DIY Pad Washer

NYGary

NYGary

New member
Feb 21, 2014
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This is my DIY pad washer,just completed.I was so close to buying a washer from AG or Ebay but something was holding me back......the price !!! Plain old Wall Streetesque GREED ! Think of it this way ,at half the price if fly's off the shelves.There is not many valid reasons for this to be so expensive so off I went to the Blue big box store.I already had an Adam bucket and grit guard from my 2 bucket wash setup so I was half way there.Take a look ,a material list is coming soon !

PS: I improved on the original design I found on another forum and believe it or not this thing really works great !!
 
Cool! I've only used my sink to clean pads. (Don't use them often)
This looks interesting
 
Nice work. Congrats.

BTW I'm not sure it's Wall Street greed inflating the price of the original.
If it were up to Wall Street they would indeed be flying off the shelves at half the price.
 
"Wall Streetesque Greed" you are right if Wall street had it's way they would be cheaper.The "greed" part of it is what I meant,not that it was Wall Streets fault.

PS: we wouldn"t want to blame Wall Street for anything they didn't do LOL !!
 
Brilliant!! Look forward to the parts list, as I'd definitely like to build one myself. It's not clear to me how the water gets into the pipes to perform the pumping action, is there some type of diaphragm or valve?
 
Nice job looks like you put a lot into it, I purchased a pad washer a few years ago and for me it was a waste of money and they are not cheap. I prefer to wash my pads by hand, live and learn.:buffing:
 
You push up and down on the grit guard which in turn pumps the solution up through the pipes. Only thing I would add is a lid to keep your polisher dry. It could be made out of two lids that overlap at the back and hinged with a plastic push pin. Sort of like a clam shell with a hole in the center for your polisher to fit though. Great idea you have there. What are the springs from?
 
All of the following purchased at Lowe's

Parts List:

4x Springs 23/32"x 3 1/2" x .041 2 in a pack
4x 1/2" PVC Caps
4x 1 1/4 " PVC Caps
4x 1" PVC Tee's
4x 1" PVC 90 degree Elbow's
10' 1" PVC schedule 40 pipe
5' 1 1/4 " PVC Schedule 40 Pipe
2x 5 gallon bucket covers
1x 5 gallon bucket
1 x Grit Gaurd

All parts should cost under $35
 
NYGary said:
All of the following purchased at Lowe's

Parts List:

4x Springs 23/32"x 3 1/2" x .041 2 in a pack
4x 1/2" PVC Caps
4x 1 1/4 " PVC Caps
4x 1" PVC Tee's
4x 1" PVC 90 degree Elbow's
10' 1" PVC schedule 40 pipe
5' 1 1/4 " PVC Schedule 40 Pipe
2x 5 gallon bucket covers
1x 5 gallon bucket
1 x Grit Gaurd

All parts should cost under $35
Click to expand...

Are the covers used in the manner I described, they're not in the pics so I didn't see how your using them also what department do you find the springs in?
 
Here is the finished product ! The cut list is as follows.

CUT LIST :

4ea 1" PVC pipe at 7 3/4" long for uprights
4ea 1 1/4" PVC pipe at 6" long for plungers
8ea 1 " PVC pipe at 1 3/4" long for tee and elbow connectors

A chop saw is recommended. The 1/2 " caps are used to hold the springs from falling down the uprights.You must sand down the outside of the caps to fit in the 1" uprights,They are inserted upside down and drilled out to give the springs a shoulder to sit on and still let the water pass.

The 1 1/4" caps are glued to the 6 " plungers and a hole is drilled in each.
Please note the length of the springs will alter the cut sizes above.I use 3 1/2" length springs.
 
Thank you so much for sharing. Buying and shipping costs to Hawaii make buying the original too costly. I really appreciate the information!
 
This is a great example of using your head for something besides a place for your hat! I'm wondering is this design actually outperforms the original and at 25% of the cost?

Outstanding contribution! :dblthumb2:
 
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