Cleaning LSP Applicators After Use

**dschribs** · 10-04-2019, 01:39 PM

What you do you guys do with your LSP applicator pads after use? I have a bunch of the Buff and Shine red foam wax applicator pads that I use for things like 845 and Jescar Power lock - but stuff like that is a bear to clean out of these pads.

What are you guys using to clean these types of pads?
Do you normally put them in the washing machine or clean then by hand. I`m hesitant about putting them in my washing machine for obvious reasons........

Thanks!
Dan

**Accumulator** · 10-04-2019, 01:45 PM

Ah, just used 845 on the `93 Audi, along with FK1000P.

I wash applicators by hand, never having had good results with the washing machine. They just didn`t get clean (no real worries about contaminating the washer, but I guess it could happen).

In the past I`ve just used APC or Dawn Power Dissolver, which were always effective but took a *LOT* of rinsing. But then I got a freebie sample of Wolfgang Pad Cleaner with an order and I will say that stuff really works great. I`d always sorta dismissed all the rave reviews of Pad Cleaners (yes, Stokdgs...thinking of you and Snappy Clean

), but now I`m rethinking that. Not that I`ll switch until I use up all my old stuff.

Heh heh, somebody here`s gonna say "just pitch them!" but I`m not like that

**Coatings=crack** · 10-04-2019, 07:58 PM

I throw my saver applicators in the wash with my towels. I only use sealants so not so mucked up. If I weee using wax I’d soak in snappy clean for a while, rinse, wash machine.

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**Accumulator** · 10-05-2019, 12:32 PM

Originally Posted by Coatings=crack

I throw my saver applicators in the wash with my towels. I only use sealants so not so mucked up...

Huh, the Sealants I use won`t even come out of MFs unless I pretreat `em! My applicators just seem to float around in the wash without getting all the [stuff] worked out of them.

Just another of those !YMMV! things, but I`m always envious of people who find easy solutions that work for them

**Coatings=crack** · 10-05-2019, 03:03 PM

Originally Posted by Accumulator

Huh, the Sealants I use won`t even come out of MFs unless I pretreat `em! My applicators just seem to float around in the wash without getting all the [stuff] worked out of them.

Just another of those !YMMV! things, but I`m always envious of people who find easy solutions that work for them

Yeah had that issue with applicator in top loader. I only use specific towels for sealant removal so don’t know if they lost absorbency (still remove no problem). Washing with my drying and waterless towels hasn’t affected them so far. I wash them on hot maybe that helps

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**rlmccarty2000** · 10-05-2019, 11:19 PM

The yellow foam ones I toss after they get too worn or very dirty. They are just too cheap for me to worry about cleaning them. I seal them in plastic bags marked with the name of the product used to keep from cross contaminating.

The microfiber pads I wash after a few uses. They hold up much better than the yellow foam applicators. I am no longer buying the yellow foam applicators.

**Accumulator** · 10-06-2019, 01:02 PM

Originally Posted by Coatings=crack

Yeah had that issue with applicator in top loader....

Hey, you got me thinking! I`ve never tried putting an applicator in the FRONT loading HE washer, only in the Top loading washers. Hmmm...it`s not like they`ll "just float around on top without getting any agitation" in the front loader..thanks for kickstarting my brain

The yellow foam ones I toss after they get too worn or very dirty. They are just too cheap for me to worry about cleaning them...

INSERT quip about your being a Pro who can Expense them

Sorry, couldn`t resist...

I seal them in plastic bags marked with the name of the product used to keep from cross contaminating.

Yeah, same here. I once left on in the can of FK1000P a bit too long and found out how potent its solvents are

**Billy Jack** · 10-07-2019, 09:20 AM

I use the same procedure for all my pads and applicators and it seems to work well.
At the end of the day, I spray them with LATA, diluted 1:1 and work it in with a soft brush. Then they get tossed in a bucket of hot water with Dawn and left to soak for at least overnight. The next day they get a thorough rinse, squeeze out the excess water and left on the rack to dry. Usually, I find a bunch of silt on the bottom of the soak bucket. I`m only a weekender and have enough pads that I can afford to have them out of service for a couple days. If I need one back in service quicker, I`ll stick it on my rotary and spin it dry. So far it seems to work on everything except Poorboys Black Hole on a B&S Supersoft White pad. The black dye in that stuff must be pretty stout.

Bill

**tom p.** · 10-07-2019, 01:01 PM

I pre-wash/scrub applicators in the sink with a de-greaser or APC to get 95% of the crap out. Then I launder with the MF towels. Seems to work well and doesn`t leave a mess in the washer.

**mc2hill** · 10-15-2019, 02:41 PM

The only way I have found to get ALL the sealant out of a pad is to soak it in a container of Tide Free and Gentle. Just put the pad in the container, pour in enough Tide to cover it, let it sit for a day or so, then pour the solution down the sink and rinse pad until the water is clear. I could not believe how well this worked, and with minimal effort on my part.