vinyl cleaning with soap and water

danger boy

I know this has been discussed in here b4, but i can never let it die i guess.

a record store ownere today was telling me how he cleans his albums. he uses a few drops of dish soap into some warm water and cleans his albums that way.. which soap would be best for this?

if an album is no longer shiny, does that mean it's been played over and over so it's not longer shiny and the groves are warn out?

TroyD

soap leaves residue, they all do. However, it's better, I suppose than not cleaning them at all, I guess.

I've found that they discolor just from the amount of **** on them. A good cleaning usually restores the sheen. Last night I cleaned an early pressing of the Beatles Hard Days Night that looked AWFUL and it looks pristine now.

Rather than the soap, I'd just use the steam cleaner.

BDT

danger boy

i am going to try the small amount of soap and warm watert trick. cuz, right now just dry cleaning them isn't working good enough.

TroyD

That's cool...

Sooner or later, the plain fact is clean vinyl is neither cheap nor easy. However, I'd look at the Alsop (sp) or discwasher systems if you aren't going the vacuum machine method.

Again, though, I've tried them all and none of them is going to give what I would consider acceptable results.

BDT

BaggedLancer

I need to get in on this steam cleaning thing. I have my own method of cleaning, and while it works great, I don't think it's great enough.

TroyD

The steam cleaning thing is fantastic HOWEVER, once the crap is dislodged from the grooves, it still has to get off the surface of the record.

Think of the surface of an lp like a carpet. While there are a number of methods to effectively get the **** out of the fibers, the only REAL way to get them up off the surface is to vacuum it. There is no substitute for suction.

BDT

schwarcw

Amen!

You can scrub it steam it, brush ot or whatever, In the end you need a vacuum to suck away the dirt that liquids (and rinse) or brushing just spreads around.

hearingimpared

Another aye vote for vacuuming. It really is the only way to ensure that all the crud is lifted out of the grooves and off the record.

cubdog

8 parts distilled water. 2 parts isopropyl alcohol and 1 or 2 drops of Dawn, the blue stuff, is a common mixture. I mix it in quart batches. Works ok but I haven't compared it to any expensive cleaners. The Dawn is just a surfactant.

cubdog

avguytx

That's the basic substance I use, too, and it seems to work well for my collection. I don't have a high end TT like a lot of you guys do so I guess I'm still in the cheap mode. I really ought to build my own DIY RCM since I'm pretty handy with tools/woodworking/electronics, etc. There are many designs of the RCM that seem to work reasonably well and would have to be better than my 20 year old Discwasher brush (you know the type). I use that solution mix mentioned above in a small spray bottle, spray it on the record while it's spinning, use the one side of the brush for the wet "scrub", then roll the brush to the dry side and dry it off some. Then, I go back over it with a lint free cloth to get the remaining dampness. It may not be perfect but it sure makes a big difference from what some records come in looking like and how they end up once ready to play.

One of these days....DIY RCM first. Then, maybe a bad boy.

madmax

Please don't use too much soap. I've bought a ton of used vinyl that just keeps sudsing, and sudsing... We are not washing dishes here. One drop to a few gallons should be plenty.
madmax

TroyD

What chuck said...I've had the same experience.

BDT

del44

Same mixture I use. Vacuuming after cleaning and rinsing makes a big difference.

avguytx

Just a small drop for a gallon here. Nothing more.

hearingimpared

I think using soap, even one drop to gallons is a bad idea. There are many many record cleaning forumulas out there that are not expensive and are R & D'd, tested, and manufactured strickly for cleaning records. There is no need to take chances on dishwashing detergent or anything designed to clean everything but vinyl.

Ken S. has a great formula for record cleaning fluid that is very, very inexpensive and will last you a lifetime.

treitz3

hearingimpared wrote: »

Ken S. has a great formula for record cleaning fluid that is very, very inexpensive and will last you a lifetime.

Linky please, the N2 is getting expensive.

jcaut

At work we use a detergent in the lab called Liqui-Nox. It's a perfume and color-free surfactant, designed for cleaning laboratory glass and optical surfaces. Not supposed to leave any residue. I've not tried it for cleaning records, but if I were going to use soap the that's what I think I would try. You can get it from http://www.hach.com. Search for product 2088153.

danger boy

TroyD wrote: »

There is no substitute for suction.BDT

this is going to be my new sig on here now

I couldn't agree more.

reeltrouble1

he's got you on that one BDT.

hehehehehehe

RT1

strider

treitz3 wrote: »

Linky please, the N2 is getting expensive.

I'd be interested as well. $25 for a quart of Mofi is getting old.