How To Clean | Maintain Analogue Vinyl Records

[Rab]

I have some old 12" singles that are in need of a good cleaning. Some of these records got damp and seem to have a very light cast of film or mold. Some have fingerprints on them, and some seem to have residue from being in a smokey club for many nights. I would be very interested to hear what people use to clean their records? I have one friend that uses alcohol and water. I have another, that believe it or not, swears by "windex"? I'd like to know what other people trust, when it comes to cleaning their records. Something that people feel confident does not impair the fidelity or leave any residue??

[maarten]

I second this request. Giovanni found me a copy of Midnight Gang's "Love is magic" album, and it needs a thorough cleaning.

A friend of mine recommended distilled water with alcohol. OK... but how much of each. How to apply - soft cloth, I imagine. And then what - hang them in the spring sunshine to dry?

Also: does anyone know of an online address where you can buy inner sleeves and plastic sleeve covers? Do they ship overseas?
_________________

"ON THE BEAT"

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: maarten on 2002-04-01 20:09 ]</font>

[Mixmachine]

If you can justified the expense, depending on how many records you own, I’d recommend a Vacuum cleaning system, the cheapest I’ve seen is the Disc Doctor for 200.00 from Audio Advisor, best investment on vinyl I’ve made, this model is manually operated and they include two jugs of cleaning fluid, I was able to clean records with mold and junk accumulated through my DJ-ing years, it is amazing to hear the before and after difference, now I hardly play anything without cleaning it first; especially when recording to CDR, be very careful with what you use on your vinyl, if the Cleaning fluid is not well formulated you could ruin the microscopic grooves, there are all kind of wild concoctions out there but I rather be save than sorry, if you don’t care to invest this much, your best bet is to use a basic record cleaning kit, the Disc Washer is a pretty good alternative.

You can buy inners sleeves from many online sources including this two below, but if you check on eBay you get better prices, comics vendors sell the plastic protectors, and I won a bunch of those green 7” protectors on the cheap.

Record cleaning machines, record cleaning brushes, supplies...

Record sleeves for vinyl records

[Giovanni]

another good address is:

http://www.bagsunlimited.com/

[jack]

i have used bags unlimited for over 10 years. they are great.

for cleaning LPs...rubbing alcohol, make sure has no additives { mint fragrance, spring rain scent etc...leaves film }I use a spray bottle or daube a bit of alky on a soft cloth to clean, go in a spiral motion with the grooves,flip on side and pay attention to the starting grooves { usually the dirtiest } then do other side.

play

enjoy

repeat

[markydefad]

OK, I'm waiting for the guy who previously said he uses BABY LOTION & water to clean his records, to weigh in. Bernie was taken aback by that one, to say the least. Remember???

[BrunoRepublic]

On 2002-04-02 16:56, markydefad wrote:

OK, I'm waiting for the guy who previously said he uses BABY LOTION & water to clean his records, to weigh in. Bernie was taken aback by that one, to say the least. Remember???

I figured out the reason why he thought that worked so well. The lotion would act as a surfectant, and also the slick residue would *temporarily* seem to decrease the surface noise. The problem is, once the oils completely dry out, you've got a nasty mess on your hands.

Getting back to the original topic at hand (sorry I haven't answered your e-mail, Maarten):

For most records, a touch of mild dish detergent and a thorough rinsing is enough. The trick is to get the water off the record before it dries. I generally pat it dry with an old soft cotton cloth. The reason you want to get that water off is that it's full of contaminants -- the harder the water in your area, the worse this will be. Ideally one should use distilled water.

However, for a couple of records, I have had to resort to a more extreme measure. For discs that have serious ground-in dirt, I cover the disc with a mixture of water and alcohol and play it -- wet. This allows the stylus to clear out much of the crud, and can sometimes work wonders. However, you must keep the record wet, and you must also thoroughly rinse it afterwards, *before the original liquid dries*. Otherwise, all the dirt will sink back into the grooves, and you'll be back at square one.

[markydefad]

Graham,

I think you must be the Canadian "Mr. Wizard" (a U.S. 50's TV show reference--I think I'm gonna include footnotes with all my jokes from now on) cause you ALWAYS know the scientific explanation for everything.

Wutzup wit dat??????

[BrunoRepublic]

... cause you ALWAYS know the scientific explanation for everything.

Hey, I don't claim to know, I'm just making an uneducated guess..

Wutzup wit dat??????

Part of my highly-developed skills at boring people to tears

[Bernie]

Just a few quick, but very important points on record cleaning.

Use a vacuum record cleaner if possible. I have the Nitty Gritty Mini Pro2 and swear by it. They are expensive so if you want to do it by hand note the following:

Never use tap water. Instead use distilled water.

Don't use rubbing alcohol or witch hazel. Instead use Isopropyl 90% or above alcohol.

Never "wet play" your records. Thoroughly clean and dry them before playing.

Try not to get the label wet. If it does get wet then blot it dry immediately. Do NOT rub it.

Record cleaning machines, brushes, supplies...

Record sleeves