan on polishing after?
 
allenk4 said:
:nomore:

Why waffle weave?

Because you don't need a long nap mf to wipe liquids off your paint.

Why 35% concentration?

Because this is enough to get the job done without using more than you need

IPA will strip "anything" you have on the paint"?
- Does this include coatings and synthetic sealants?

No. I chose poor wording here. It would apply to the majority of cases, but not all, as you stated

Do you use this technique even if you do not plan on polishing after?
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To get spots of wax off in some problem areas, yes. I 'd assume this is the case, per OPs post. Then you'd want to re-wax (or seal first) the area if the paint is in satisfactory condition
 
sberk1012 said:
isopropyl alcohol. Will strip anything you have on the paint. I use rubbing alcohol (70% IPA) mixed 50/50 with water. Dip a waffle weave mf towel in it and gently wipe away. If you are targeting a bigger area, you could spray it onto the surface and then wipe with the towel
Click to expand...

questionable, ipa won't take off a lot of things....modern waxes and sealants are tough
 
cleanmycorolla said:
questionable, ipa won't take off a lot of things....modern waxes and sealants are tough
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Agreed. I have used IPA to clean surfactant residues off our LSPs, without doing any visible damage to the LSP itself.

Wax will be a bit more chemically sensitive than sealants but I would not expect a half decent, modern wax, to be easily removed with IPA. You would have more chance using panel wipe or something like tarminator (a solvent- non aqueous - degreaser). Depending how stubborn the residue is, you might have success with a very strong APC mix (ensure that you actually remove the wax, not simply leave a residue of surfactant which makes the water beading disappear!) might do the job. If it is stubborn, a quick run over with DA and mild polish is the most certain way of getting shot.
 
I did not realize IPA was that ineffective at removing many modern day products. We both learned something here
 
sberk1012 said:
I did not realize IPA was that ineffective at removing many modern day products. We both learned something here
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A lot of detailers still believe that IPA is a guaranteed stripper of almost anything.
 
Be really carefuly of the dilution rate of IPA/Water too. I recall Mike saying he wouldn't go about 17.5%. Over that you can actually damage the paint.
 
Meg's #7 is great for removing old wax on painted surfaces. If it's plastics then Mothers heavy duty plastic cleaner is amazing.


As far as IPA.... That has no business even being mentioned in detailing unless you get a big bite while working on a vehicle.
 
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