Meguiar’s-Cleaner-Wax

16 Surprising Ways Car Wax Can Make Your Life Easier

Chances are good that there’s an old can of car wax hanging out in your garage or basement. Now would be the time to find it, dust it off, and hope it’s not all dried out. Of course, car wax is good for waxing a car, but it’s handy in so many other ways around the house that really are quite amazing.

Meguiar’s-Cleaner-Wax

 

Car wax, whether paste or liquid, is formulated to fill scratches and give a high shine to nonporous surfaces like glass or metal and leave them resistant to smudges and stains.

As for which car wax works best, I prefer Meguiar’s Cleaner Wax paired with a good microfiber cloth because it cleans, polishes and leaves a beautiful finish—all in one step.

Turtle Super Hard Shell Paste Wax is a fine choice too, just know that you’ll need to clean the surface first, then apply the car wax.

De-fog mirrors

There’s nothing like a nice hot shower to steam up bathroom mirrors. Car wax is the secret to make them fog-free. Apply a small amount to the entire mirror, allow it to dry then buff it away with a clean rag or microfiber cloth.

Granite and marble

Apply a coat of wax to granite and marble countertops to fill in fine scratches and restore the glossy finish and shine.

Shiny faucets

No matter how water spotted and dull your tub, shower, and sink faucets are, car wax will make them look like new—and help them stay that way. Rub a small bit of auto wax into all of that metal and allow it to dry for a few minutes. Now just polish it away with a soft dry cloth. The wax will prevent new water spots and keep those fixtures sparkling*.

Fight mildew

After using your regular cleanser, apply a layer of car wax to the inside and outside of a shower door and buff off with a dry cloth to discourage mildew growth and hard watermarks.

Fingerprint-free appliances

Tired of smudges and fingerprints all over your beautiful appliances? Apply a thin coat of car wax to your stainless steel refrigerator, dishwasher, stove. Wait a few minutes then buff clean. That surface will resist fingerprints and smudges.

Tool care

Say goodbye forever to rust on garden, garage, and auto tools when you apply a coat of car wax to all of the metal parts. Make sure you rub a little wax into the hinges and moving parts to keep them from jamming and sticking.

Outdoor grill

Apply a good coat of car wax to the outside of the grill to make it shine, repel watermarks and make it so much easier to clean in the future. Make sure the grill is NOT on and not in the hot sun when you do this.

Shiny tabletops

Apply car wax to your plastic, laminate, and Formica tabletops and counters. Wipe it on, wipe it off to a beautiful shine!

Patio furniture

Whether your outdoor furniture is metal, plastic, or molded vinyl, apply car wax in the same way you would wax your car to protect against rust, add shine, and repel watermarks.

Rings of rust

You know how cans of shave cream, hairspray, and other aerosol products can leave a rust ring in the shower, bath, garage or even the patio? Remove the rust easily with—you guessed it—car wax.

White rings

Someone forgot to use a coaster and that drink left a white ring on your beautiful furniture! No worries. Hit it with wax. Rub it in with your finger until the ring disappears. Let it dry then buff it away.

Sticky drawers

And closet doors and windows, too. Rub a dab of car wax onto the tracks of those drawers, doors, and sliding windows. Who knew that would make them move more easily? Now you know.

Backsplash

If you apply auto wax to the areas behind your stove and sink, grease and gunk will wipe off easily. Your kitchen will sparkle, too. Apply, wait a few minutes then buff it clean. Now with a coat of car wax, the backsplash area will be so easy to wipe clean every time you clean that area.

Stove drip pans

This will work equally well on drip pans. Be sure they are clean and then apply the wax and buff off.

Prevent corrosion

Wherever you see it—on the mailbox, door, and window frames, outdoor light fixtures, garage door mechanisms—clean the rust away with car wax. You’ll automatically prevent further corrosion from weather and water, too.

Snow shovel

Apply two coats of car wax to your snow shovel (or the inside of the chute if you use a  snowblower) before you begin to clear the driveway and sidewalk. The snow will not stick, and that means you’ll glide through the task.

*CAUTION: Car wax can leave a beautiful surface that is also slick. For this reason, DO NOT use car wax on the floor of anything—kitchen, porch, patio, tub, or shower. Doing so will create a slip-and-fall hazard that could be very dangerous.

Original published 10-29-15; Updated 7-11-23


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16 replies
  1. Sheri B. says:

    I use Turtle Wax Original for my cat litter box. My cat pee’s right up against the edge and I always had to bang on the outside to get it to release. Now I clean the pee up real good, dry it real good then I put a layer of Turtle Wax on where he pees and let it dry before I let the litter touch it. Works great!
    All I have to do now is tip the litter box to the other side and the pee clumps come right off!

    Reply
    • Wendy Tucker (Tockman) says:

      Mary! So glad to read this. I was just about to ask about wax and litter boxes. You may have saved me from buying a stainless steel litter box. I think Turtle Wax is cheaper! Thank you.

      Reply
  2. Patti says:

    Love these tips! Do you think it’d work on Polywood outdoor furniture? I also use car wax on top of my glass top stove to prevent scorch marks/greasy build up etc. and it keeps it looking like new. Be sure to not use your stove for as long as possible after waxing/buffing off, but at least overnight.

    Reply
  3. Marci S. says:

    Hello Mary,
    Could I use this car wax to clean and shine up the inside of my shower doors?
    Thank you for all of your advice!!

    Reply
  4. Barbara says:

    Mary, could you please reply to my comment about using car wax on eyeglasses (1st comment above). One reader shared his suggestion but I would rather not have to put tape on my nose. I have several different types of masks (crazy times we are in!) and some have the wire where I can conform the mask to my nose but my eyeglasses fog up no matter which mask I wear.

    Reply
    • Mary says:

      I have not tried that, Barbara, but encourage you test it out on an old pair of glasses first so you will know what to expect just in case the wax brings harm to lens coating, if any, you have on your eyeglasses.

      In the meantime, I came across what seems to be a fabulous, easy, and quick solution for your foggy problem! Take a look at this YouTube video. If you try that possible solution, let me know that outcome, too!

      Reply
      • Barbara says:

        Thank you Mary. The solution you linked above via YouTube was super easy and worked like a charm!

  5. Barbara says:

    This was very helpful information. When you mentioned the foggy mirrors, I thought of eyeglasses. Would this work on them also? When we venture out of our home during this pandemic, my eyeglasses fog up while wearing a mask. I want to protect others while wearing a mask, but I also need to be able to see. Wanted to check with you first as my eyeglasses have the UV and scratch coat protection.

    Reply
    • bobbi warren says:

      If your glasses are fogging due to your mask, simply fasten the top of your mask to your nose with white paper tape. Any tape will do, but paper tape is the best tolerated by skin.

      Reply
    • Mary says:

      There is also a big orange-is PRINT button at the bottom of the post! Every single post. Recipes have their own print function that allows you to print only the recipe, but the regular PRINT button is at the bottom of those posts as well! Check it out.

      Reply
  6. Frank Henderson says:

    Great and informative article!
    Car wax is also a great way to preserve the finish on your firearms. It’s better than oil or grease because they are sticky and attract moisture laden dirt.

    Reply

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