prepreludesh

As I'm getting really deep into this detailing craze, I'm really trying to find the tricks of the trade for this pricey habit.

I recently got a Porter Cable 7424XP and 4 foam pads to go with it. I'm not going to spend $130 for a stupid bucket to clean the pads, but I will get a cleaner and a nylon brush to clean it with. Then I stumbled upon this:



But the damn things is $20 on both autopia and autogeek. It says you'll get 16 (1 gallon) uses out of it, which is decent, but then add shipping of at least $8 on it, and it gets pretty ridiculous.

The main reason people buy this is because the disclaimer/instructions say that it will release the product from the foam into the water and when you dry it, it won't leave a soapy residue.

However, can't I go to a Home Depot and get something like this instead?



The details of this product state:

Made with orange and lemon extracts for extra degreasing power.
Dries clean so it won't leave an oily residue.
8oz

And it's only $6.99 and obviously has no shipping costs.

The way I look at it: 1/4 of the cost, can get it today and will still do the same thing.

Opinions?

exceldetail

Give it a shot and let us know! One thing I hate is people getting hosed by heavily marketed products.....!

ChrisJ

I wash my pads by hand in dawn soap and water...They seem to work fine for me...I mean its not fast by any means but I haven't had any issues...

stogie1020

CocheseUGA

I do the same. I try to get any residue out by using my knuckles, like you'd knead dough or give a massage. Seems to be working fairly well, but that stuff would probably be very useful if you did this for a living or used your pads every couple of weeks.

prepreludesh

I hear what you guys are saying, but based on the autogeek website:

Before Detailer’s Pro Series Polishing Pad Rejuvenator, detailers commonly wash used pads in dish soap or a degreaser. While these products do remove wax and polish from the pad, they deposit a soapy residue that can reactivate the next time you moisten the pad with a car care product. Even thorough rinsing sometimes cannot remove all the soap. Detailer’s Pro Series Polishing Pad Rejuvenator rinses clean!

So after reading this, it makes me skeptical about using it, but I'd take anyone's advice that has tried it before...

It has always been my opinion to never use dishwashing detergent on a car. That's just the way I've been raised I guess.

exceldetail

I'll say it again.....

Jesstzn

I'm calling bullshit and marketing. I have washed my pads in Dawn for years now and a good rinse removes everything .

Proceedure
1) Put the pad in a pail with a strong Dawn mix as soon as it comes off the PC.
2) When finished the detail I take each pad out of the pail 1 at a time and squirt a little Dawn on it and kneed it till it sudses.
3) I place that pad in the drain tray I have beside my sink and move on to the next pad.
4) Once all are soaped I dump the solution in the pail and run cool clean water in it till it runs over.
5) Keeping the water running I submurge a pad at a time squeezing it under water till no more bubbles rise to the surface.
6) Squeeze the pad to remove water.
7) Spin the pad on a spare backing plate on my cordless drill to extract the water.
8) Place on rack to dry.

I have even gone to the point of placing a cleaned pad inwater and aggitiated it to see if I get residue .. nada if you clean it right.

Or you can spend a lot of money on a 10 ton truck to carry around a 1/2 a ton. And have bragging rights.

BTW I wash every car I'm going to detail with Dawn ...

exceldetail

If you cant appreciate Dale, who can you trust? Good to see ya buddy.......

DJMcGee

+1

Though I don't follow Dale's procedure exactly, every pad goes into a bucket with Dawn until I am ready to clean them all. Then a similar procedure to ensure all wax and soap have been purged from the pad.

prepreludesh

Alright alright guys, geeze I'll try the damn Dawn dish soap already...

I just gave my TL the works last night... Took me 4 hours to polish, buff off, Klasse Sealant, buff off, Meguires Wax, and buff off, haha. I had the headache from hell after working in all of those fumes, but it was worth it! Pics to come, but the obvious news is, I have some dirty pads that need cleaned now!

Jesstzn

One thing to keep in mind for next time is any sealant like to have 12 to 24 hours cure time before being topped with a wax.

Also between the polishing and the SG do a wipe down with 50/50 rubbing alcohol & water or use a cleaner like Klasse AIO. Sealants like a good clean surface to bond to.

stogie1020

Glad to see someone else liking the Klasse twins...

Jesstzn

I use it a lot .. mostly on my own cars... I need to get more SG .. bottle ran out.

stogie1020

I top the SG with Collinite 845. It holds up well in Phoenix in the summer.

exceldetail

They ever add a decent scent to AIO?

Jesstzn

No they both stink ....

stogie1020

Feet.

That's what they smell like to me...

exceldetail

Lmao.........

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

wet socks smell to me...

CocheseUGA

Same here. Never touches my car. But for the pads it's fine.

prepreludesh

dammit, where did you find that out at? The bottle never told me I had to wait that long.

Also, when I applied the sealant, if I'd let it dry for longer than 2 minutes (it said dry time was 3-5), it practically wouldn't buff off. I could still see the application strokes where I did it by hand. It took me forever to buff it off with a microfiber cloth, and I'm a decently strong guy! Thank goodness I didn't do the whole car to learn that the hard way, just the hood.

Also, I know that those who have said to use the alcohol/water mix probably have done it in the past, I've experienced rubbing alcohol removing clearcoat and paint from when I was trying to clean some grease off of the firewall on my Prelude's engine bay. I had no idea it would do that, so I'm never going to put alcohol anywhere near my paint again. But maybe I'll do some quick detailer next time. All I know is after the polish, the surface seemed very smooth, almost like a clay bar had just been used on it.

Jesstzn

From reading on the boards, it takes 12 to 24 hours to cure.

What sealant you using and how thick you applying it? I have numerous sealants and I can leave them all sit even over nite without removal issues. Not that I would.

If it removed the clear & paint then it wasn't OEM paint .. prolly rattle can paint . I do close to 100 cars a year and never remove any clear or paint with it . Also see thread https://acurazine.com/forums/wash-wax-23/alcohol-wipe-down-819386/

ChrisJ

I know ALOT of people who use this same setup on their DD's and LOVE it...

OperationDarkie

iTrader: (1)

I have been using dawn as well, I just make sure to rinse the pads properly, I usually double rinse to be sure.