Hi Sheri - Sorry I'm just seeing this now. Grayson had a staph infection in his ears. Black crud... some solid, some liquid. No mites. More than just wax (my dog Dom has horrible wax). On him I used Oti-Soothe II from the vet, Q-tips, then drops to kill the infection.
In most cases, I use any number of things. First of all Q-tips to clean off all the surface crud. Most of my guys' ear crud is soft and moist, so the Q-tip does well. Once the big stuff is out, then I might go in with a cleaner. I've got a couple, probably the most gentle is Oti-Soothe II w/ Aloe Vera Ear Cleansing solution for dogs & cats. Bought it over the counter at the vet.. Petsmart may carry it, but not sure. I also have Oti Foam Ear Cleanser (this is really helpful if the crud is drier and caked on. Lastly TrizULTRA+Keto - I think this is Rx, as it has the label on it that says Flush affected ears w/ soln once a day for 10 days. Apply antibiotic soluntion in ears (something else) 10-15 min later. That makes me think this one has alcohol in it. Keto-Chlor pet shampoo (also from the vet) during bath time as well. With Dom's really cruddy ears, I've also been known to use Boric Acid to help DRY the yeast-type stuff. I also have used Tinactin (athlete's foot/jock itch) powder. Same bacteria. Lastly, when Dom's getting a bath, I'll either put some of the cleaner in his ears before the bath, or (YIKES!) Dawn dishshoap. Once he's in the tub w/ the handheld shower massage, I flush his ears out with the water, then dry and swab out w/ Q-tips. Viable with a dog, maybe not so much with a kitty.
Good luck. Most kitties will hold their ears in a different position than normal, and rub them. That's when we found Grayson's staph infection. I jsut cleaned normal crud out today, about a week after finishing 10 days of antibiotics/steroid drops.
Hope this all helps.
Lu-Ann
Some basic ear cleaner from a pet store or vet and some Q-tips should probably do it for you.