Preventing discoloration around the embouchure hole

Irish Flute
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My Casey Burns Folk Flute was discolored around the embouchure hole where breath condensation lightened the surface of the mopane wood. I emailed Casey about ordering a new flute and he said that he could put a thin layer of carnauba wax over the wood to prevent that from happening.

Well, I remembered that carnauba wax is the main component of a lip balm called Chap-Aid (sold at Walgreen’s and similar to ChapStick). After covering the discolored wood on the folk flute with almond oil for a few hours to restore the appearance, I wiped off the oil and applied a bit of ChapAid around the area of embouchure hole and rubbed it in.

The ChapAid seems to be working. The wood around the embouchure hole does not discolor as easily, though I do need to reapply the ChapAid frequently to keep the wood dark.

As an extra benefit, the flute seems to play better against moisture build-up. Often, I play outside and my breath is so moist that when there is lots of condensation around the embouchure hole, the low E and D will not sound. With the ChapAid, I seem to be able to play longer without wiping the embouchure hole.

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Update: I have found that rubbing the inside wall of the embouchure hole (the far side where the air stream hits the edge) with a tiny bit of ChapAid does help reduce moisture buildup problems when playing the CB. I put a tiny dab on my index finger and rub about 1/16" to 1/8" down - basically the amount that I can access with my finger. It might be better to do this with a cotton swab, so that the embouchure hole does not receive any wear. I let it air-dry for about a minute and then I get wonderful sound - playing easily the second octave B.

Rubbing the surface of the flute around the embouchure hole does prevent discoloration, but it needs to be reapplied. ChapAid has a high Carnauba Wax content.