Removing wax from plastics, Help please

[bonfield]

I waxed my ute a few weeks ago and realized I got wax everywhere, the plastic around the mirrors, etc

Iam just wondering what the best way to get it off?

 

[DAKSTER]

Prepsol a.k.a wax and grease remover, available at any paint shop or even SCA or Bunnings.

 

[TinSnips]

a pencil eraser will do it.

Prepsol as mentioned above, IPA, dishwashing liquid, metho, white spirits - but a pencil eraser means you won't remove wax from areas where you want it to remain. Also, those chux magic erasers are handy to have around for particularly stained trim - though use with caution as they are slightly abrasive.

 

[UFO]

hey bonfield, take note of tinsnips signature.... might know what he's talking about .

 

[bonfield]

Thankyou both for the advice, also does white spirits remove wax?

 

[TinSnips]

yep. It's the main ingredient in a lot of tar removers - so is certainly strong enough to strip wax.

 

[Bravotwozero]

a pencil eraser will do it.

Prepsol as mentioned above, IPA, dishwashing liquid, metho, white spirits - but a pencil eraser means you won't remove wax from areas where you want it to remain. Also, those chux magic erasers are handy to have around for particularly stained trim - though use with caution as they are slightly abrasive.

Those Chux magic erasers are awesome. Just make sure you keep them really wet. Big no no to dish washing liquid though. Plastics tend not to like detergents very much.

 

[TinSnips]

Those Chux magic erasers are awesome. Just make sure you keep them really wet. Big no no to dish washing liquid though. Plastics tend not to like detergents very much.

Detergent will work at a pinch - definitely not ideal, but it wouldn't be much harsher than a solvent or APC on plastic really, I would have thought. Shouldn't do much harm if it's being dressed afterwards - certainly wouldn't put it anywhere near rubbers though.

 

[bonfield]

thanks, i will definitely try those chux erasers

would it be worth anything to wash my ute, clean the wole thing with white spirits, wash, dry, re-wax? or would claying my car be a better way of doing it?

the only reason i suggust the first is there might be some real stubborn road tar, bugs whatever on it

edit: not really thinking of using detergents but what are the pros and cons of it? and why dont the rubbers like it?

 

[TinSnips]

Detergents have a nasty habit of drying things out pretty quickly. Definitely not recommended to wash your car with - though plenty do as a prep process to remove wax. APC is a better option. Rubber treatment is an important part of car maintenance though - they will dry out and crack on their own over time.

Claying will remove wax - however trusting it to remove all wax, is another issue. If you clay, you should polish and wax. Clay will also remove tar, though a tar remover or white spirits will dissolve it and do a lot of the work for you, and remove those things before you get to the claying step, reducing the risk of marring the paint with the clay (you will almost always get some marring from claying. In a nutshell, it's a good idea to do both. If you're going to clay, you should machine polish to remove any marring that is induced, and also make certain that the paint is as clean as possible before sealing or waxing - at the very least, you should use a chemical paint cleanser (non abrasive). Sealants in particular generally require clean paint to bond to properly (unless they're bonding to themselves - ie, reapplication of the same product or layering).