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Ultrasonic Cleaners - They do Work...

I've cleaned over 1000 lp's and I set my temp at 50C. I have never had a problem with warping. I don't let them sit in the tank unless the motor is running. My wash cycle is 1 rotation at 8 mins.
 
I hate to jump into the middle of a long set of posts, but I want to share that an ultrasonic cleaner does make good sense if you have LP's that do have embedded grit, and you dont have a cleaner that can excite, suspend and pull that material away. (in a manner more than a one to one ratio)


That greater than one to one ratio here is the key in my opinion.


I have an average collection, about 4K LP 90% used.


My styli are Jico, and old stock Shibata, so I’m not inclined to play anything until the LP's get cleaned.

I started by hand, with a paint pad

Then, by glue

Then built a RCM that leveraged a pair of paint pads, and a motor.


all way too slow.


So; I looked at what volume I needed to catch up; so I could enjoy my collection.


1. About 150 LP's an hour

2. As clean as they could be, to remove the wear factor from my Stylus

3. Portable, or at least moveable from room to room

4. self-contained (Self storing, all materials used in the process)

5. Suspends, and removes grit, and does not press it back into the item cleaned.

6. Has “Curb Appeal”



Ultrasonic was the answer


I’ve posted in a separate thread, but not to this detail


I had a unit manufactured for me, whilst overseas on a business trip. To my specifications, with a few BOM changes to drive reliability and to meet my needs.


High level specs:


A little over 22 liters of capacity in the main tank

5 liters in the filter and heat exchanger

Multiple drain points

Internal heaters

Transducers, designed for a range of frequencies; added to an existing model number the vendor produces, with other specifications I called out

Full adjustable for frequencies, power to the drivers, run time and temperature set point

A Pre-Civil war Walnut cabinet, fully stripped and restored

A fold out top that covers the cleaner when not in use, and allows double the area during use.

Top is waterproofed

The tank is countersunk into the top, so the lid fits, when the tops is folded

The electronics and relocated to an area in the cabinet, to allow easy access for service, and forced air cooling

The control panel is relocated for ease of use, to the false drawer

The controls are augmented with LP rotation drive controls, and status lamps

A re-circulation system pulls liquid from the tank, and routes it through a very large filter assembly, a forced air heat exchanger, and a pump; to return to the tank

The pump and filter are controlled separately from the Sonics

A drive section, that does not interfere with the lid when its closed.

Multiple "spindles" so I can clean, rinse, and load\unload in an efficient manner, and can be fully stored internally when not in use.

Stainless steel in all areas that touch liquid

Aluminum in areas that do not



and


a liberal application of fun, creativity and general common sense through out




Investment?


It was cheaper than I anticipated. It was not “Cheap”, but as we all know some of our LP’s are approaching the total investment of our cleaning solution.


How does it work?

Extremely well


I can set aside a single day and literally cut large swaths in my collection, and now begin to catch up.

so, I agree fully:

Ultrasonic cleaners work, and well
Not all are created equally, and education is the great equalizer
Building your own solution is possible

:)
 
I did about a 100 LP's today. I do not have the patience to run into multiple hundreds like 4-2-7 has. Regardless have played a couple and I am still amazed the change in LP's using ultrasonic vs. the other options. RCM, glue, gas, kerosene and what ever other crazy thing people do to clean LP's. Some of these came from a Book Fair sale my local library was having. They had a corner of various media to select from. Cassettes and LP's mostly. So you know these were generally not well taken care of. However after a few rotations thru the bath they sound darn good and some even outstanding. If your sitting on the fence about going down the ultrasonic path I urge you to run not walk. You won't look back with regret.
 
MRL_Audio said:
I did about a 100 LP's today. I do not have the patience to run into multiple hundreds like 4-2-7 has. Regardless have played a couple and I am still amazed the change in LP's using ultrasonic vs. the other options. RCM, glue, gas, kerosene and what ever other crazy thing people do to clean LP's. Some of these came from a Book Fair sale my local library was having. They had a corner of various media to select from. Cassettes and LP's mostly. So you know these were generally not well taken care of. However after a few rotations thru the bath they sound darn good and some even outstanding. If your sitting on the fence about going down the ultrasonic path I urge you to run not walk. You won't look back with regret.
Click to expand...

While finding two albums with the exact amount of grime is nigh on impossible, I'm willing to bet that the difference in glue and ultrasonic is more to convenience than sound quality. One exposes the record to acidic binders. The other runs the risk of warping if the water is too hot. One is damned tedious, the other not so much.

I'm very very ready to try ultrasonic, but right now, tergitol and a paint pad in liege with my SpinClean has produced excellent results. Still watching, and reading, with great interest. Glad you're having great results MRL.
 
Good to hear MRL Audio...

I think I might have a better solution mix than using any concoctions containing IPA. I couldn't handle the fumes, so I decided to try using just Purple Power degreaser and water...

I did some searching and found that gun/rifle owners use purple power 100% in their tanks for cleaning gun parts. Hesitant with vinyl, I gradually increased the ratio of degreaser to effectilvy have the right mix for cleaning records..

I started out using small ratios of ounces, but the records were not getting as well as they should. Trail and error later, I have 5 gallons straight degreaser in the tank, no water added. Though, the purple power I use is already diluted with water, unlike some of the other Purple brand degreasers more concentrated.

So, there you have it- I use 100% regular Purple Power from Walmart in the tank to clean records. Obviously, I wouldn't recommend using degreaser unless you have record label covers. Purple power has several different degreasers, I used the most basic one as the others are darker in color being more concentrated...

Cleaning and spinning records as we speak...cleaned about 30 so far and loving it!

Cheers!
 
Why don't you use lacquer thinner as well, are you going to come into this thread now and pass on risky experiments Brian? This thread has a lot of good info, tried and true cleaning materials that have been used for decades and don't harm records.
 
The degreaser I use is vinyl safe, so it says on the bottle and is a diluted version.

I get it, I was hesitant at first too. I cleaned the same 2 records 5 times to test mix ratios and effect on the vinyl. They both sound great.
 
brianjrealto said:
I started out using small ratios of ounces, but the records were not getting as well as they should. Trail and error later, I have 5 gallons straight degreaser in the tank, no water added.
Click to expand...
I'm not surprised. By the time I sold my tank (unlike the majority here I don't consider U/S to be the be all to end all of RCMs) I was coating my records in a dilute solution of Tergitol 15S3 and baby oil, and turning it in a bath of water with a high concentration of 15S9. The 15S3 is not water soluble, but is in fact a very potent degreaser that penetrates and dissolves even the most stubborn fingerprints. The water/15S9 then breaks down the oil/15S3 and dissolves it into the bath.

This was by a large margin the most effective cleaning solution I tried but it wasn't without it's drawbacks. A substantial rinse under hydraulic pressure was needed to remove all traces of 15S3/baby oil before the record could be vacuumed, and the gradual contamination of the water/15S9 in the tank with the oil/15S3 from the record meant that the rinse was becoming more necessary with each cycle. Eventually, the concentration of oil/15S3 would supercede the water/15S9 in the bath, ultimately leading to the mixture having to be dumped, which was a bit of an environmental disaster that weighed heavily on my conscience.

I don't see any such difficulties with your approach, and the degreaser should last quite a long time before it needs to be changed. But as we have both found, extreme measures are needed to get satisfactory results from an U/S tank.
 
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RIPBLADE...Was your tank 40 or 60khz ?

Yeah, i was surprised that it takes that much concentration to penetrate. And, some records are harder to clean than others. No one used record has the same type of gunk as the other.
 
ripblade said:
(unlike the majority here I don't consider U/S to be the be all to end all of RCMs)
Click to expand...

I don't think "Any" way is "be all to end all" when it comes to cleaning record, nor have I seen anyone in this thread state that. I do know that there is no other way for cleaning for me to start the proses if one brings home 50-100 very nice records a week. In fact I bring home so many that I decided I really don't need to clean all of them all the time. I end up giving away my effort and sleeves sometimes doing this because I buy so many same title copies.

brianjrealto said:
Yeah, i was surprised that it takes that much concentration to penetrate. And, some records are harder to clean than others. No one used record has the same type of gunk as the other.
Click to expand...

The sonics and water should be cleaning your records and really you shouldn't need much solvents and soaps. If your buying beat down record that are totally miss treated maybe cleaning is not the problem. No record that needs that much soap is worth being in my collection before or after.

In my two gal. tank I might use 3 oz of 90% IPA, and two drops dish soap, and two drops photo flo. @45 degrees ? (or whatever that setting is on the tank).

brianjrealto said:
Could 4-2-7 be on to something here though with my approach? Is degreaser as safe on vinyl as it claims?
Click to expand...

Ask yourself what records are made of? what is vinyl made of? when you start thinking that one of the properties is oil, and you want to use solvents and soaps that break down oil in high levels with heat that opens and expands the the record to allow penetration. Think about what your doing.

Pretty much the Ultrasonics, distilled water and heat should be enough to clean a record if it's not think about the records your buying or getting for free. All of the high end purpose built Ultrasonics record cleaning machines say to just use distilled water.
 
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BTW, People on this site and in the vast record world might do all sorts of things to clean their records. I have see so much asinine cleaning that I really really stay away from used records that don't almost look new. Now that doesn't mean they don't have fine storage dust on them from over the years and thats fine. I'll take care of it my way, the least abrasive and the less sovets the better.
 
To change the discussion of degreasers or not... Those that have ultrasonic cleaners, is it better to have a 6 liter or a 10 liter? I'm considering getting one and the price delta between the two is not that great. I think I'm sold on the concept and will swallow hard and buy the Vinyl Stack ULTRA Sonic Spin Kit, but not sure if size matters. lol. TIA.
 
Agreed on the fact that 427 favors the 10 L and agree that the vinyl stack sonic spin kit only carries 4 lp currently (but they are looking into the option of being able to add 1 or 2 more...) But I'll ask again and add to it, is there any advantage to a 10 L over a 6L assuming you only clean 4 lp at a time? Thanks.
 
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There you go I deleted my help provided to you... my other comments throughout the thread stand as knowledge gained.
 
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