In what order should I wax, wash?

You should wash your hair and then apply the wax or maintenance product.

You will use the wax or maintenance product the whole time you have dreads to hold in loose hairs.

Expect the wax to be firm and a little sticky. It might be a little hard to get off of your hands, since it's waterproof, but you can use liquid Dawn to get it off. You may find it a little different to work the wax into the dreads for the first time, if you do, get a hair dryer and heat the wax a little before you smooth it on the dread, then melt the wax into the dread using the hair dryer when you're done.

As often as you please. Some people will say that you can't wash dreads at all, because they will fall out, but that is just another dreadlock myth. Dreadlocks should be washed at least once a week, just like normal hair.

Yes, you can swim with silky dreads; just make sure you squeeze all the water out of the dreads when you are finished swimming so the dreads don't grow mold.