What product to clean pads

asalesagent912

asalesagent912

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When i am done polishing i have been spraying my pads with xmt pad cleaner and than hosing them off. just want to know if there what other methods or products some here use
Maybe something in bulk.
 
I just use a mild APC and plenty of water. Much cheaper and just as effective as pricey "Pad cleaners"
 
I use Blackfire MF detergent on all my MF towels and figured why not try it on my foam polishing pads? I wasn't expecting much since I use Sonax and Menz which tend to be oily but it turned out that BF works better than anything else I've used to clean my pads! Best thing is that I no longer need to stock 2 different products!
 
Sounds crazy, but I use zep neutral floor cleaner diluted 1:31 in a spray bottle to prep and 1:128 in my pad washer.
 
Dawn concentrate and warm water. massage suds/solution...saturate/squeeze well, over and over...until everything runs clean...and rack or spin dry.

that's what i do. i have some pads that are from 2008.
 
builthatch said:
Dawn concentrate and warm water. massage suds/solution...saturate/squeeze well, over and over...until everything runs clean...and rack or spin dry.

that's what i do. i have some pads that are from 2008.
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Wow! Way cool! Never thought about that but I am going to give that a shot. I will use warm/hot water too. I know the hotter the water (within reason) it will help break down the wax and polish compounds. Never tied Dawn though, just Pad cleaner. If it works....man $$ saved.

Thanks
 
Kamakaz1961 said:
Wow! Way cool! Never thought about that but I am going to give that a shot. I will use warm/hot water too. I know the hotter the water (within reason) it will help break down the wax and polish compounds. Never tied Dawn though, just Pad cleaner. If it works....man $$ saved.

Thanks
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It works well but remember what he said about rinse well. Rinse well then rinse some more. You don't want any residual soap dried in the pad that reactivates next time you're polishing. My recommendation is to make sure you put the dawn in a bucket of water and dilute is slightly so you don't have a pocket of concentrate squeezed and settling deep into the middle of your pad. After you mix up your concentated dawn mixture in a small bucket squeeze all the air out of your pad and place it in bucket and open your hand. That will draw the soapy mixture into your pad. At that point remove it from the bucket so you don't contaminate the dawn concentrate with what's in your pad. Work the pad in your hand and rinse it under running water well. Proceed with your other pads. I've been using DP pad cleaner. It works well and really is economical. I'm thinking a tub of TSP which is cheap and would last a long time might work well. Any thoughts on using TSP?
 
Hazcat said:
It works well but remember what he said about rinse well. Rinse well then rinse some more. You don't want any residual soap dried in the pad that reactivates next time you're polishing. My recommendation is to make sure you put the dawn in a bucket of water and dilute is slightly so you don't have a pocket of concentrate squeezed and settling deep into the middle of your pad. After you mix up your concentated dawn mixture in a small bucket squeeze all the air out of your pad and place it in bucket and open your hand. That will draw the soapy mixture into your pad. At that point remove it from the bucket so you don't contaminate the dawn concentrate with what's in your pad. Work the pad in your hand and rinse it under running water well. Proceed with your other pads. I've been using DP pad cleaner. It works well and really is economical. I'm thinking a tub of TSP which is cheap and would last a long time might work well. Any thoughts on using TSP?
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Agreed rinsing is very important with a liquid dish washing soap. As for TSP...what is that? I am still trying to figure that out...please enlighten me....LOL
 
Saturate with apc and massage some dawn into them. Let sit for a few hours and rinse clean as new . Works like a charm :-)
 
Kamakaz1961 said:
Agreed rinsing is very important with a liquid dish washing soap. As for TSP...what is that? I am still trying to figure that out...please enlighten me....LOL
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I'm sorry,Trisodium Phosphate. I'm old so it's a common product I've used for many, many years. It's even used in food as a preservative. Years back it was used for everything when it came to cleaning. Since it's not considered biodegradable government regulations downsized it's use in industry but it's still used by many and easy to obtain at a local hardware store. I believe it's still in some laundry soaps. Home depot and other stores carry it. A little goes a long way. I think you can get 5 lbs for under $10. It doesn't foam up a lot and it cleans like a beast. It got me to thinking it would work well in pads.
 
I have found to be the Blackfire spray on pad cleaner to be absolutely amazing. I havent tried many of these pad specific cleaner, but I do know that the one blackfire makes has blown away anything else I have used.

I absolutely hate cleaning pads with that powder solution. it so damn hard to fully rinse out and is just a pain to use when compared to a spray on product.

Blackfire rinses REALLY easy and you only need about 3 or 4 sprays on 1 pad.
 
I'm like builthatch, i mix up a soapy bucket of dish soap and warm water. When finished with a pad after maybe 2-3 sections i use a brush and clean it out while still on the buffer. Then drop it in the soapy bucket to soak until i'm done with the job. I then work the pads in the bucket with my fingers and might hit the worst ones with a spray of APC and work them some more with my hands, then drop it in the bucket.

After i'm all done i wring them out and drop them in a clean rinse bucket. Work them some more to get all the soap out, spin them on my rotary and then air dry.

I have some old a** pads that are still in service without any velcro or adhesive issues.
 
killrwheels@autogeek said:
DP Polishing Pad Rejuvenator was created to provide detailers with a fast and effective way to clean pads without soapy residue or foamy degreasers.

mix up as little or much as needed.
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:iagree:

I immediately drop in this solution after done with pad to let soak. I then use kitchen gloves and repeatedly squeeze pads in solution and then under warm tap water working out chemical residue. I then spray with pressure washer with pad laying on Rubbermaid top (so debris doesn't get on it) and squeeze/wring dry. To completely dry, I spin on rotary and/or lay on grit guard face down so water leaves pad vice sit in it at base.

If I can't get all the residue out (esp w/sealants), once dry I put in dedicated/labelled container/bag to be used with same product next time.
 
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