You’ll need to look after your snowboard well if you’ve forked out the cash to buy one for yourself. Part of looking after a board is giving it a regular waxing. The reason you wax the board is not to increase grip like waxing surfboards, but instead to make the board more slippery and faster on the slopes. When applied, the layer of wax ingrains deep into the board’s base layer. When you ride on the snow the wax actually causes a melting effect, so essentially you end up planing on a micro-thin water layer. Here is the advice you need to apply wax the right way

Remove previous coat. Ensure that you’ve cleaned the base well and removed any covering before applying a new wax coat. This can be done by scraping it down with a plastic utensil using long strokes. You may want to use a hair-dryer to soften the wax and base cleaner which you can get from a snowboards retailer. Do not however use a metal scraper as this can damage the base.

Applying the wax. Find an iron that nobody minds you using and get it to a gentle-wax-melting temperature. Set the iron heat to ‘cotton’ as this is usually the ideal level. When the temperature has been achieved hold the bar of wax and iron above the board and drip it along the length and around the edges. Then place the iron directly on the boards and smooth out all the wax so there is a thin coating all over.

Finishing. When you have left the wax to cool for half an hour its time to finish the board. To do this you need to get the wax to shine by rubbing it down well with a cloth. Finally texture the wax and remove any prominent areas by brushing it down with a hard-bristled brush, before buffing it for a final time.

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