How to make car wax
how to make wax
Today, beeswax is sometimes used in car polishes, but is more commonly used in furniture waxes and polishes. You can make your own wax very easily, my ancestors did it on the Cape Cod plantation, it’s a relatively simple process and fun too.
First you need a couple of pots to boil and a pot of hot water. Liquid Beeswax Furniture Polish is simple, use a quarter cup of ivory soap, a quarter pound of beeswax, 1 cup of turpentine and a half cup of water. Dissolve the soap in hot water, put the scraped wax in the turpentine and then melt them slowly, then pour the soap mixture into the mixture and stir with a wooden spoon, once well stirred pour into a glass jar and you have it , very easy. Beeswax Cream Furniture Polish which can also be used on cars with a reduced amount of turpentine is made by mixing 1/4 pound beeswax, 2 cups turpentine, 1/4 cup Ivory liquid soap , 1 cup of warm or boiling water and a quarter cup of pine oil. The only difference is that you have to make sure all the beeswax is dissolved first and then cooled, then mixed with the warm soapy water until it is frozen solid and then reheated and dissolved. If you reduce the turpentine content, you can also use it on your car. It runs smooth and works well.
Although, I am partial to carnauba car wax for its ease of use, but from a realistic protection standpoint, carnauba only lasts three months, while melted beeswax can last a bit longer. For solid beeswax furniture polish, which is preferred by antique dealers we met on the back roads of NH, VT, and Maine, all you have to do is use equal amounts of linseed oil, beeswax, and turpentine. The finished product is golden brown and transparent in color and looks rich in content. You now have the smell of lemon oil in your furniture wax, which can easily be added to boiling water during the process.
There are many good waxes to use on cars that you wouldn’t use on surfboards, furniture, or statues. Wax is also found in the human ear. There are two different types and your genetics dictate which one you have. Most plants also have a thin protective coating of wax. Most citrus and fruit trees and vegetable plants have wax on the fruits, leaves and vegetables they produce and that we eat. Many animals and even some fish also produce waxes organically. Other wax components are found in minerals and petroleum products and distillates.
There are polymeric or synthetic, man-made in various types of waxes. We actually get waxes from a variety of sources. The Carnauba we are talking about is the wax preferred by many detailers. Carnauba wax is found in the leaves of carnauba palm trees. The best Carnauba wax comes, in my opinion, from the Palm Trees of Brazil. You can tell a good carnauba wax by the water droplets you see when you detail your car. Candelilla wax comes from a plant that grows in parts of Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Guatemala, and sometimes in the southwestern United States. It’s a brown wax and not only have people used it on cars, but it’s also used on phonograph records, floor coverings, and candles. Although it is the main component of candle wax, it is often mixed with other waxes in the candles we use in our homes.