Does anyone have any great ways to remove cloth from a side brush that is literally just stuck in the channels? The top portion of the cloth on the brush came out very easily but the bottom section of cloth will not budge at all and we are having the hardest time trying to remove it from the channels.
Side Brush Cloth Stuck In Channels
- Thread starter hkim310
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thersonly1
New member
that is unfortunately the way it always seems to happen. You get the first couple of levels off with no effort and then the bottom just wont budge. Champ vice grips on them and start yanking and pulling. Or what I have done for my warps is time around is the way you were trying to avoid but may end up having to do anyways is just buying new hubs along with the cloth.
Probably not the answer you are looking for but life is to short to be yanking on those clothes all night long and not getting anywhere.
Earl Weiss
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1. Blast with soapy HP to try and remove grit.
2. Spray WD 40 in top of channel and see if it works it's way down over night.
3. Yank off cloth or foam and use a 4" grinder with cutting wheel and run it up and down in slot. removing entire shaft / core assembly and laying horizontal is worth the time if this is needed.
I order external plastic to try and make this easier later on.
2. Spray WD 40 in top of channel and see if it works it's way down over night.
3. Yank off cloth or foam and use a 4" grinder with cutting wheel and run it up and down in slot. removing entire shaft / core assembly and laying horizontal is worth the time if this is needed.
I order external plastic to try and make this easier later on.
JMMUSTANG
car wash owner
Go to Home Depot of Lowes and buy a couple of cans of PB Blaster and generously spray the channels, let it sit for awhile.
Then try to pull them up. As Earl said you might need to use soapy high pressure.
Then try to pull them up. As Earl said you might need to use soapy high pressure.
twerkinatthecarwash
New member
When we replaced our cloth we used a couple techniques
Before anything we ripped off the main portion of the cloth so only the portion left in the channel was there with maybe a half inch sticking out.
Then we used a punch/hammer or screwdriver to get a small section out.
From there we used vice grips or channel-locks to grip it, then twist using the hub as a fulcrum point to pull it out.
Some of the cloth (depending on what type it is) might have a plastic core in the channel section, if you can get a grip on that and pull the core out it makes taking the rest of it out much easier. Also, using a heat gun to blast the section in the channel also makes pulling it out easier.
Its not an easy task, but it is attainable, although if you are at the point that its that hard to take it out the channels are probably warped or has a corrosion build up under the cloth and you're probably better of replacing at least those bottoms hubs as well.
Just note this: It kinda sucks doing this. Back when I was an assistant manager we closed down for a morning during the summer to give it a go and my old store manager ended up passing out from a combination of frustration, heat, and dehydration (granted, its not summer now, but it just shows how difficult the process can be).
Just another side note, taking the hubs off may make it easier to get the cloth out. We did that for one of them and used our bench-vice to hold the hub while we pulled the cloth out.
Hopefully my rambling makes sense and good luck!
Before anything we ripped off the main portion of the cloth so only the portion left in the channel was there with maybe a half inch sticking out.
Then we used a punch/hammer or screwdriver to get a small section out.
From there we used vice grips or channel-locks to grip it, then twist using the hub as a fulcrum point to pull it out.
Some of the cloth (depending on what type it is) might have a plastic core in the channel section, if you can get a grip on that and pull the core out it makes taking the rest of it out much easier. Also, using a heat gun to blast the section in the channel also makes pulling it out easier.
Its not an easy task, but it is attainable, although if you are at the point that its that hard to take it out the channels are probably warped or has a corrosion build up under the cloth and you're probably better of replacing at least those bottoms hubs as well.
Just note this: It kinda sucks doing this. Back when I was an assistant manager we closed down for a morning during the summer to give it a go and my old store manager ended up passing out from a combination of frustration, heat, and dehydration (granted, its not summer now, but it just shows how difficult the process can be).
Just another side note, taking the hubs off may make it easier to get the cloth out. We did that for one of them and used our bench-vice to hold the hub while we pulled the cloth out.
Hopefully my rambling makes sense and good luck!
Thanks for all of the replies! Took about 2 days to get all of the cloth out but we finally got it out. We did end up taking the hubs off and placing them on a bench vice to make it easier to remove. We tried a bunch of different methods: vice grips, channel locks, heating it with a torch, PB Blaster. Unfortunately for us, none of these methods really sped up the process. What we ended up doing was using a razor and cutting out the cloth. The remaining rubber that remained in the channel was then cut again on the sides and pulled out of the channel with the razor and/or screw driver. It was a timely procedure but for us at least, it seemed to be the quickest.
