There are many ski and snowboard waxing services out there offering to clean, buffer and wax your skis to get them back to that original “just bought” look. However, this can be an expensive and time consuming service so the best alternative is to do it yourself! Not sure where to begin? Read on…
Waxing you skis isn’t hard as long as you have the right equipment. You will need:
- Base cleaner
- Ski clamp
- Basic iron
- Universal hot wax
- Scraper
- Polisher
- Brush
Firstly, before you apply any kind of wax, make sure your skis aren’t still at snow temperature! If you have come straight from a session on the slopes, leave them inside to warm up and dry – this will stop the ski reacting to the hot wax and bending out of shape – once this happens it is pretty impossible to fix.
Clamp your skis into place so they don’t slip and clean your skis with a base cleaner – this will get of dirt, debris, and other wax. Don’t pour straight on to the skis – add a little to a cloth and apply to the skis. It will look shiny and wet once you’re done – let it dry completely before moving on to applying the wax.
Heat up your iron – a basic one will do or you can even use one of the old fashioned ones that look like a big Monopoly piece! Whilst it is heating up to a moderate temperature, make sure your wax is at the ready.
Rub a thin layer of wax on each ski and iron the ski in a continuous motion across the length of the ski, along the grain. Try not to burn the wax with an iron which is too hot – it will emit smoke when you apply the iron if it is going to burn. Simply adjust the temperature of the iron and carry on.
Allow the wax to cool fully and then use a large scraper to scrape off any excess wax. Try not to push down too hard on the scraper as this can take off too much wax and can even end up damaging the base itself.
Once all excess wax is scraped off, get your polisher and put a little on a pad. Again rub the polish lengthways along the skis a few times to ensure the wax is properly spread out on the surface of the ski. Using the polish to buff the base improves the way your skis glide – especially on wetter snow.
Grab a hard brush with rigid bristles and run it along the grain of each ski a couple of times. This gets rid of any additional wax scrapings but doesn’t remove it altogether!
Waxing your own skis is the best way of saving money and if you are a regular skier, it is a great skill to have for your long term hobby – happy skis mean a happy skier!
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