Cleaning the Pads

[RamAirV1]

What is the best brush to use to clean the PC pads?
Or is there a better method? Should the PC be running while dry cleaning the pads.

I know soaking them in Dawn and rinsing them out is the best method, but I don't always have time to wait for the pads to dry. I'm seeking the second best method when I am in a hurry.

RamAirV1

[Mike Phillips]

Any medium stiffness nylon brush works well for cleaning residue off our foam pads.

Another way to clean them while you're in the middle of detailing a car is to spread out a 100% cotton towel, your softest, fluffiest, most absorbent towel, and then place your foam pad, (while attached to the polisher), onto the towel and then turn the polisher on and push down on the polisher. This will force some of the excess product built-up inside the pad into the towel as well as remove any built-up residue on the surface of the pad onto the towel.

A variation of this is to hold a towel into the face of the foam pad while holding the polisher in your other hand. This is kind of tricky because you have to also turn the polisher on with the single hand that's holding it after you have placed the towel against the foam pad with your other hand. If you turn the polisher on with nothing held against the foam pad the pad will jiggle out of control and fly off the backing plate.

Hope this helps...

Mike

[Rusty Bumper]

I use the brush that Mike just mentioned.

If my pads have had enough time for the product to dry on them (While in storage), then I will attach them to the PC and take the brush and scrub the surface enough to loosen the residue....Then I turn the PC on and allow the pad to spin against the brush from the center outward as this will sling off most all of the dried residue.

[RamAirV1]

Would a medium stiffness nylon brush be something like a scrub brush someone would use to wash their hands?

RamAirV1

[Rusty Bumper]

The brush that I use came with my Concours collection...It is the one with the black handle:

http://www.meguiars.com/store_meguiars/images/product_g300.gif

This brush is stiff, but not very...The nylon bristles are a little on the thick side.

I think you could find a brush like this at Advance Auto, or Wal-mart...The bristles are a little on the long side too.

[RamAirV1]

RB, thanks for the tip. I actually have a brush similar to that, I'll have to see if it's clean.

RamAirV1

[Rusty Bumper]

Glad to help RamAir...I'm sure there are other brush styles that would work, but I liked the way black brush cleaned for me.

[Airborne Ranger]

Originally posted by Rusty Bumper
I use the brush that Mike just mentioned.

If my pads have had enough time for the product to dry on them (While in storage), then I will attach them to the PC and take the brush and scrub the surface enough to loosen the residue....Then I turn the PC on and allow the pad to spin against the brush from the center outward as this will sling off most all of the dried residue.

So you never use water in anyway to clean them??? I've always been kind of iffy about which way is best to clean pads when using a PC or afterwards,,,,,,AR

[RamAirV1]

Soaking the pads in a solution of Dawn and water, then rinsing them out works very well. But the pads take a long time to air dry. You CANNOT throw them in the dryer because the backing may come loose in the high heat. So if you are in a hurry this method cannot be used.

Every time I use foam pads I say "I'll clean them later." Now I have about 10 foam pads waiting to be cleaned. Maybe I'll get to them one of these days.............

Cleaning them dry seems to work fine. I have never had a foam pad scratch my paint after being dry cleaned with a brush. I used to use a tooth brush but I was looking for something bigger and faster.

Do you need to wear a respirator when cleaning foam pads with a rotary? According to 3M, you do if it is one of their products on the pad. Something about silica particles. Maybe the Meguiar's cleaners and polishes are safer and don't require a respirator.

RamAirV1

[Rusty Bumper]

Originally posted by Airborne Ranger
So you never use water in anyway to clean them??? I've always been kind of iffy about which way is best to clean pads when using a PC or afterwards,,,,,,AR

Occasionally, I will wash all of my pads in something like Murphy's Oil Soap....I do this by hand in the sink, but I try not to twist & wring the pads....I like to push them to the bottom of the sink over & over until they start to look clean....I also rinse them with a little white vinegar in the rinse water, as the vinegar will remove all traces of soap residue.

As a matter of fact, we use a white vinegar rinse in all of our landry anymore.