The Best Way to Keep Your Polishing Pads Clean 

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Appreciate the compliment and thanks for watching Markus!

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@@RUPES it was a big day for me today. For the very first time i did a 2 step polish ( compound and polish ). Wel, i washed the car then i claybar'd it en then the 2 step polish. Result was amazing. Me neighbors said: it's showroom ready! All this just watching you guys polish and passing thru the best tips&tricks. Planning to start up a business of my own..

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Thanks for commenting. We just replied to a similar question you posted on another video. Try to reduce speed and pressure, but some accelerated pad deterioration is not uncommon with smaller pads as edgework tools tend to be used in areas that are more abusive to the pad.

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Thanks for the compliment. Glad you’re enjoying the content.

Certainly your own choice to use chemicals to clean pads, but we have extensively tested and found no measurable benefit vs. the cleaning methods outlined here. Thanks for watching and commenting.

Thanks for watching!

Thanks for watching Grant. The short answer is YES! The system based approach is really to give you a default or starting point for validated performance on most surfaces, but it is certainly realistic to begin to mix and match pads and compounds of different grades to fine-tune defect removal or finish quality as you get more accustomed to how they work.

We appreciate the compliment and thanks for subscribing! Great question and topic for an upcoming video! 👍🏻

Starting out with too aggressive a compund and/or too aggressive a pad is probably the cardinal sin. Other than that, working in low lighting or not changing pads out often enough

Very helpful thanks 👍

We don’t necessarily recommend freespinning to dry the pads. A wet pad is many times heavier than a dry pad and that action combined with the weight can wear out the backing due to the stress.

@@RUPES throws water very quickly 😅. And yes damaged a few cheap pads this way. Meguires foam has been solid. Getting Rupes pads locally in Australia is difficult.

All pad types are safe to machine wash. At the BigFoot Academy the only ones that don’t come out completely clean are ones that are heavily loaded with compound and allowed to dry. Those we will typically soak and wash by hand. You can mix a couple of towels in with them, but for the most part it’s a good idea to separate to avoid cross contamination.

Gracie Tutti 👍🏼

It will vary from car to car. More frequently on softer paints and less frequently on harder paints, in general. If the pad becomes too loaded to effectively clean with compressed air, brush, or vacuum or if the foam becomes hot. You can generally also notice a drop off in performance and results and that is a visual indicator that you should switch to a fresh pad before continuing.

With a gelcoat surface a much more aggressive approach is typically required relative to an automotive paint. If the surface is severely oxidized the best option would be rotary with a wool pad and coarse compound. Orbital tools will struggle with the heavy cutting stages on gelcoat when required, but can be excellent for medium to fine grade work.

Hi Charles, thanks for the question. The team at RUPES uses a wide variety of different nozzles and air guns to blow out pads. Generally a small diameter tip will increase air speed so you get a more powerful stream of air.. However, too small a nozzle will make a high-pitched squeal and can damage pads. If the nozzle doesn't hurt your skin, it is likely safe for the pad. A large group of our team prefers Tornador-style guns because they seem to the job faster. If you are just cleaning pads and are mobile, a smaller pancake compressor should be fine. If you have a shop or plan to to run air-tools look for something that can produce 12 CFM at 90 psi, constantly.

Thanks for posting your question. If you are seeing product sling you are over-loading the pad. Reduce the amount of product you are applying significantly and make sure you are following the guidance in this video and blowing the pads out frequently during the job.

BTW I am referring to the dual action polisher.

Thanks for watching and commenting. A number of things vary depending on the type of class you attend. Some are multi-day, some are single day, and we've even had courses that were only a few hours in the evening for local customers. I would recommend taking a look at the USA BigFoot Academy Page. It includes information and answers pretty much every question you asked. www.rupesusa.com/bigfoot-academey Officially we resume, post-covid training at the BFA USA in August 2020. The first session is already sold out and the second class (September) is filling up. We are starting back slowly due to the number of changes, but there will be more classes and different levels of training announced in the coming months as we adjust to the new training reality. Hopefully we'll be able to welcome you to a training here in the future!

Glad to hear it is helpful and thanks for watching!

Great question - all fiber pads (wool or microfiber) need to be “force primed” which is to spread the compound on the face of the pad before the first application.

@@RUPES Thanks I do this with the microfiber just wanted to be sure before I started trying the wool

If you are following the guidance of the video (keeping the pads wet in a bucket of water) the sealant aspect of UNO Protect should not cross link and should be relatively easy to remove. The product should only be challenging to remove if you allow it to dry in the pad. The sealant cures and it has the same effect on the pad as it would on the paint - it seals it!

If you're gonna obsess over any one thing in your process, pad cleanliness probably is the thing to focus on. No single aspect of paint correction can have a bigger impact on results than pad cleanliness (or lack of).

I’d you don’t like APC or typical soaps, what do you use to clean/wash your pads? Thanks!

You talk like every Detailer have money to get 6/8 pads 😂

@@russellhagy I make my own pad cleaner but you can use any polishing pad cleaner on the market, they work well. If you want a cheaper way - anything that is citrus based but not too higher percentage. Snappy clean works great. I've found from experience that APC's make the foam feel much rougher and wash out the colour of the foam plus the high sudsing isn't good either. Sure pads are a consumable item but you should try and get a long life out of them. Rinseless wash works well at 1:50 for a mist, rub and a hit with air for a quick clean.

@@andrecrispim3209 it certainly isn't easy for detailers with the price of pads today. That's why eight years ago I went to buying factory direct from Europe. Recticel, foam partner and another manufacturer from there. I buy 300 at a time once every couple years, sell some and use the rest. 300 of the 140 or 160mm unique white foam (flash pad) or blue universal foams (sdo blue) cost me two and a half euros each. About six to eight dollars Australian by the time they get here. Think bigger. If anyone can't afford six to eight pads or at least a full set of everything they need, they shouldn't be in business. Harsh but true. PS pad life should be 15-30 cars and up to 50 - 100 for some pads. Got some twenty years old that are in excellent condition still, no rips and still springy

Glad you found the video helpful and thank you for commenting. We don't recommend "wet cleaning" buckets for several reasons, but to summarize - it is no more effective or efficient than the methods shown in the video for cleaning during the job and has some drawbacks including saturating the pad which increases weight and dilutes compound. There is also just the fact that introduction of water into the rotating assembly of your polishers is never ideal long term, and there is no real way to avoid it when using a bucket system. There is also the argument that some users will use that you can "Free spin" the tool to dry the pad after it is saturated, however, this is really quite bad for the longevity of the pads. A wet pad weights 20x or more than it does dry or lightly coated with compound. That weight free spinning is hard on the velcro as well as the cell structure of the pad itself. After the job, cleaning one pad at a time in the bucket isn't really that efficient unless you only have a couple of pads to clean. If you have a lot of pads it is much faster to batch clean as we show using a washer and dryer. Again, this also avoids introducing your tool to too much moisture.

@@RUPES thanks for the response. Wow....I didn't really think of that. I've just Ben doing some research online on how to clean pads effectively......I came across this fellow by the name of Yvon lacroix. Seems liked a Real expert in this field....he was using it and showed that after he spun the pad it was dry....so I thought that it might be a good tool to use..it is a little pricey. When I'm polishing in between panels I clean with compressed air on my MF cutting disc and will use a brush as well. And a spiritz of distilled water. Yvon says it's not good to polish with a completely Dry pad...is that right? I'm finding that many experts have different methods on doing things here in the detailing world. I just started about a year ago. I'm using the Rupes 3 inch 75lhr and a Cordless Milwaukee M18 with a 15mm throw and I'm Loving it so far. Thank you for taking the time to explain that to me. Definitely gives something to think about... 🙏🏽👍🏽

Spend enough time on the internet and you'll find 100 different answers to the same question, some right, some wrong, and some in between. Compound formulations have their own lubrication systems built in. If water were necessary to the process manufacturers of compounds would add more water (would certainly be cheaper than some of the other ingredients used). Water can be beneficial to the process, but it really has nothing to do with the pad and should be used sparingly as it does ratchet up the cutting rate and that may not be desirable in all situations (think thin paint where you do not want to excessively reduce material). It can be dangerous to make blanket recommendations like you're describing. We stick to a more situational approach as every surface and situation is unique. In some cases, adding water can help and we actually have a video on that exact subject: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-KpKCjpWD2hs.html

A pad washing system where the movement of the tool would be putting additional stress on the pad is more detrimental to the integrity of the glue layer than tumbling in a washer would be. The issue is not water... if you use appropriate cleaners the glue layer would be unaffected.

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Glad it was helpful! We believe in providing education and information through these videos, not selling a product. The entire RUPES Replies series is designed to answer commonly asked questions.

Thanks for posting your question. We have an upcoming video that will address this exact topic, but in the meantime, a visual inspection is the best way to determine if a pad is good to use. With the wool specifically - if you see fibers coming out of the pad in clumps, or spots where the material has begun to get thin, the edges are excessively worn, or you observer an issues with performance it is time to change the pad for a new one.

Andrew MM00NY thanks for the comment. That would be unusual. May have just been a one-time occurrence or pads with weakened bond to the backing. If you experience the issue again be sure to email our customer service so we can assist.

Hi! The techniques presented in the video should work for cleaning all pad types.

What he used is called a Tornador but you can use any blowgun

Thanks for posting your question. Damage to the pad is possible if you use a "needle tip" type of blowgun that focuses the air and then hold that nozzle too close to the pad. We prefer a diffused, or agitated air blow gun (like what is shown in the video). They are commonly sold under names like Tornador. This creates a vortex that dislodges the residues, without damage to the pad. Another thing to consider when using compressed air is that you have all the appropriate water traps and filters on the compressor to prevent oil, moisture, and tank scale from being blown into your pads. If you are not properly maintaining your compressor it is quite easy to blow a small piece of rust or compressor moisture into the pad that will then contaminate it.

It is just a generic plastic cart we use in our training center with a few tool holders bolted to it. Not a RUPES product.

Thanks for watching. We don’t generally recommend power washing pads because it can damage the cell structure of the foam. Even on the most mild settings a pressure washer is going to tend to be too powerful for pad cleaning.

Thanks for commenting. That would really depend on the specific tool being used and is a variable adjusted based on the specific surface you're working on, but this video clarifies our standard recommendations for settings based on speed dial positions: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-K3s3SVid0o4.html

We haven’t experienced that issue with ours.

Free spinning the pads like that can cause damage to the loop material of the pads. A wet pad is many times heavier than a dry pad so the forces exerted on the Velcro to keep the pad on the tool are many times more extreme. It also exposes the tool to more moisture than we would recommend. It’s not that you can’t do this, just that it may have some undesired side effects.

No, you don’t have to prime again. Source: another Rupes comment reply on this video.

@@Solrac77777 Thank you

Thanks for watching and commenting Marcus. Haze is most commonly a symptom of being overly aggressive with soft paint. If you're using the perfect it system you're likely using rotary. To truly address the root cause of your issue you don't need to change the order of application, you need to change the approach. A random orbital tool like our BigFoot system paired with the appropriate pads and liquids will give you a much higher (and easier) chance for success on softer paint systems.

@@RUPES Thanks. I've also tried the 2nd and 3rd step with my dual action bugfer and still get the same results. I haven't tried the first step with the d.a. buffer yet

Marcus - it is important to understand that pads and compounds designed for rotary (perfect it) are not going to perform well on a random orbital or the other way around. This is why we offer our D-A system, specifically to support dual action tools.

@@RUPES thanks. I'm checking with my 3m rep to see if they have the pads for a d.a. buffer

Could always try RUPES systems considering you’re asking questions on our channel 🤷🏻‍♂️

Thanks for the question Krystal Clear. Hop into the video at the 3:55 mark and we go over this. Wash and dry on low heat to maximize pad life.

It depends. But yes, check the integrity of the pad. If it's lost its effectiveness as you're polishing, looks heavily used and abused, if it's extremely worn down and/or falling apart in any sort of way, might be time to retire that pad for good.

Don't allow the pad to dry. That is key. Using the bucket method outlined in this video and cleaning it. If the polymer is allowed to cure, just like it would on paint, it becomes resistant to removal. Keeping it wet stops the product from curing.

The most obvious indication is the visual one. Foam that has frayed edges or chunks missing is ready to be retired, or at a minimum delegated to "less important" tasks like polishing aluminum or wheels. Similar situation for fiber pads, wool or microfiber. If they suddenly begin shedding clumps of their fibers, you have bald or thin spots, then they're ready to retire. Pads that are also excessively deformed (no longer flat) or out of shape should be taken out of your rotation, or if you just notice that there is a drop off in performance.

Yes. The recommendations in this video would apply to all our pads.

No. Blowing out the pad only removes excess/dry/surface residues. A couple of drops to reload is all that’s needed.

Thanks for commenting. We’re not big fans of the pad washers as they’re not that efficient and they expose your tool to a lot of moisture which can have negative effects. An cleaner like powerclean is fine, but make sure it is diluted to avoid doing damage to the pad structure or adhesives.

Negative effects?

Exposing an electric tool with metal components to a situation where water squirts up into the pad/saturated the pad is never ideal.

Thanks for watching and commenting!

We actually do - the iBrid Nano and Skorpio E are both powered by brushless motors.

I want LHR15 with brushless motor.... :)

@@RUPES When will u release LHR15 with brushless motor ?!

We don’t comment on product development. Too many competitors watching and waiting to copy.

@@RUPES I want to know if I should buy a Mark III or if I should wait. Flex & DeWalt have released machines that have a brushless motor! :) So you are the ones who can copy them ;)

We do not recommend pad washers. They tend to expose tools to more moisture than we think is suitable. They're not as efficient as blowing out when in use, and they require you to freespin the tools to eject water which is hard on the pads/messy.

It can. Foam is extremely sensitive to heat, so the cell structure can be be damaged from the heat of steam. This is why we recommend low heat in the cleaning process.

@@RUPES thank you!

Thanks and good luck!

I've worn out my Velcro on all my Rupes pads prematurely by using too much pressure, and/or a worn backing plate.

you must be doing something wrong my friend i have a lot of rupes pads all kind i wash them a lot and they still stick perfect

Sorry to hear that. As the others have commented this would typically be the result of heavy pressure or other technique issues over time. The hook and loop materials are fairly durable provided they are not subjected to extreme heat or other abuse.

Thanks for your question. We don't endorse the use of wet cleaning pads on the tool. The introduction of a lot of moisture isn't ideal for all the metal components behind the plate. Also, the need to "free-spin" the pad to dry them after the use of this type of cleaning is bad for the pads and backing plate because a wet pad weighs as much as 5-10x the dry weight.

HAHAH!

That is an excellent point, however we believe in not increasing the amount of synthetic material waste in the environment. It also represents a far more real world situation as no for-profit detailer is going to be using a new pad in every job. Testing and training with pads that have been used/washed allows us to more accurately assess performance in the real world, not a laboratory where every condition is always perfect. Students in our classes are given access to new pads when we start, but then use a combination of new and used (washed) pads as the training continues. It is/was never about cost cutting. We also donate a lot of our lightly used pads to local vocational schools. The programs we work with do collision repair and paint training as well as some detail training. They go through a lot of pads and we provide these very gently used and cleaned pads for their schools at zero cost. Regardless of your feelings on the subject, thanks for your comment.

@@RUPES wow respect rupes!

@@RUPES sustainability is a great message! Dont change that

@@RUPES well explained.

Caring for the environment is not an answer that I was expecting. I feel better about spending my money on Rupes products now lol.

The more simple solution is to use your bucket insert (grit guard or whatever your preferred brand) Place it upside down on top of the pads. It will keep them submerged.

We actually don’t recommend this as the weight of the wet pad and free-spinning puts a lot of stress on the hook and loop engagement and can lead to pad damage.