Examining Floor Pads

Buffing, cleaning, scrubbing, stripping, burnishing — all of these important hard floor maintenance tasks require floor pads. And with the wide array of colors and shapes on the market, there is a floor pad for any and every application. Generally, the lighter the color, the lighter the task. Buffing pads, used to remove scuffs to bring out a shine, are lightest in color, followed by cleaning pads, which more aggressively remove dirt. Scrubbing pads go a step further and remove the first layer or two of wax, providing a uniform surface on which to begin a new floor finish application. Dark stripping pads, paired with stripper, remove multiple coats of finish. Burnishing pads, which run on machines up to 3,000 rpm, creating heat and pressure, do not subscribe to the color-coding system. The right pad choices also depend on the hardness of the finish, the maintenance schedule, the floor machines used and the chemicals used.