How to Remove Wax from a Surfboard

Last Updated: March 5, 2023 References Approved

After a few months of surfing, the old wax on your surfboard will become dirty and less sticky. To bring back that new surfboard feeling, you can clean the old wax from your surfboard.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Softening the wax

1
Soften the wax to make it easy to remove. You can soften using any one of several techniques:
- Put your board in direct sunlight for a few minutes. On a warm day the wax will be turn shiny and slightly gooey within a few minutes, making it easy to scrape off.^{[1]
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- If sunny weather won't oblige, pour some hot water onto the board.^{[2]
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  1.1.2 If the weather's not sunny at all, pour hot water over the deck or use a hair dryer to heat it up;}
- Point the hot air from a hair dryer set on low to a spot right before you scrape.^{[3]
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- Do nothing. If you don't have the time or tools to soften the wax, you can still get rid of the old wax. However, not softening it will make the scraping that much more difficult and slightly less effective.

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Scraping off the wax

1
Start scraping the board with the non-serrated side of a wax comb, old credit card or any other similar implement.^{[4]
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2
Continue scraping till all wax has been removed from the board.
- There are some products available (e.g. "Pickle Wax Remover" by Team Chow), which you rub over the board after removing most of the wax by scraping. This will help with removing those last bits of wax. Pure melted coconut oil can achieve the same effect. If rubbed off with a wool blanket scrap, the scrap can then be composted.^{[5]
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3
Roll the wax ball over the board to pick up the remaining pieces of wax that linger in a few spots. Dispose of the wax ball responsibly.
4
Re-apply wax if doing so. (This is optional.)