4. Overuse of the lower grit pads (200, 400, & 800) can cause orange peel effect. To avoid this use more water, faster movement of the machine, and spend less time.
5. Softer stones like Limestone and Travertine may not need to have the full range of grits used. In most cases you can use the 3000 grit pad, then rinse, use the 11000 grit pads and be done.
6. Too much weight on the machine can also cause orange peel effect. A lighter weight, higher speed machine is recommended over a heavy weight, slower machine. High RPMs, Low weight.
7. Pad maintenance is very important. The pads may become contaminated if left diamond side down on a soild surface. It is vital to clean/rinse, dry, and store the pads properly after each use. Make sure you store the pads face-to-back. The colored side of the pads should always face the same direction.
8. When using the pads, NEVER use any chemicals, rinsing agents, or polishing agents. This will contaminate the pads and cause them to function incorrectly. Use water only!
FYI: Using the Cheetah Pad system can reduce your job time and labor costs by up to 70%. No chemicals are ever required, all polishing and restoration is done with 100% mechanical abrasion, all you need is water! The Cheetah Pads are able to deliver very consistent results that match and in many cases exceed the quality of standard factory finished stones. Cheetah Pad training can be done in one day; it’s easy, fast, and leaves you with enough knowledge to tackle simple and complex restorations.
FYI: The Cheetah Pad system does not have specific grit sizes; they go by steps 1 through 4. Using step 1 is equivalent to using grit sizes 50-200, step 2 equivalent to 100-800, step 3 equivalent to 400-3,000, and step 4 equivalent to 8,000. Step 1 should be used in a full restoration, and step 4 would be light restoration to general maintenance.
FYI: The Cheetah pad system is completely hand-made so there may be a slight variation with the color of the abrasives.
FYI: A 4-jet squeegee wand tool is recommended for clean-up with the Cheetah Pad system because of the high abrasive content. Cheetah Pads have up to 20x the abrasive content compared to traditional resin diamonds; more abrasives mean that a really thorough clean-up is required. Also, using a fresh microfiber flat mop in between steps ensures the best removal of any and all abrasives from the previous step.
FYI: New Cheetah Pads may take up to 50 square feet of use to “break-in”. Use a neutral cleaner or alkaline stone cleaner diluted with water while using the pads for the first time to speed the “break-in” time.
FYI: Using your machine in small circular overlapping motions at a 45 degree angle to the grout joints is strongly recommended for best results.
FYI: If the step 2, 3, or 4 pads and or final polishing pad wear very quickly this means a more thorough clean-up between steps is required.
FYI: Before advancing through to the next step, doing a simple 30 second test on a small work area will help determine if you are ready to advance. To do the test, simply use your machine with your current step pad concentrated on one area for 30 seconds. If the area you run the test on looks dramatically better than the rest of the surface then continue using that same pad on the entire surface to get the best results.
FYI: If all the steps were done correctly with proper clean-up, by step 4 the surface should look factory polished. Following step 4 by polishing with an 11,000 grit Monkey Pad increases gloss and color even more. Some stones respond well to an additional dry buffing with the final 11,000 grit Monkey Pad to make the colors even more vibrant.
FYI: For limestone and lighter colored marbles it is highly recommended if you are using a weighted drive plate or a machine with any weights, to remove those before the final 11,000 grit Monkey Pad dry pass.
FYI: For green serpentine marble it is recommended to use at least 120-150 total weight on your machine and several more slow passes on the surface with each step.
FYI: The Cheetah Pad system wears much quicker on softer stones like limestone, travertine, and lighter marbles.
