Is anyone having problems with Griot's foam pads? I have been using them for quite some time now and it seems there life is not very long. I have had problems with almost every pad that I have purchased. They have a tendency to split from their Velcro backing plate. I wash them in Dawn soap briefly to break down the polish/wax built up in the pads, rinse them thoroughly with cool water, lightly wring them out and then allow them to air dry. This is the process that my supplier recommends I do. Any other suggestions?

 

I had two of them blow the centers out in less than 5 minutes of use.

Call them and explain what's happening. They have a lifetime warranty on everything they sell, they will replace the pads that are wearing prematurely.

I feel like I need to look into pad upgrades my self, but I just haven't gotten around to it. I know I need a new backing plate, but I'm not sure of everything that I will need to use a different pad on the Griots machine.

 

I haven't used the Griots pads, but the lake country CSS ones have not failed me...yet.

I've used them about 3 different days and a few hours each day. so maybe 4-6 hours total on each polishing pad. No separation. Easy to clean.

How many working hours did you put before they started to split from the backing plate?

For reference: using griots DA polisher with Lake Country CSS orange, white, black, and blue.

 

I have used 3m pads and cobra pads on my griots polisher. I liked the 3m ones alot but the cobra ones have a pattern on them and I feel like they didn't work as well as the 3m pads.

 

I haven't had any problems with the red wax pads, just the orange cutting pads.

 

I had the 3" black pad come apart. I was using it with polish (Meguiar's 205 and 3M Ultrafina SE (aka Perfect-it 3000)), not a wax.



Here are the replies I got from Griot's Garage:

1st: One thing I would double check for use is making sure that when using wax you are using a small amount and not over saturating the pad. I also recommend using our Micro Fiber and Foam Pad Cleaner or warm soapy water and rinsing them after every use. We also recommend rotating the pads through every section so the pad doesn't become over saturated with product.

2nd (follow-up): We recommend with our orbital's to make the pads last longer use them at lower speeds that way they don't overheat the pads and overheat the adhesive to make it separate from the pad.

Griot's sent me a new set of three black pads. Their 3" orange pads have been issue free. I haven't used their other pads yet.