What do you guys do to "strip" your wax off? What does stripping actually do?

 

Dawn dishwashing liquid. Last time before I polished and waxed the truck, I loaded up a bucket and brush and the dawn and headed to the car wash. Used thier rinse and my soap and it worked great. Smelled like lemons after it was over.

I think it just removes all the old wax so you can start with a fresh coat of wax. If you've ever seen a floor after all the wax was stripped of, you would be amazed. Its so much better, almost looks like new.

 

Why do you want to strip the wax off?

If you are using a compound or a polish, then that will strip the wax off.

The only time you need to use Dawn on your paint is if you are about to apply a synthetic like Klasse Sealant Glaze or Zaino as they need a clean, wax and oil free surface to bond to.

If you are using a carnauba wax, then there is absolutely no need to Dawn wash unless you wax so often you have wax build up.

Sorry, the over use of Dawn is just one of my pet peeves.

 

While I agree, why would you want to clog up the polishing pad with wax when what you really want to accomplish is working on the paint? One has to wash before using a polish anyway, so it might as well be with dish soap.

Overuse it may be at times, but it doesn't do any harm and it is cheap.

 

The wax on the paint is so thin it won't really matter. Maybe if you had so much carnauba wax on the paint that you started to see a wax build-up, then you might want to do it. DAWN washing to remove a synthetic won't work. It will not remove the synthetic. You have to let it wear off, use an Acid system or polish it off.

I have never noticed old layers of wax clogin up the polishing pad. Heavy oxidation will do it but that is about it.