Just how dirty are those records?
Record cleaning
After reading The Audiophile Man feature on vinyl cleaning wondering what Audiogoners think of his DIY cleaning solution (distilled water and alcohol solution with 7% alcohol). This is used as the cleaning solution in a Disco-Antistat record cleaner. Before placing the album in the disco-antistat,he brushes on a solution of a surfactant and glycol. After running album through the disco-antistat he then vacuums the residue with a RCM.
I was wondering if I could apply a solution of surfactant and glycol to an album with a stiff goat hair brush, then run it through just the US cycle of my HumminGuru US cleaner. Then rinse with distilled water by applying it on the album while on the Record Dr. using a second stiff brush to clean into the grooves, then vacuuming the residue up through the Record Dr?
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- 24 posts total
Long ago, I dove deep down into record cleaning solutions. I think there was some very compelling evidence that alcohol is a no-no on vinyl. It dries out the vinyl. There are some incredibly detailed long papers on the subject... one I think for or about the archival cleaning for the Smithsonian. To me, it is just worth it to buy VPI concentrate and make a gallon... and not worry about it. I'm not sure even your dedicated audiophile will hear dried vinyl... I am not 73 and most of my albums (2,000) probably on average have only been played 10 times... except really classics that I loved, then maybe 25. None of this is really hard long termed use. |
This may be of interest. Precision Aqueous Cleaning of Vinyl Records-3rd Edition |
Good question, and you will find many answers to it in the AG archives... In general, most avoid alcohols for fear of surface damage to LPs. My suspicion is that -OH does nothing to the vinyl-chloride, but it likely removes some of the plasticizers and makes the LPs more fragile, even warped, by this extraction. Over the years, I have cleaned thousands of LPs, using a wide variety of gear and solutions. My advice is KISS. Begin with a simple faucet rinse, followed by a cleaning with an easily rinsed solution (LP cleaner, Castile soap, etc.) followed by a second faucet rinse, then a final rinse in DI or distilled H2O. Let air dry for a minuet, wipe with a lint-free adsorbent cloth and let air dry for ~20 min (depending on your HVAC in your home) until the grooves are dry. Cover with a new inner-sleeve. If you need to go further, feel free to contact me. We can discuss more intensive protocols... |
The Link shows all that is required to produce a mixture for cleaning and the methodology to achieve, what I now refer to as a Purified LP. The mixture in the Link, is a solution that seeps into the groove, it is capable of lifting embedded particulate that are low microns in dimension. The solution does not collect on the LP Surface only, as many solutions do. I have reported in previous posts when I am organised, I can easily achieve a two side clean of an Album in six minutes, with a time set aside to clean 10 Albums. This is plenty of Albums to support a few listening sessions. I exchange inner sleeves that have been supplied with the LP as well, to offer a cleansed storage method. I've also seen very recently the author of the Link, uses a Cleaning Brush from Amazon that has a 0.05mm Fibre as the Brush Bristle. I will utilise similar in future in place of the Baby Scalp Clean Brushes already being used. I also have a Gardeners Pressure Bottle for the rinse process, the bottle allows for a Jet Rinse with a misting setting on the adjustable nozzle. https://thevinylpress.com/app/uploads/2024/03/PACVR_3rd-Ed-Ch1_2024-03.pdf
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