Polishing pad care

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carlg

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So I'm planning to do a swirl removal this weekend with my Porter Cable polisher and CCS Orange polishing pad (Same pad Mike uses in video).

Do you clean this pad when you are finished so you can use it again? If so, how?

Or do you just trash it after 1 use?
 
You can clean them.

I used a dedicated pad cleaner similar to the McKees 37 offering.

Before I had that I would use soap and water.

Once you have washed and rinsed them, set them face down on a grate, or cookie cooling rack to dry.
 
carlg said:
So I'm planning to do a swirl removal this weekend with my Porter Cable polisher and CCS Orange polishing pad (Same pad Mike uses in video).

Do you clean this pad when you are finished so you can use it again? If so, how?

Or do you just trash it after 1 use?
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Not only do you clean them after you're done, but you clean them while you're working too if you only have a pad or two. Because you really should be doing paint correction with 6-8 pads. If you don't own 6-8 pads, you're going to be cleaning them as you go.
 
And cleaning as you go is marginally effective. Once the pad is saturated it loses its effectiveness. It also heats up which can lead to separation from the velcro and break down of the foam. You really need more pads before polishing an enitre vehicle.
 
custmsprty said:
And cleaning as you go is marginally effective. Once the pad is saturated it loses its effectiveness. It also heats up which can lead to separation from the velcro and break down of the foam. You really need more pads before polishing an enitre vehicle.
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I'm a newbie but this was my experience. Because I'm frugal, I got just a couple each of the compounding and polishing pads I was using for my first ever polish. I figured I would just clean them on the go by blowing them out with an air compressor. They ended up getting saturated and overheated because I didn't have enough so they got ruined and I had to wait for more to arrive.
I ended up having to buy 6 pads of each anyways but I ruined the first 2 by trying to be frugal.

Sent from my FRD-L14 using Autogeekonline mobile app
 
The Mckees 37 Pad Cleaner is excellent. Made my white polishing pads look completely white after using Menzerna 3500 which is a gray polish. Pad would get a nice dark gray color before cleaning and then nearly spotless after.
 
Themikerobe said:
I'm a newbie but this was my experience. Because I'm frugal, I got just a couple each of the compounding and polishing pads I was using for my first ever polish. I figured I would just clean them on the go by blowing them out with an air compressor. They ended up getting saturated and overheated because I didn't have enough so they got ruined and I had to wait for more to arrive.
I ended up having to buy 6 pads of each anyways but I ruined the first 2 by trying to be frugal.

Sent from my FRD-L14 using Autogeekonline mobile app
Click to expand...

Agreed.

I posted not too long ago about this. I went from trying to use 6-8 on my Ram to now about 20. Yes, about 20.

A lot of surface area on the truck, and I find the frequent pad changes not only does a better polishing job, but makes the pads much easier to clean.

(I'd rather spend a minute per pad afterward than trying to scrub the hell out of 6 of them.).
 
So I did my convertible Mustang today (less polishing needed since there is no roof to do).

I used 3 pads.

When I was done, I washed them with soap and water and they seem to be fine and ready to go for next time!!
 
^^ good link

I use 3D Towel Kleen. I mix some in a 5 gal bucket, then as I finish with a pad, I throw it into the solution. I also make sure to clean the pad on the fly in between sections. Once I'm done the job, I have some more Towel Kleen mixed up in a spray bottle and follow the guide above. I use a brush at first, then kneed the pads by hand, and finally rinse them. I then squeeze the water out into a microfiber towel, then air dry them on a laundry rack.

How to clean your foam pad on the fly

How to dry a foam pad after hand washing
 
carlg said:
So I did my convertible Mustang today (less polishing needed since there is no roof to do).

I used 3 pads.

When I was done, I washed them with soap and water and they seem to be fine and ready to go for next time!!
Click to expand...

Don't use dish soap on your pads.
 
I struggled with pad cleaning and staining for a while. Dedicated pad cleaner and a pad brush. I spray my pads, brush them, and rinse well. Rinse very well. A good pad cleaner will make all the difference. I'm using McKee's. I'm sure others are good as well.
 
RippyD said:
I struggled with pad cleaning and staining for a while. Dedicated pad cleaner and a pad brush. I spray my pads, brush them, and rinse well. Rinse very well. A good pad cleaner will make all the difference. I'm using McKee's. I'm sure others are good as well.
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The McKees is excellent.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Autogeekonline mobile app
 
You can use APC. In my experience it doesn't work as well. My pads before I used pad cleaner are all stained, especially from darker polishes. With pad cleaner white pads stay perfectly white. With anything else I tried they get stained. I can post pictures of stained pads vs. clean ones. I haven't seen any polish/compound not come out completely with pad cleaner.
 
RippyD said:
You can use APC. In my experience it doesn't work as well. My pads before I used pad cleaner are all stained, especially from darker polishes. With pad cleaner white pads stay perfectly white. With anything else I tried they get stained. I can post pictures of stained pads vs. clean ones. I haven't seen any polish/compound not come out completely with pad cleaner.
Click to expand...

409 has worked really well and doesn't seem to hurt the pads.
 
Poorboy's Tornado Pad Cleaner is really good. Much better than McKee's along with less toxic fumes.
 
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