cleaning foam pads

[Z06Seal]

I see in alot of the videos there are ways the guys show how to clean the MF pads. I didn't see one for cleaning the foam pads though. I'm talking about in between polishing. Let's say I did 1/2 the car and want to clean up the foam pad. Is there a method to this? I do remember seeing a video of cleaning them after you're done (using all purpose cleaner) but what about in between polishing? should I go to another foam pad?

 

and how can I tell it's time to clean the foam pad? I know with the MF pads you just brush it up and bring back the fibers to life. not sure how on the foam pads though...

 

thanks!

[Z06Seal]

just found this... I guess I was looking for it in the wrong section lol

 

http://www.adamsforums.com/topic/14397-faq-how-do-i-cleancare-for-my-pads/

 

that sticky talks more about cleaning after you're done though. what about cleaning/revitalizing the foam pad during polishing? just switch to another pad? split car into 3 maybe? (front/mid/rear)

Edited February 19, 2015 by Z06Seal

[Ricky Bobby]

Brush it out or clean it on the fly.

 

But either way I never do a full correcting or full polish step with just 1 pad for the whole car.  Work clean, and your work comes out better.  Working with a pad thats slowly getting dirtier will not allow your best results.

 

As a rule of thumb yes you should be cleaning foam pads on the fly (google the process), but I'd say at least 2 pads should be used for a full size car per step, because even with cleaning you still have spent paint and contaminants building up on the face and pores of the pad.

 

You could clean out completely with APC, and then spin dry them on the machine if you wanted but that gets messy because theres always some residual water in the pad.

[Z06Seal]

Brush it out or clean it on the fly.

 

But either way I never do a full correcting or full polish step with just 1 pad for the whole car.  Work clean, and your work comes out better.  Working with a pad thats slowly getting dirtier will not allow your best results.

 

As a rule of thumb yes you should be cleaning foam pads on the fly (google the process), but I'd say at least 2 pads should be used for a full size car per step, because even with cleaning you still have spent paint and contaminants building up on the face and pores of the pad.

 

You could clean out completely with APC, and then spin dry them on the machine if you wanted but that gets messy because theres always some residual water in the pad.

 

gotcha. I think my idea of splitting car into 3 (front - front bumper upto windshield, mid - windshield to rear fender, rear - rear fender to rear bumper) will keep them fairly clean and maximize cutting. after I'm done I can clean all 3

[Ricky Bobby]

Perfect plan thats similar to how I do.  Working clean is much easier and better results

[TheBurninator]

You could always get a pad washer. They are a bit expensive, but they work. You'd still need another pad or two in rotation though while waiting for the one you just washed to dry. A rotary polisher is pretty useful with a pad washer because you can spin up the pad to help dry it out quicker.

 

Compressed air is the best way to clean out a pad and continue working with it, be it foam or microfiber. If you don't have a compressor with 75-90 psi and a blow gun for it I would brush it out similar to how you would a microfiber pad.

[Kingsford]

This is why I keep extra foam pads. I generally use 3 of each pad on a vehicle (sometimes more depending on vehicle size and severity). This is the best way to get the best performance out of your pads, plus they won't wear out as quick since you are spreading the usage around.

 

Pad Washers... Had one, it sucked. Used it a, single, handful of times before selling it. The pads would sling water all over the paint even if you followed directions properly if you cleaned them on the fly. I also noticed with the pad washer it did not clean the entire pad, the edges and sometimes the very center wouldn't get very clean.

 

Nothing works as well as your thumb, soaking them and APC.

[TheBurninator]

This is why I keep extra foam pads. I generally use 3 of each pad on a vehicle (sometimes more depending on vehicle size and severity). This is the best way to get the best performance out of your pads, plus they won't wear out as quick since you are spreading the usage around.

 

Pad Washers... Had one, it sucked. Used it a, single, handful of times before selling it. The pads would sling water all over the paint even if you followed directions properly if you cleaned them on the fly. I also noticed with the pad washer it did not clean the entire pad, the edges and sometimes the very center wouldn't get very clean.

 

Nothing works as well as your thumb, soaking them and APC.

 

I've been working on getting my collection to 1 pad per body panel to help with residue control and consistent results. 3 pads per vehicle doesn't seem like enough.

 

Were you using a DA with the pad washer or a rotary? I feel like that makes a huge difference in results depending on which you use. I also think the pads need to dry before use again, you can't just go jumping in with a pad right out of the washer, no matter how dry you think you got it by spinning it.

 

I did find another product that works well for cleaning pads in place of APC. Seems to work better for me at getting polish out of the pads for next use and is much cheaper in the long run. For me the pad scrubbing brush works well for cleaning with APC as well as thumb agitation.

[Kingsford]

I've been working on getting my collection to 1 pad per body panel to help with residue control and consistent results. 3 pads per vehicle doesn't seem like enough.

 

Were you using a DA with the pad washer or a rotary? I feel like that makes a huge difference in results depending on which you use. I also think the pads need to dry before use again, you can't just go jumping in with a pad right out of the washer, no matter how dry you think you got it by spinning it.

 

I did find another product that works well for cleaning pads in place of APC. Seems to work better for me at getting polish out of the pads for next use and is much cheaper in the long run. For me the pad scrubbing brush works well for cleaning with APC as well as thumb agitation.

 

1 pad per panel might be over kill if the panel isn't terrible. If you're using 10-15 pads per vehicle, that might be a little over kill or the paint is in terrible condition. To each their own though. I get great results with just 3-5 pads.

 

I used a DA with my pad washer as I do not use Rotary tools.

 

Obviously the pad needs to be dry BUT the pad washer advertises it dries the pads. Thus you cannot clean on the fly as I stated above by me and defeating the advertising of the pad washer.

 

I use a pad brush, APC, my thump and grit guard to clean my pads.

Edited February 19, 2015 by Kingsford

[Z06Seal]

I tried those pad washers. it looked cool, but it was expensive and I don't know lol...