Every night I have ruined at least one pad. I am using one's provided with the challenger. How many washes do you guys get out of these? It seems like they "shred" so quick. I have already gotten big tears in like 8 of these. What am I doing wrong? Help, help!!

wanted to add - I use the wholey glider.

want to further add - I am always using the pads damp.

Steven,
We use the Argo pads......thicker and they
hold up a long time......I know that on the thinner
pads,sometimes wear is an issue.

I don't understand it. While I prefer the 2-ply Argo pads, I've never had the single-ply ones from Challenger perform the way you describe. I will e-mail Lee Watson at C.P. S. with your problem.

Mine have held up well also Mark. Steven, I don't use the holy glider much except on commercial and only if I have too. I wash pads in powdered Procyon. I don't use bleach. Someone commented about how pouring bleach into the washer after the pads are in can ruin some pads.

Whatever you do.do not dry them in the dryer.I hang mine up in the basement with a fan.Also damp seems too dry, they need to be soaking in a 5 gal. bucket and wringed out by hand, but not much, you can go back to the you started when you first put down the pad and pick up the excess moisture while at the same time giving the area you just cleaned a 2nd cleaning.

I ordered Argo pads today. Just so everyone knows - I think I have the obvious covered. By that I mean - no bleach, no drying in dryer - I hang them, treat them well. They just seem so thin, and the threads get caught in the glider and wrapped around in the wholes, and when you take it off, it's a problem.

just got my argo pads - thank you Mark. They appear quite a bit sturdier, and appear to have been woven "tighter". I'll keep you posted how I do. I also got a thing of Argo cleaner. Anyone use their products?

I used Argosheen for a few years, but found the odor gave me frequent headaches after a while. Some customers also commented on the strong & distinct smell. That's when I started to look around for an
odorless natural product.

It's kind of funny - I never gave much thought to natural vs. chemical. I read one of your posts (Mark's) that said you didn't like the idea of breathing chemicals - and that was something I never thought of, and after I did, I don't like that idea either. I ordered some Procyeon, and I have some of the OUtsolve left, and I am going to see which I like better and try to stick with one of those.

Steve, 99% of ppl have posted similarly about headaches with Argosheen.

also, i hope you ordered the Liquid Procyon. it works better than the powder by most ppl's accounts (at least those who have tried both the Liquid and the Powdered Procyon).

any1 use the single-ply Argo pads? wondering how they compare in cleaning ability AND durability to the CCS pads.

thanx --- Derek

Steve,
I assume you are using the holy glider because the carpets you are doing need you to be fairly aggressive. I find that on lightly soiled carpets I only need the medium or thicker gliders. If you have found using the holy glider all the time that the cotton pads tangle up in its holes thus wearing out the cotton pad quickly, here's a trick you might try.
Use the solid gliders for the less soiled areas and on the traffic areas and more soiled areas put a red fiber scrubbing pad on the velcro drive plate, then place the machine on your cotton pad without a glider at all. You will find the machine moves well enough to do the traffic areas, not quite as well with the gliders, but well enough to do smaller areas. This way the full cotton pad will be against the carpet and it will be more aggressive than using the solid gliders. And since you are not using the holy glider - no tangles and so increased life of the cotton pad.
Others might give it a try and tell me what they think of it.

Neil, so ar eyou basically explaining to use the Red Pad as the driver for the cotton pad, instead of plopping the velcro driver onto the cotton pad?

if so, i am just wondering what the difference is? why not just plop the velcro driver onto the cotton pad?

or is your point only that this way you don't have the velcro "biting" into the cotton, thereby abrading it when you tear the cotton from the velcro?

thanx for any explantion --- Derek

When I have used the cotton pad on the driver without a glider I have found that
1. it is hard to move the challenger
2. it won't go where you want it
3. the cotton pad bunches up and folds up underneath the Challenger - a disaster
etc ...
Isn't that what was so unique about the Challenger in the first place, working out a way to get the OP machine to be easily manouverable with a cotton pad ie. velcro and gliders.
However, what I have found, is that with a red pad on the velcro between the velcro and the cotton pad, you don't need the glider to get the Challenger to move. It is not as good as with the glider but not too bad. And you have full contact of the cotton pad on the carpet. And possibly have avoided the thin cotton pads getting tangled up in the holes of the holy glider. And the velcro is not not forcing itself into the fibre of the cotton pad.
I have only tried it a couple of times and not on all types of carpet.
I am suggesting it as something to try and see if it works. Any feedback from those who try it would be appreciated.

I left out the word "VELCRO" from my post

When I have used the cotton pad on the VELCRO driver without a glider I have found that
1. it is hard to move the challenger
2. it won't go where you want it
3. the cotton pad bunches up and folds up underneath the Challenger - a disaster

I too have noticed the "tangling" effect when using the holy glider.Not only with the pads that came with the unit but also pads I purchased from a different Op manufacturer.I believe it stems from using the pad too long without stopping and the pads being a bit too dry when post padding.
Patrick

One of the things I like less about the single-ply pads is that when they are somewhat worn, they tend to bunch up under the machine. With 2-ply pads, even when each side is worn an equal amount, there's still enough material there to prevent this from happening.
Because of their additional "bulk", 2-ply pads don't make an OP machine all that difficult to maneuver when used without a glider.

What exactly is this "RED PAD". In my kit Mark sent me a "green stripe" pad. Is this the same thing Mark? If not, what/how/where do I get this Red Pad? I would like to try one out and would like to buy one.

A red pad is a kind of hard surface floor cleaning/scrubbing/buffing pad. Some of these various color pads are useful on carpets. For example: the beige Fiberplus pad used in encapsulation. Try www.jondon.com.

wonderful idea Neil

while i don't have a red pad, i do have some hog-hair pads. and when i think on it, i believe the hog-hair may be a better idea only because it is so much courser than a red pad. all those "hairs" sticking out might do a better job of holding the cotton pads in place than a red one would...no clue just a guess mind you.

going to try it tomorrow and i'll tell ya's what i think.

yes, my pads will bunch up under the Challenger when they get very worn. glad i didn't toss the dozen that are that way, i'll try them with the hog-hair pad and see if they are still usable.

personally, i never use gliders anymore. i tried them the 1st month with the Challenger and it bothered me that i wasn't getting full-contact on the carpet with my cotton. but of course no glider makes for a tough job to maneuver the Challenger. this idea of yours Neil is a great one...hope it works! hehehe

thank goodness for forums! --- Derek.

You could use any of those fibre pads - white, red, blue etc ...

Another thing to try with the worn cotton pads rather than throwing them out is to sew 2 of the worn ones together. As well as sewing around the perimeter, make sure you sew some diagonals across from one side to the other to prevent any bunching up.

Another alternative with the worn cotton pads is to sew on a cotton nappy (or do you US guys call them diapers) Just cut it out into a circle same size as the cotton pad and sew it on. Alternatively you could cut out a cheap towel and sew it on.

Either way, it will cover up the holes in your cotton pad and it will be usable again.

Only problem, you either have to be able to sew or have a kind and patient wife. I have the latter. Oh no, she's just seen this and now wants to teach me to sew.

I've got the kind/patien wife - but the kind thatdon't sew. I had to take sewing in jr high school - and cut class all the time. Man, I knew it would haunt me one day.

One concern I would have sewing a nappy/diaper or towel in between 2 worn pads would be trying to get the whole cotton sandwich dry. Might take 3 cycles in a dryer, or a week hanging on a line.

Mark.do you put your pads in the dryer? I have been cleaning with the op method for over 3 years and never put them in a dryer untill 2 months ago.I had just moved and did'nt think I had enough room in my new pad to set up lines to dry my pads.I read your post on the vlm boaed about how you put yours in the dryer all the time and they don't wear out any faster.I did this with 15 new pads after a job,what a mistake, it cost me a few bucks,maybe the argo pads are different,but don't do it with single ply,I made room to line dry.

Brian, thanx for the dryer info. i am going back to line drying myself.

well i tried my hog-hair pad twice. the worn cotton pad kept bunching up underneath it, same is it would on the velcro pad-driver.

didn't have anytime to play on this job so i didn't try it anymore after that.

perhaps with a pad in better shpae it'd work, i'll try that out in the future and let yall know how it goes. but for a worn pad, no difference than the velcro for me

thanx --- Derek.

I have always used a dryer. The primary reason is that during the wash cycle a fair amount of cotton "linties" collect on the wet pads. When I have air-dried the pads, then this lint stays on the pads, and comes off onto the next carpet I clean, requiring vacuuming up. In the dryer, all of this stuff detaches from the pad and ends up in the dryer's lint filter.