[adrian5118]

I have seen so many different ways to get all the shit out of records, and I have no idea which method is the best. I've messed with a Nitty Gritty before, but the prices on those things are horrifying. For manual methods, I've seen people talk about Phoenix and LAST a lot. Also, will someone clarify as to whether or not cleaning "brushes" are bad for the vinyl, as in you should only use a microfiber cloth?

And after how many plays do you guys clean your records usually?


Real and tested advice please! Thanks.

edit: Has anyone here ever used that liquid-free cleaner, Gruv Glide?

[Reed]

I work at a record store and we still use velvet wrapped sponges and water to clean vinyl. The sponges are soapless of course. You may also try alcohol, or an alcohol/water mixture. It doesn't harm the vinyl.
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[Noisehunter]

If a real RCM get's too heavy for your wallet then battery water (purified water) and isopropyl alcohol mixed is the best. I can tell you this by my own experience. Tap water leaves some residue on the grooves that can be heard.

I used to have a Disco Antistat before. But having washed about 100 records with it I gave up and bought Okki Nokki. Disco Antistat works nicely with the mixture mentioned above. Just change the liquid to a new one after couple of records. If there's a lot of records to clean up, save and get one of those real RCMs. It doesn't make a lot of $ per record.

[IXTAB]

[CR99]

[dronevil]

i actually clean them with that sort of vinyl cleaning spray everytime before i play them as it's pretty dusty in my house. sometime i wonders if it actually helps or not...
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[Daemonart]

If the cleaning required is minor i use a soft damp cloth, but first i use a compressed air spray to blow some of the dust off, use the cloth starting on the centre right outside the label and going outwards on a circular motion, if you have a decent mat on your turntable where the record don't slip you can do it there, the dampness in the cloth reduces the static considerably, if the cleaning is major i use soap and warm water, you can use any liquid soap or shampoo, first i hold the record under the water on the sink, just a small stream and being careful not to get the label wet, especially the ones that dont have a protective coating, otherwise you will mess the label if it gets wet, have a dry cloth ready in case that any small drops get in the label and wipe them off immediately, once that one side of the record is wet place a drop of soap on your fingertips and start washing it on a circular motion, you can use a sponge as well but it needs to be very soft, rinse the soap off, dry it and proceed to do the other side. Let it dry standing on a vertical position and don't put it back in sleeve until is perfectly dry. I've been collecting records for over 30 years now and this method works just fine for me.
Some of my records haven't been cleaned in over ten years, it all depends on how well you handle them, also i always close the lid on the turntable while playing the records to avoid any dust accumulation.
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[adrian5118]

FUCK. I just noticed that on a brand new LP that is not scratched whatsoever, is scratched now after playing and washing, etc. I'm assuming when I liquid clean (Pheonix cleaner), I do not use enough cleaner or something and the microfiber cloth I have is scratching it by moving the gunk in a circular motion. I put on a good amount to test this out, but I'm not sure if anything changed. What the hell is right way for this as I can't think of any other reason why there suddenly is tiny scratches in a circular pattern. I don't really hear a difference even though there are these tiny scratches, but they can't be a good thing.

I think just washing once when getting the LP and than just dry-dusting is the way to go since I handle these things like they're radioactive or something.

Help.

[Fornication]

i just pour whisky all over mine and hope for satan to do his job
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[Doomchild]

the less you clean your vinyls the better!
I mean, it all depends on how much you play certain ones?

and, another good tip: check and replace the needle and cartridge at least once year. maybe less?

I used to use D4 Cleaning System years ago. Now, a homemade mixture of: DE-NATURED ALCOHOL and distilled water(small amount).

dont use: ISOP. ALCOHOL, bad, not good.

[Chit019]

I never clean my vinyls at all, if they skip or if there's a visible smudge i will but thats about it. The less you do, the less harm youll make.

[adrian5118]

EDIT: I'm going to kill myself, it just clicked that solvents are FOR DIRTY LPS, not new or clean ones. You should use a anti-static vinyl record brush for those before and after plays.

*sigh*

[Gangraen]

Nagaoka Roller CL 152 and a Carbon Brush

[Bunyip]

douse an electric sander in Fosters Lager then sand away at your most cherished vinyl.

[vberkvlt]

NEVER use soap or tap water - all of these leave residue. Even if it looks clean after using soap or tap water, just take out your handy high powered microscope...

There's plenty of info online to support this.

There's also directions on how to build your own cleaning machine - like the VPI ones that are super expensive - but less than 75 bucks or so.
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