Naked Science Forum

General Science => General Science => Topic started by: paul.fr on 17/04/2007 12:30:51

Title: furniture polish, what makes it slippery
Post by: paul.fr on 17/04/2007 12:30:51
I have just given my floors a good polish with furnitues polish, and can slide past a few room at once.weeeeeeeeeee

but what is it about furniture polish that leaves this shiney slippery surface?
Title: furniture polish, what makes it slippery
Post by: Karen W. on 18/04/2007 02:34:28
Is it the oil?? Like lemon oil etc. Alot of furniture polish have oils, most I think.. Linseed oil etc.

I once polished my bedroom hardwood floors with furniture polish ..LOL I just about broke my neck for weeks they stayed slippery!
Title: furniture polish, what makes it slippery
Post by: that mad man on 18/04/2007 15:07:34
I know, I know,,,,

It has banana skin extract.

Nah, only joking.   [;D]

Just a guess.

The furniture polish used to include beeswax and maybe this fills in the tiny spaces in the surface being polished. Constant applying would build up a "layer" filling the gaps, making it smoother and with less friction more slippery.

I don't know what's used instead of beeswax these days.


Bee
 
Title: furniture polish, what makes it slippery
Post by: Soul Surfer on 19/04/2007 00:25:54
For a surface to be shiny the irregularities in it have to be smaller than the wavelength of light most polishes work by filling up any irregularities larger than this to produce a smooth surface if the substance is a waxy lubricant it is almost certainly going to make them more slippery.  There are however "non slip" polishes around but these fill the surface with a sticky filler so friction is increased but they can have the disadvantage that they can cause dust to stick to the surface and so have do be dissolved away and replaced every so often.