vinyl records cleaner

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greg1971

New Member
I'm looking for the best way to clean new and used records. I'm not wanting to spend 100s on a machine and searching the internet you fine to many different ways. I'm wanting to manually clean them and there is so many different cleaning fluids and stuff. Which is some of the best to use. Starting to get back into vinyl but now I'm worried damage to the new ones I'm buying that I have not played. Thanks
 
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Cheap and easy way I sometimes do. Cold tap water dish soap and micro fiber towels and a nylon paint brush.





Barney
 
After reading over many threads on this topic I came up with my individual approach: I make up a spray of three parts distilled water to one part Isopropanol Alcohol (99% - had to buy online). To this I add two drops of
Dawn dishwashing soap, which keeps the mixture from beading up on the records. Once I have this sprayed on I spread it around with a natural bristle paint brush and let it sit for a minute or so. Then I wipe it all off with a lint free paper towel like Viva. I rinse the record with another towel soaked with distilled water, then do a final dry off with a microfiber towel. I make sure to let the record air dry for several hours at least, more likely overnight. I usually rig up a way to suspend them in mid air so both sides can dry.

I've tried other ways and feel this is the best method for me. I pretty much only buy records in pretty good shape, so I'm not sure how this would work with a really cruddy record. But before I'll put any pre owned record on my turntable it gets this treatment.

Hope that helps!
 
SOOO many ways to do this. In a few weeks I'm going to be buying an old Nivico turntable with a beautiful wooden plinth for $60. I also have a "vinyl vac" wand that I can hook to my shop vac. I got the vacuum wand for $30. So for $90 I'll basically have a record cleaning machine. It won't look quite as pretty, but eventually I'll build a box for the turntable to sit on and to house the shop vac motor (or a different, maybe quieter vacuum motor). IMO, not a bad way to go, and not that expensive. Eventually I'd like to try ultrasonic cleaning, but that's more than I want to spend right now. That was going to cost me around $500-600.
 
Even though it may not be a sticky, there was a compendium of threads about record cleaning that was compiled. I was hoping it would be stuck, but it looks like a bit of housekeeping has taken place on the TT fridge. Just do searches and you'll find it.

There isn't a definitive answer to your question. It all depends on YOU. How much effort and time you are willing to spend? Once you clean them, are they going to go back into the same inner sleeves? It's probably going to come down to the amount of albums you have vs options.

You could read the threads and DIY a very good vac system for <$100 or sink wash and dry with MF cloth. The first method beats the hell out of the second in my experience.
 
If you have a lot of records, it's worth investing in a vacuum cleaner. The cheapest I know of is the KAB EV-1. Less than $200 assuming you have a vacuum already.

You can clean a record in a minute or two and the vacuum really gets it as clean as possible short of an ultrasonic machine, which is a lot more $.

I've had a spin clean and it was fine, but there is a difference in time and effectiveness, IMO, between wipe off and vacuum off.

Nice thing about both Spin Clean and KAB is they hold their value very well, so with either, you could conceivably buy one, clean your records, and sell it used and not lose a lot of $. This only makes sense though if you have a collection of records you want to clean and don't plan to get more. Otherwise, it's best to always have a good cleaner around.
 
greg1971 said:
I'm looking for the best way to clean new and used records. I'm not wanting to spend 100s on a machine...
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These are mutually exclusive. Personally, I wouldn't hand wash a new record.
Dawn in the sink will work on used records. I use Sparkle window cleaner with my DIY RCM, followed by a distilled water rinse. Sparkle contains no ammonia and was formulated to clean plexiglass.

I haven't found anything that cleans better than Sparkle. Last night I cleaned an original release of "His Satanic Majesties Request" that I bought for $1.00. It plays NM, completely quiet.
 
bhundu said:
Even though it may not be a sticky, there was a compendium of threads about record cleaning that was compiled. I was hoping it would be stuck, but it looks like a bit of housekeeping has taken place on the TT fridge. Just do searches and you'll find it.
Click to expand...

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?p=8754004

After reading so many of these threads from folks new to vinyl, I started that thread, and hope we can use it as a dump for any new ideas, old ones, etc. Basically, if it is about cleaning records, why not post it in this one?

Thanks for the help, bhundu. :thmbsp:
 
greg1971 if your buying new records today prices are significantly higher than when you purchased new records 30-40 years ago. I tend to agree with DougMac that the best way to clean records and not spend 100s on a machine etc isn't mutual. Before you know it you can spend the cost of a KAB EV-1 on a half dozen new records. Over time it's possible to amass a collection of records in excellent shape that in value will far outweigh the cost of a quality record cleaning machine. A lot depends on how much you want to protect your investment.
 
onwardjames said:
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?p=8754004

After reading so many of these threads from folks new to vinyl, I started that thread, and hope we can use it as a dump for any new ideas, old ones, etc. Basically, if it is about cleaning records, why not post it in this one?

Thanks for the help, bhundu. :thmbsp:
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It really is good to have it all in one place; you are owed a debt of thanks for taking the initiative in starting that thread.

As far as the KAB-EV1 goes, I've had one for at least 12 years, and while it really is just a glorified vacuum cleaner attachment, it is a perfectly designed specialized vacuum cleaner attachment, and I've never regretted shelling out the $140 it cost me at the time. While there are other DIY alternatives out there that would cost alot less, if you can afford the $170 (or whatever it is they go for now), it's still a really effective tool and makes the whole process pretty straightforward.
 
Vinyl2015 said:
Why not just get one of them brushes that get rid of dust build up on the record?
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That doesn't address the grime deep within the grooves.

We're talking microns wide. At that level, it is a challenge just to get water to permeate it, meaning it is possible to submerge a record and the grooves actually NOT take in the water.

I think I'm right about that. I think. :scratch2:

Hence products that use surfactants that break up water surface tension.
 
Someone needs to invent a "cleaner cartridge" to run that gets down into grooves as low as a stylus. Little tiny vacuum hose just above the "scrapper" and will work wet. Several formulas, both DIY and Pro, exist to break water tension and get down into grooves.

IMO vacuuming makes a huge difference, however that can cause static so be sure to use an anti stat brush or gun before play. I have a styro peanut I keep by TT to check if static is high on LP surface.
 
dfunghi said:
Someone needs to invent a "cleaner cartridge" to run that gets down into grooves as low as a stylus. Little tiny vacuum hose just above the "scrapper" and will work wet. Several formulas, both DIY and Pro, exist to break water tension and get down into grooves.

IMO vacuuming makes a huge difference, however that can cause static so be sure to use an anti stat brush or gun before play. I have a styro peanut I keep by TT to check if static is high on LP surface.
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They have those. They run a thread in the groove to remove dirt from the grooves.
However the process is very slow.
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If you're considering the spin clean and you live near europe you could consider the knosti disco antistat. It's a bit the same principle but a bit better developed I think.

Still a vacuum extraction of the fluid is the best.
 
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