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Ear Wax Removal Home Remedies

When ear wax is produced excessively, it can obscure your ability to hear clearly. Ear wax is produced to protect your ears from bacteria, fungus and to help clean and moisten your ear canals. If excessive ear wax causes problems, you can use simple methods to remove it.

  1. Paraffin Oil

    • Using paraffin oil or another mineral oil is probably the safest home method for removing excess ear wax. Your goal is to soften the ear wax so that it will come out more easily. Mineral and paraffin oils are ideal because they are quite thin and will work more quickly on your wax. Before you put the oil in, warm it slightly. If you try to put cool or cold mineral oil in your ear, you may become dizzy. Once you have dropped a few drops of oil into your ear, lie on your side with the ear that has oil inside facing up. After five to 10 minutes, you can get up and bend your head over the sink to allow the wax and oil to flow out. Repeat this procedure for four or five days until you have dissolved and removed all of the wax from your ears.

    Water and Vinegar Irrigation

    • If the mineral or paraffin oil did not remove all of the wax, you can use a warm mixture of water and vinegar. You will need to mix a 10-to-1 solution of apple cider vinegar and warm water and pull it up into a bulb syringe. Make sure the temperature of this solution is just above body temperature (38 degrees Celsius). Check it with a thermometer; again, you don't want to put cold water in your ear.
      Tilt your head over the sink and pull your affected ear up and back so you straighten the ear canal slightly. Try to aim the nozzle of the syringe slightly up and back so the solution can cascade along the top of your ear canal. Continue flushing your ear with the water/vinegar solution until you have dissolved the ear wax. You can gently dry your ear with a hair dryer set on low heat.

    Sea Water Ear Spray

    • Normally, your ears clean themselves of excess ear wax. The ear wax protects your ears and contains both anti-fungal and antibacterial properties. If your ears produce too much wax, you may experience a blockage that can obstruct your hearing. If you do need to clean your ears regularly, try sea-water spray every day, once a day to help keep the ear wax under control.

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