Floor pads are used with powered floor equipment to scrub, strip or polish floor finish. These pads come in various shapes and sizes, however there are two primary styles that you will see in the Jan San industry.

• Round pads are the most commonly found floor pads for powered equipment. These pads are used with floor machines (swing machines), automatic scrubbers and burnishers. Common sizes range from 12″ to 24″.
• Square/Rectangular pads are used with oscillating equipment such as the Advance FM810. The most common sizes are 14″x20″ and 14″x28″.

One other common style of pad is the hand pad, commonly referred to as “Doodle Bug” pads based on 3M’s brand. These pads are smaller and rectangular in shape (not to be confused with rectangular machine pads.) These pads are often used on a holder on the end of a pole to clean narrow areas or to strip baseboards, however hand held pad holders are available. The colors and styles of a hand pads are identical to those of floor pads.

The color of a floor or hand pad indicates the level of abrasiveness. In the color spectrum, light colors represent softer pads. The darker the pad gets, the more aggressive it is. Below are the most commonly found floor pads (however many other colors exist and are available for special order):

Buffing Pads

• White pads are the softest of the floor pads. They are used on delicate floor surfaces and finishes. Generally used for buffing purposes, the white pad is best used from 175 rpm to 2000 rpm.
• Natural Hair pads are used on High-Speed burnishers to remove scuff marks as well as restoring the shine on durable floor finishes. Most effective when used on 1000 rpm and higher machines. Also available in light versions for less aggressive polishing needs. SupplyDen stocks PowerSHINE and PowerSHINE Lite in various sizes.
• Light Blue burnishing pads are designed more for touch-up burnishing than restorative burnishing. Best used on very lightly scratched or slightly dull finish.
• Pink pads (more commonly referred to as “Eraser” pads) are known mostly for their ability to take scuff and smudge marks off of medium to hard finish.

Scrubbing Pads

• Red is a flexible pad used for scrubbing as well as spray buffing. Suitable for most smooth floor surfaces, red pads respond best from 175 rpm to 350 rpm.
• Green pads are used on heavy soils for more aggressive cleaning. Often used interchangeably with blue pads. They are also used most commonly for top scrubbing. Most effective when used from 175 rpm to 350 rpm.

Stripping Pads

• Surface Prep (shown in 14″x20″) pads are used to prepare a surface for refinishing, most commonly on wood floors. They are also used for dry stripping in conjunction with a rectangular machine.
• Black is a coarse pad used for stripping floor finishes and very aggressive scrubbing. Most effective when used from 175 rpm to 350 rpm.
• Hi-Pro (High Productivity) pads are extremely aggressive pads used to remove the toughest build-ups and to significantly reduce the amount of time spent stripping. Best when used from 175 rpm to 350 rpm.