Do you wash pads after each use?

[sparkee]

Does the polish dry out in the foam pads? Am I best off washing them after each day or use?

[Meticulous-Detail]

Re: Do you wash pads after each use?

You can clean on the fly with a few different methods here is one http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums...Pad-On-The-Fly

It would be very time consuming to wash them after each use if your doing multiple cars. Buy more pads, if you need too.
I wash all towels, mitts, and pads after using them, but I usually only do one car at a time.

[Garage Troll]

Re: Do you wash pads after each use?

I mainly clean the pads in the fly and then use a brush to get the remainder off later or I will rinse them out if they are really loaded. On occasion I will wash them but I wonder how hard the detergent can be on the down after numerous washings. I highly doubt the polishes would damage the pads.

[Mark58]

Re: Do you wash pads after each use?

If you are doing your own car at home like I do I wash them as soon as I am done using them. In the laundry sink I wash them by hand using Dawn liquid soap.

[STRIFE]

Re: Do you wash pads after each use?

I use Micro-Restore soap and warm water to wash my foam pads, works great especially if the wax or compound is still wet.

[autodetailinghouse.com]

Re: Do you wash pads after each use?

The ideal standard is to wash pads after use, so that the residual polish and other gunk that embedded itself into the pad while in use will not introduce new swirl marks the next time you use it. However, pad life may be reduced if you over-wash the pads.

Like the posts above, I use dish washing detergent to wash out the pads as polishes are mainly oil-based - so, Glo/Dawn which cuts through grease is perfect. Some shops use something called a System 2000 pad washer, which looks like an 18L tub which has gear wheels on the top to squeeze, introduce soap water and squeeze out the water and all you have to do is to place the pad on the tub and run the polisher.

I find the weakest link in the pads is not the sponge, but rather the velcro backing-sponge glue.. after repeated use and washings, that layer tends to separate when in use.. thus I believe, the bottom line for max pad life is to clean the pad on the fly with a cloth.

[ajb39oh]

I tend to wash mine every time. I'm not a pro, though.

[Shawn T.]

Re: Do you wash pads after each use?

I wash mine after every use.

BTW, do not do what I did and use detergent with fabric softener in it................

[BillE]

Re: Do you wash pads after each use?

I too wash the pad after each 'job'.

As I work, 'clean on the fly', when the pads get to yucky for 'fly cleaning' I just change out and grab another.

I have a 5 gal bucket with pad cleaner (Snappy) at the ready and just toss 'em in there till the end.

Bill

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Do you wash pads after each use?

Here at work we collect them up until we have a full wash load of pads, then run them through the wash with a liquid detergent and warm water, rinsing with cold water. They are then tumble dried on low heat. But we tend to go through a lot of pads here in Meguiar's Garage so collecting them all up is usually a pretty fast process!

At home I'll use my pad washer if I'm doing a remote detailing session so that I can swap back and forth between pads while working on a car or two. When I get home I toss the pads and microfiber towels into the wash together and wash as described above, often using some distilled white vinegar in the wash process. If I'm working on my own cars at home I'll just toss everything into a laundry basket I keep in the garage and wait until I've got enough to justify a full load of laundry. And with the time I took off over the holidays and cleaning up all three cars (plus a friend's car at his house) I ended up with three loads!! One was all pads, one just microfiber towels (and microfiber pads) and the last terry cloth.

With the introduction of our Soft Buff 2.0 pads that are fully machine washer and dryer safe, we highly recommend washing them as soon as possible to keep them clean and ready for future use. Whether you wash pad separately or mixed with microfiber towels is up to you, and either way is fine as long as you're not over saturating your pads with product in the first place. That's easily avoided by cleaning them on the fly as you work, whether that's done by pressing them against a terry cloth towel or using a pad washer while you work. Doing either of those after your final process with the pad also helps to prevent overloading the wash water with product and just makes cleaning that much easier.