If you are the one who is fond of candles along the wood floor but hate the mess they create after melting I sincerely think, that your problem must be solved. Wax whether candle wax or another wax buildup can make or break the whole symmetry of the floor.
So when they are fowling with your floor they must get rid. In this article, you will find methods of removing both waxes whether it’s candle wax or buildup wax.
Let’s start with buildup wax!
Apart from candle wax floor wax is generally made up of animals, vegetables, or mineral fats that are considered never dry. Wax is not a durable finish despite its protection against humidity as it must be renewed routinely.
With the passage of time, it occurred as the buildup of old wax makes the achieving of refinishing a hard matter.
Unless the strokes of old wax have been removed the appliance of durable finish such as polyurethane is not possible.
Don’t worry buddy your panic sentiment will turn into a happy moment to know the easy methods of removing wax from your hardwood floor.
Without making delay here is how to get wax off hardwood floors.
Before you make effort! Things You need to know
Some conveniently available resources are required to get rid of buildup wax. Trust me it is budget-friendly to get your tidy floor into a clean and neat space. After getting available following items you are good to go for saving your floor.
Here are the items you need for the productivity you’ll have with them:
- Rubber Gloves for hand safety
- Knee Pads or Knee Cushions for knee protection
- Broom & Dust Pan to pick the wax wastage
- Mineral Spirits to get the wax soft to rub
- Microfiber Cloths to rub the wax
- Bucket to collect all the wax particles
- Mop for final cleanup with hot water
- 0000 Steel Wool to deeply clean textured areas of the floor
One-liner pro tip:
Clearing in a 4-foot by 4-foot makes a human body focally reach each position. You must need to wear rubber gloves to save your hands.
It is most manageable to work in with a small section of flooring at a time. Working in roughly a 4-foot by 4-foot area makes it easy to reach in a single position. Keep your hands protected as you work with rubber gloves.
It is also a good idea to wear old clothing because stripping wax can be a messy process. Once you’ve removed all the build-up and restored your hardwood floors to their original beauty, your job is done now.
4 moves to Clear Wax Buildup
1. Pour Mineral Spirits onto a Soft Cloth
Rub mineral spirits and cloth onto a section of the floor. Coating the mineral spirits onto the wax-surfaced floor, and rubbing the wax in the wood grain direction will ease the task to the extent.
Now you need to rub in a pressured way to let the wax come upon the cloth. After getting one section of the floor clean move to the next one with the same method. How would you know whether the wax is coming off or not?
When the cloth color turns yellow, you’ll notice the wax has started coming off. When the rubbing cloth comes clean after rubbing now the section of your floor has completely gotten wax off.
2. Use Mineral Spirits with Steel Wool to rub
After getting the surface wax off it is time to go to the next move, for deep wax cleaning on textured planks of the wood floor pour the mineral oil onto steel wool and rub it on the same partition of flooring, rub along with the wood grain to keep your floor trouble-free.
The steel wool makes it easy to function in deep channels present on heavily textured wood timbers.
3. Replicate the procedure with the Next Segment
With the help of mineral oil and both a steel wool pad and cloth the wax coat will be cleared out, now is the best time to move on to the next segment of wood flooring.
To route where you have been and what section is still needed to nurse, you just have to move on in a logical design.
While striping the wax from your hardwood flooring, protect your knees by using the prescribed thick-knee pads or a gardening cushion to help your knees to be protected.
4. Hot Water mopping
To achieve the hardwood floor pro cleanliness look give it a hot water bath with a mop.
After getting the whole wood floor completely waxed off let it dry, it is needed to dry the remaining water with extra care, as the hardwood floor cannot bear water for long and it gets damaged and have water stains.
Likewise earlier use the segment method in a logical structure to mop perfectly with a microfiber cloth on a dry mop.
Let’s Refinish the Floor now
Before providing a finish let the floor dry completely, because applying finish on a wet floor may waste your time and investment.
Following the manufacturer’s instructions while applying a fresh layer may ease your task so must follow.
Mark the date of reapplying wax on the calendar to estimate the accurate date of the next appliance. It will help you to know how often re-application is required.
After the wax is stripped, you have the choice of applying a polyurethane coating that is more durable than a wax coating. This can be a stronger, and longer-lasting alternative if you want to prevent wax build-up in the future.
Do not apply a layer of polyurethane until you are sure all wax is removed. When in doubt, rub a cloth with mineral oil over the surface and see if it comes up clean. If it does, it is safe to apply polyurethane.
It seems like a tough task to clear out a year’s wax-build but you will love to hear and believe that it can be a matter of satisfaction to your nervous system with a little workout.
All you need is a few low-budget objects with their help of them the transformation of a hardwood floor into a tidy and clean space is unchallenging.
It is a good idea to invite a family member to spend some work amount, it will break down the tasks into easy-breezy chunks over the rout of a hard few weekends.
Tip!
- Start with a foyer such as a manageable area.
Disclaimer
Things to consider carefully:
- Never use a hairdryer or hot air gun to soften the wax. After melting wax may absorb into the pores of the wood floor
- For stubborn finishes, you’ll need a stripper. Choose a stripper wisely that is labeled to use with wax, not for furniture.
Let’s discuss another matter of the article the candle wax:
Candles are poetic, have a sense of peace, and calm, and are romanticized. Until some accident comes at the scene and it dripped onto your hardwood floor but instead of panic expressions, some efforts are not tough at all to get rid of candle wax from your hardwood floor.
Problem
How to Remove Candle Wax from Wood Floors?
Solution!
1. Risky heating method
The very fast and easy method of getting rid of candle wax from your hardwood floor is re-heating the wax to remove it.
It is considered the gentlest way to remove the wax by using a hairdryer or warm iron to convert the wax into its liquid form and wipe it off with a nylon cloth.
But as we mentioned before this method has its cons the wax can be soaked into the pores of wood it is a convenient way but it should be done perfectly fast. It is needed to be done professionally.
2. Safest Chill Method
Chilling is another method to remove candle wax. Whether it may not provide much clean and tidy finish as compared to the heating method.
It is considered the safest method to remove wax as it does not damage the hardwood floor. In order to remove wax, you need ice in a freezer bag and put it on the section of a candle-stained floor. After contact with ice, the wax would become hard and brittle.
Now it’s time to pull it away from the floor. Chip it up with little care. Enjoy flooring.
Settle and Scrap:
The simplest and the easier method to get rid of candle wax is to after dropping let it settle for a while after settling scrap it with the help of a spatula.
It is needed to do when the wax behaves nice and gently on your hardwood floor it will not work perfectly on a stubborn wax-stained hardwood floor.
4. Wax Removal Products
Some products are available in the market specifically formulated to remove candle wax some of them are highly rated.
For minor spills, these products are a good idea as they rapidly remove wax with zero effort. Goo Gone, Weiman Wax Away, and De-Solv-it Orange-Sol Citrus Solution Spray are some products recommended by us.
Bottom Line
Before choosing a wax removal method have a keen view of the wax stain on your hardwood floor, some methods are good for minor spills and some of them are researched to get rid of major stains choose wisely and accordingly.
Have a look at your floor finish as well before picking a wax removal method. Test a wax removal method on a small area first to decide whether it is nice for your hardwood floor or not.
Commercial products that are designed for wax removal are also good. They needed extra care while using and must follow the manufacturer’s instructions fully.
The bonus of the Article!
What Type of Wax Should you Use to Refinish your Hardwood Floor?
Not all floor wax is the same, unfortunately. It is recommended to read the label before buying a product it must distinctly describe whether the wax is suitable for a wood floor or just wood. Also deeply research available products before picking a product.
Before considering furniture polish for that matter take an account the slippery dangerous finish that polish creates. Water-based or acrylic waxes must be avoided as these types of waxes can destruct unfinished hardwood floors.
Your home is valueble for me. Thanks!…