Beeswax Is Your Secret Weapon For A Sparkling Clean House

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Eco-friendly, safe, and affordable natural products offer more than enough reason to ditch commercial chemical solutions. The key question of incorporating these products comes down to effectiveness. Sadly, vinegar and baking soda can only do so much to clean, deodorize, and protect against filth around the house. As a result, many are left to seek out other non-hazardous alternatives to complete their routine, including one substitute you might not have considered — beeswax. You may already use this versatile bee by-product as a plastic wrap replacement by making your own beeswax wraps, but its utility doesn't stop there.

Beeswax can fill many diverse roles from making candles to lubricating machines to forming sculptures. For the modern DIYer, it's also an impressive protectant for various surfaces around the home. Beeswax is insoluble in water and can withstand acids — and even some solvents — at room temperature. As a result, it's an excellent waterproofer and conditioner. You can use beeswax to protect baking sheets or even season cast iron by taking advantage of its hard, non-stick composition. It's also great for long-term cast iron storage because it's so stable, meaning you won't have to worry about reapplying it as often as you might with other alternatives. When your pan is ready to clean, the durable, hydrophobic coating will readily hold up to a soap and water wash. As you can probably guess, those same qualities can work wonders around the home, from conditioning your living room furniture to protecting your gardening equipment.

Beeswax can work wonders when you need to restore the look, quality, and function of metal items around your home. Use beeswax to create a water-resistant seal around metal tools, like trowels, axes, handsaws, or shovels. Simply mix it with some linseed oil and mineral spirits, and buff it into your tools for lasting protection against corrosion. If you have bronze, copper, or other metal items, blending 1 quart of turpentine with ⅓ pound of beeswax can create a protective polish to preserve its patina and prevent damage.

Beeswax doesn't just protect against rust (and give the metal an attractive luster at the same time). You can also use it to address already rusted materials. Refurbish rusty bolts and screws by rubbing some melted beeswax onto the fastener and letting it seep into the jammed threads until you can easily remove it. Keep in mind this same concept can apply to other parts of the house, metal or otherwise, like sticky drawers or window slides. After cleaning the slides, rub beeswax along the tracks to smooth their operation. While it may not be the first alternative you think of, beeswax can be a good substitute for WD-40. For example, squeaky hinges can benefit from the beeswax treatment. Simply apply some melted wax to hinge pins, and move it back and forth until the squeak disappears.

After you dust and wipe down your furniture — and other wood surfaces around the house — beeswax can put the finishing touch on making them shine. A classic mix is equal parts turpentine and beeswax. Let it combine and cool before using a soft cloth to buff it into your furniture and fixtures. Adding in another equal part of olive or linseed oil can also give the polish a more luxurious golden glow.

With a few tweaks, beeswax can also help create a food-safe seal for your butcher block countertops and cutting boards. Mix food-grade mineral oil and melted beeswax in a 4:1 ratio, and buff it into the wood surface. The oil will penetrate the wood to prevent cracking, and keep stains from absorbing. Meanwhile, the beeswax fills minor scratches, repels water, and further conditions the board. You can even buy butcher block conditioners using these ingredients, like Howard Butcher Block Conditioner, for an impressive transformation.

Beyond wood and metal, you can also use beeswax to polish those stone countertops to a striking shine. After cleaning your countertop, melt and apply some beeswax, or mix it with mineral oil in a 1:3 ratio, and buff it into a smooth coat. Beeswax isn't only for your home's hard surfaces, either. If you want a natural ingredient to create a protective layer on your leather furniture, beeswax offers a durable, hydrating seal to keep dirt and water from causing premature discoloration and cracking.