How to Clean Hair Wax Off a Sink

According to Healthline, hair removal wax, or hard wax, is typically made by combining beeswax and rosin in a 1-to-4 ratio. If you should happen to spill any of this wax on the sink while it's warm, you could find removal a challenge. Using two common procedures, scraping and blotting, you should be able to remove most of it, but it may take a chemical to get all the residue off some sink materials.

The scraping method, as recommended by Merry Maids, will work on most sinks with smooth surfaces, such as porcelain, stainless steel, enameled cast iron, acrylic and fiberglass. If your sink is made of tile or another textured material, such as stone or composites, you probably won't have much luck scraping wax off and may want to jump straight to the blotting method.

You need a scraper that can do the job without scratching the sink. A plastic putty knife is perfect, but avoid using a metal one, especially on stainless steel because small scratches can actually rust. A credit card works, but you'll want to use one that has expired because it might not swipe properly after you use it for this purpose.

Start by putting a few ice cubes in a plastic bag and holding them on the wax for several minutes to harden the wax, then remove the ice and scrape immediately. Most of the wax should break off the sink. If some wax residue that's too thin to scrape off remains, you can remove it with the blotting method.

Before you can remove hair wax by blotting, you have to heat it to turn it into a liquid, and you can use a clothes iron or hairdryer to do this. You'll also need an absorbent cloth, such as a towel, or some absorbent paper, such as newspaper or a paper towel.

Cover the wax with the cloth or paper, set a clothes iron on low heat (no steam) and hold it on the paper for a minute or two. As the wax liquefies, it will seep into the absorbent material. If you're using a hair dryer, set it on high heat and hold it a few inches away from the paper. The final result should be the same as it would be if you used an iron.

A few chemicals can dissolve wax or at least soften it enough to allow you to rub it off. The go-to in most households is Goof Off, which was designed to remove dried latex paint. You can also use mineral spirits or, if it's all you have and you don't mind the smell, lacquer thinner. You may also have luck using nail polish remover (acetone) or rubbing alcohol. None of these chemicals will damage the finish of your sink as long as you use them sparingly.

It's best to scrape or blot most of the wax first and use chemicals to remove the residue. Wet a soft, nonabrasive cloth with the chemical of your choice and rub the wax vigorously. If the sink is made with tile and some of the wax has seeped into the grout, you may need to rub several times to remove all of the residue.