If you use your board regularly the wax ends up being really thick and dirty because of the sand and your wetsuit rubbing, it becomes grey/brown and makes patches when melting under the sun. To keep your board clean and skid-proof it is necessary to remove the heavy and dirty wax once in a while. It will also allow you to check on your board condition and to spot some dings you might have missed.
Dewaxing
To remove the wax the easiest method is to wait for a sunny day and let your wax melt under the sun, then you just have to scrub the softened wax with a wax comb or a plastic card (like credit card or loyalty card). In winter you can use a hair dryer to soften the wax, but be careful not to damage your board by heating it too much. Once the dirty wax has been removed make a ball of it and put it in a bin. For finishing touches and a complete clean up of your board you can use F essence, easy to find in the supermarket and won’t damage the resin. With a soaked paper towel remove the last residue of wax, salt and sand. Your board is now clean and shinny, ready to be rewaxed or sold!
Rewaxing
Before relaxing your board make sure the deck is clean, then start to apply the base coat wax as a grid pattern. Draw lines diagonally with the base coat on your board’s width, then do the same with the opposite diagonal. For a longboard or a mini-malibu apply the wax on the full length of the board, you might need to walk on your board from the tail to the nose, for smaller boards like a shortboard or a fish wax only the central zone, where you will stand. Once the base coat is well-applied use a wax adapted to the climate of where you’ll be surfing and the water temperature, there are mostly 4 categories of wax : Cold, Cool, Warm, Tropical. To apply the wax just rub your wax stick in small circles. Several coats might be necessary, rub the wax until you see little dots coming out. With a fresh wax you might need to rewax pretty often at the beginning, until the wax coat is thick enough.
To add a funny touch you can find different type of wax ; perfumed, colored or even glittered! You can also find organic wax that won’t do any damages to the environment and is biodegradable, just pick your favorite. To preserve you wax avoid sun and heat and keep it in a separate pouch from the rest of your stuff, cleaning wax on clothes is really not easy!
Now that your board is ready enjoy the summer waves and have fun!
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