Polishing pad cleaning

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knot@work

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Hi all,
Newb here. I just recently purchased the Blackfire system and have done my wife's dark grey Highlander. Everything has worked great and I'm real pleased with the product.

Along with purchasing the the polishes, I purchased a selection of Microfibers and foam polishing pads. For the pads, I purchased the blackfire advanced pad conditioner and advanced pad cleaner.

So here's where my question comes in... I've done the Compounding, the Finishing Polish and finished with the Wet Diamond all finish paint protection. The Pad Cleaner I bought did a great job cleaning all the pads except the one I used with the Wet Diamond. It doesn't seem to be breaking down the liquid wax/polish that is soaked into the pad. It is clean by all appearances, but when I squeeze or try to wring it out, I get globs of the polish.

What can I use to clean this out of the polishing pad?

As an FYI, here are the steps I took and products used.
Washed the car.
Claybar'd with blackfire poly clay and lubricant
Blackfire scratch resistant clear compound with CCS Orange Light Cutting Pad
Blackfire SRC finishing polish with CCS Green Polishing/Finishing Pad
Blackfire Wet Diamond All Finish Paint Protection with CCS Blue Finessing Pad
​
Thanks in advance,
Tom
 
That stuff is a bear to get out of pads. I've had some success with dawn dish soap, but it still takes time a patience to get it out. I normally soak the pads in a bucket of DP Rejuvenator, then hit them with any of the pad cleaning chemicals out there (currently use Pinnacle XMT, BF Pad Cleaner), then wash in the Grit Guard Pad Washer. The Wet Diamond still requires some hand massaging with Dawn. I don't know if it will ever be completely clean, but my pads stay soft and still work well.
 
By the time you get the polish out of the pad, the hook and loop will probably be toast! I usually just toss the pad if I use a product that I can't clean out of the pad.
 
Just02896 said:
By the time you get the polish out of the pad, the hook and loop will probably be toast! I usually just toss the pad if I use a product that I can't clean out of the pad.
Click to expand...

The hook and loop will give way sooner rather than later, but I can typically get 3-4 uses out of the pads with this stuff. Definitely want to dedicate pads to this product though, no sense messing up more pads then needed.
 
I have discovered a way to get any wax or polymer sealant out of pads - including BFWD & Powerlock - 2 of the toughest. I believe this is the only way to do it without destroying the pad, at least the only way I can figure out. When you are done, the pad will be like new:

1. Clean pad with some surfactant type pad cleaner - BF works well. Use a pad brush.
2. Put on rubber gloves and squish pad(s) several times in mineral spirits. Let soak for 10 mins.
3. Repeat above with 70% IPA. Rinse well with water.

This is the only way I've found to be 100% effective. The alternative is toss your pad in the garbage or keep using a dirty old slimy pad each time you apply a wax or sealant. This truly gets all stains and polymers out of your pads. I've used some pads 10-20 times with sealants and they still come clean as new.
 
Foam pads and applicators that are used for applying sealants and waxes can be restored to new, or close to new condition. It does take time and paitence. First I soak the pads in Mineral Spirits overnight. I then rinse and soak in them in Snappy Pad cleaner for several hours or overnight. Finally I wash them with Dawn, warm water and a brush. After rinsing for what seems like half and hour I put them between paper towels and step on them. They then go on cookie cooling racks to dry for days.

Sometimes I cut them up and use them for tire dressing instead. :)
 
spiralout462 said:
Foam pads and applicators that are used for applying sealants and waxes can be restored to new, or close to new condition. It does take time and paitence. First I soak the pads in Mineral Spirits overnight. I then rinse and soak in them in Snappy Pad cleaner for several hours or overnight. Finally I wash them with Dawn, warm water and a brush. After rinsing for what seems like half and hour I put them between paper towels and step on them. They then go on cookie cooling racks to dry for days.



Sometimes I cut them up and use them for tire dressing instead. :)
Click to expand...


I use to do the overnight thing but found squishing them well got the job done pretty fast. It seams sealants responds better to mineral spirits and waxes to IPA. I usually use one followed by another, plus the IPA seems to get out all the mineral spirits, and IPA is very water soluble - so it rinses clean (use that last, followed by water).

I've been doing this for quite a while with many LSP pads. I buy the MS by the gallon and bottles of IPA at Costco so they both last a while. You can enough of both to clean numerous pads (20+) for the price of 2 pads. This is only necessary with LSPs though, polishes usually come out pretty easy with BF pad cleaner or LA Awesome. I still may hit them with IPA if they are stained just so they look new and any polymers from the polish are out of the pad.

I can't stand using a pad with stains on it. I have to get the pad perfectly clean or toss it.
 
I've had good experience using Dodo Juice APC 10:1 (10 parts water, 1 part product) to clean gunked up pads where PRS and DP Polishing Pad Rejuvenator weren't cutting it.
 
swanicyouth said:
I use to do the overnight thing but found squishing them well got the job done pretty fast. It seams sealants responds better to mineral spirits and waxes to IPA. I usually use one followed by another, plus the IPA seems to get out all the mineral spirits, and IPA is very water soluble - so it rinses clean (use that last, followed by water).

I've been doing this for quite a while with many LSP pads. I buy the MS by the gallon and bottles of IPA at Costco so they both last a while. You can enough of both to clean numerous pads (20+) for the price of 2 pads. This is only necessary with LSPs though, polishes usually come out pretty easy with BF pad cleaner or LA Awesome. I still may hit them with IPA if they are stained just so they look new and any polymers from the polish are out of the pad.

I can't stand using a pad with stains on it. I have to get the pad perfectly clean or toss it.
Click to expand...


I hear ya! The only reason I say soak overnight is that I rarely have the time or energy to clean them after a long detail. It was your experiments that got me into using it to clean applicators.

Right now I'm using a "Safer" Mineral Spirit Substitute (white) which sucks for cleaning paint brushes but works really well for foam applicators. It has less of an odor than the real thing but cleans just as fast and well IMO. I too buy gallons since they are typically much cheaper than the same product in a quart. After all they ain't gonna go bad.

I have also been using LATA based on your experiences with it. I haven't really used it enough to form an opinion on it yet, other than DON'T inhale it!
 
Wow, thanks for the great response, didn't expect much feedback on Christmas eve.

There seems to be some consensus regarding the Mineral Spirits and IPA (Still getting used to the lingo 'round here, I'm assuming IPA is Isopropyl Alcohol?). I would have never thought of using the MS due to the residual odor etc. but I guess since several of you use it, it must not be an issue.

I've also added the Snappy Pad cleaner to my cart since it's only 3.99, figured I'd give it a try at that fairly reasonable price.

Since this one type of polish seems to be difficult to clean, would it be reasonable to just spray some conditioner on the pad and store it in a sealed ziplock for its next use?

Wow, I didn't realize this one product would be so hard to clean!

BTW, spiralout462, love the Tool references! My two top bands of all time are Pink Floyd and TOOL!
 
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