What to use if I just want one cleaning fluid?


I'm willing to consider distilled water as a post cleaning rinse fluid (g). But if I'm going to use a VPI cleaner for my disks, and I want to use just one over-the-counter fluid to clean both new and old records in an acceptably effective manner, what should I use?
tonyptony
Your choice may be dictated by how many LPs you clean. I clean about 100 LPs per month, mostly thrift store finds. If I were to use one of the more expensive commercial fluids it would make a serious dent in my budget. So, I use a DIY fluid which costs a fraction of what the better commercial fluids cost per LP. I then play the LPs. If an LP sounds like there is still mold release or other contaminants in the grooves or if it is a spectacular LP that I will play again and again, then I will give it another cleaning with a commercial fluid. With my DIY fluid I get no build-up of gunk on my stylus and I have to rewash only 1-2% of the LPs I acquire. This saves me substantial time and money compared to using one of the better commercial two or three step cleaning fluids. YMMV
I highly recommend RRL (Record Research Labs) Super Record Wash. It cleans very well, and does not require rinsing. Mobile Fidelity recently purchased the brand name, so now it has been rebranded as Mobile Fidelity Super Record Wash.

Mobile Fidelity Super Record Wash

My two cents worth!
I used to use RRL until I came across mintlp.com. Gd site. Seller even sent me velvet stripe for VPI 17F and Magic eraser for catridge maintenance. You can get a sample for free. Have been using distilled water/lab grade pure water since getting to knw this site.Give it a try. Happy listening