Using ski wax on your skis helps to protect them

Ski wax is an essential part of ski maintenance. Such is the advancement made over the last couple of decades in the production of ski wax, there are now ski waxes for all types of snow and all different temperature conditions. So you just have to choose the right one for the conditions you will be facing. If you are not too sure on how the conditions are then all you need do is ask in the pro shop at you slope and they will willing advise you as to which ski wax you should be applying. Now you can have your ski waxing done by a professional or even do it yourself. It's not such a hard task to do and after a couple of attempts you will master it. If you decide to do it yourself you will need a ski wax iron, which is not so entirely different from a standard household clothes iron. Its not identical but the similarities and workings are there for all to see.

To apply the wax to your skis you use the iron to heat and melt the wax all over the base of the skis. When you have done this you then iron the base of the ski the same way you would iron a shirt. The effect of doing this is to help the ski wax penetrate into the base of the ski. You then allow the ski base to cool down and scrape off any excess wax. You then have to brush the base with a course metal brush followed by a softer nylon and horse hair brush to create a smooth and fast base on the bottom of the ski. You may think this is a lot of work to just wax your skis. Indeed there are just rub on ,rub off waxes available nowadays and even spray on waxes. However these last two examples are no where near as effective as the hot ski wax process.

When the ski season is over your ski maintenance is not quite finished. Before putting your skis away in storage it's advisable for you again to apply ski wax. This final application before storage will protect the skis from any moisture and also prevent the edges of them from rusting. And all through storage your skis will be absorbing the ski wax, so when you come to use them again in the next ski season the base of your skis will have a much more impervious texture.