Suggestion for record cleaning Bath

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Hello,
I have been using just a simple Fiama Di wills shower gel solution in my cleaning bath. It did wonders to Deepika( As shown in the television) and I am quite happy with the rsults so far. After they are dried under a fan I am just using methylated spirit with a old cotton cloth to wipe them. I have also made lot of inner sleeves with tracing paper. I think after cleaning the records it is most important to store them properly to prevent dust in future. I am not sure if the material for tracing paper is proper for vinyls but i don't think they won't be detrimental. Not sure about their antistatic property though. I have also made a strange observation that records released under the banner Sa Re Ga Ma or HMV doesn't have good recording quality of old songs but same songs in EMI sounds much better. Not sure about the cause of it.
Thanks,
Mahiruha.
 
i can just imagine deepika posing with a clean lp saying 'I trust only fiama di wills to get my lps clean' :ohyeah:

though seriously try using a soap that does not have additives. ought to be safer in the long run. alcohol is also supposed to interact with the lp so maybe using it by itself that too as a last wipe might not be ideal? alcohol with the cleaning solution will work with water. alcohol breaks down water and water breaks down alcohol so both don't remain on the lp. something like that anyway. thats why most recipes mention alcohol and water and soap as a mixture.

regards
 
stevieboy said:
hi murali,

the intention was not to challenge you. there are so many ways of cleaning lps! :) my method also is one of the many that has been established by people who have experimented long long before me. so nothing new to be discovered :D

since you mentioned lifebuoy + water was better i wanted to know what exactly you found it better than... whether you were referring to better than cleaning with only iso alcohol? do clarify. cos i would think only isopropyl would not be sufficient to clean an lp. you'd definitely need a detergent.

regards
Click to expand...

Hai Stevieboy,

I earlier used to clean LPs with Isopropyl alcohol by diluting it with Distilled water and applying it all over the LPs surface and wipe it dry with a small piece of Clinical cotton and drying under the fan.

Recently after using liquid soap, I can visually see the dislodged dust particles from the color of the lather and water. The sound was a shade better due to less clicks and crackles.

I will also experiment with your idea of Iso+soap+water combo and post the results. I think it must be better as iso and soap are good cleansers.

Thanks,

N Murali.
 
hi murali,

thanks for the clarification. am not sure you'll find a sonic difference between soap+water and soap+water+isopropyl alcohol. though the difference between iso+water and soap+water will be dramatic. the way soap works to get dirt particles suspended in the water is pure chemistry. cant clean with only water and iso.

isopropyl i've found and read isnt essential, but it helps get the water off the lp better due to the way it interacts with water and the way water interacts with isopropyl alcohol. i've also cleaned a few lps with only soap and water, though my place i get hard water hence i prefer distilled water to be safe.

regards
 
stevieboy said:
hi murali,

thanks for the clarification. am not sure you'll find a sonic difference between soap+water and soap+water+isopropyl alcohol. though the difference between iso+water and soap+water will be dramatic. the way soap works to get dirt particles suspended in the water is pure chemistry. cant clean with only water and iso.

isopropyl i've found and read isnt essential, but it helps get the water off the lp better due to the way it interacts with water and the way water interacts with isopropyl alcohol. i've also cleaned a few lps with only soap and water, though my place i get hard water hence i prefer distilled water to be safe.

regards
Click to expand...

Hai Stevieboy,

Isopropyl alcohol has the property to remove oils and grease from surfaces. As you mentioned since it is also volatile liquid, easily evaporates the water when mixed with it.

Also water used in the LP cleaning should be free from dissolved salts. I think some reputed make Can water will do justice unlike water from WELL or BORE which may permanently deposit salts on the fine grooves of the LPs thus damaging both the LP as well as the Stylus in the long run.

Thanks,

N Murali.
 
a few articles from the many available online for those using soap over dishwashing detergent in their lp cleaning solution. might help make an informed choice.

regards

Andy has suggestions on cleaning records


Soaps and Detergents - Chemistry (1)

"Detergents have certain advantages over soaps. For example, the most important feature of detergents is their ability to clean effectively in hard water. Hard water contains certain minerals, and many soaps cannot be used to launder in it. Such soaps react with the minerals to form a substance called lime soap or soap curd. Lime soap does not dissolve, and so it is difficult to remove from fabrics and other surfaces. It also causes "bathtub ring." Detergents do not leave such deposits, and they also penetrate soiled areas better than soap does. In addition, detergents dissolve more readily in cold water."
 
I think since the amount of water needed to clean LPs will not be much, it will be sensible to use purified drinking water that has gone through an RO process. That will be absolutely safe. After all 25 litres costs just 30 Rupees, and I am sure you can clean at least a dozen LPs with that.

In terms of soap, one of the safest should be Lifebouy or an Ayurvedic soap such as Medimix that have absolutely no chemicals whatsoever.

Your LPs will also smell good !! :)

Cheers

PS, I just could not help it. But....

At the end of the day we can all sing the following song

ElPeee Ki Raksha Kartha Hai Lifebouy, Lifebouy Hai Jahan ElPeee Hai Vahan..... Liiiiffeboooouy!

Cheers
 
Last edited:
venkatcr said:
In terms of soap, one of the safest should be Lifebouy or an Ayurvedic soap such as Medimix that have absolutely no chemicals whatsoever.

Cheers
Click to expand...

hi venkat the point of digging out the articles was to show that chemistry suggests a detergent is better than soap. its simple fact not anybody's individual opinion. so if you're recommending something please think carefully otherwise someone might use your recommendation and ruin their precious and irreplaceable lps forever.

regards
 
venkatcr said:
I think since the amount of water needed to clean LPs will not be much, it will be sensible to use purified drinking water that has gone through an RO process. That will be absolutely safe. After all 25 litres costs just 30 Rupees, and I am sure you can clean at least a dozen LPs with that.
Click to expand...

absolutely! though the convenience of just holding the lp under running tap water is a strong pull ;)
 
get an RO water purifier (storage type) and clean the LPs under the tap from the purifier :) , i would definitely recommend this above the canned water that is purchased, because you can never trust the quality of those. Whereas an RO purifier from Forbes or Whirlpool should be pretty reliable and should give you very good quality water. (Of course I have no LPs and no experience cleanning them, I am speaking purely from water purity perspective)

stevieboy said:
absolutely! though the convenience of just holding the lp under running tap water is a strong pull ;)
Click to expand...
 
venkatcr said:
I think since the amount of water needed to clean LPs will not be much, it will be sensible to use purified drinking water that has gone through an RO process. That will be absolutely safe. After all 25 litres costs just 30 Rupees, and I am sure you can clean at least a dozen LPs with that.

In terms of soap, one of the safest should be Lifebouy or an Ayurvedic soap such as Medimix that have absolutely no chemicals whatsoever.

Your LPs will also smell good !! :)

Cheers

PS, I just could not help it. But....

At the end of the day we can all sing the following song

ElPeee Ki Raksha Kartha Hai Lifebouy, Lifebouy Hai Jahan ElPeee Hai Vahan..... Liiiiffeboooouy!

Cheers
Click to expand...

Hai Venkat,

I feel liquid soap would do justice than the regular cakes, since they acn spread evenly and also the lather will be easy to work out with soft bristled brush.

Thanks,

N Murali.
 
The forbes (eureka forbes's retail brand which is sold through the stores, as opposed to eureka forbes, which is sold through direct marketing) 10 litre RO purifier is now available for around 12k at E-zone and Reliance Digital, that sounds like a good deal. I've had a Whirlpool RO water purifier which i bought about a year back for abour 14k (8 liters), it's absolutely superb, I would recommend it highly. But then in Chennai you need an RO water purifier, you really can't manage without it.

Kent and Eureka Forbes have poor after-sales, which is the reason I picked Whirlpool, in spite of it being slightly more expensive. The Whirlpool unit also looks much nicer.



stevieboy said:
hi psychotropic,

the only drawback is the price. ROs cost 10kplus. i had wanted to get one but the cost held me back... just checked it out online, eureka forbes is 14k. do you have some suggestions for RO purifiers? i'd love some pointers with prices.

i checked out the usual suspects here...

Aquasure Springfresh RO Water Purifier - Complete Water Purification with Powerboil

regards
Click to expand...
 
thanks psychotropic for reviving my interest in purifiers. need one for pure drinking water too! it'll be a good source of cleaning water too for lps. what had held me back was some vague memory of an article that ro water is not ideal for health. researched and found that it takes out the calcium and magnesium but with a balanced diet you should get enough of those minerals. will probably ask for a home demo this weekend.

regards
 
stevieboy said:
hi venkat the point of digging out the articles was to show that chemistry suggests a detergent is better than soap. its simple fact not anybody's individual opinion. so if you're recommending something please think carefully otherwise someone might use your recommendation and ruin their precious and irreplaceable lps forever.
Click to expand...

First, my post was mostly in humour if you see the last line. Secondly, neither of the two soaps I have mentioned have any chemicals whatsoever. They can be easily dissolved in water, and used that way. A good rinsing will remove whatever traces of the soap that are left on the object.

Some of these are also available in liquid form for hand washing. Since they can be used for human hands, they should be good for vinyl.

In any case, you guys are better at this. So I take back whatever I have said and leave it to you guys to make recommendations.

Cheers
 
Last edited:
hi venkat,

by its very nature any soap or detergent will have chemicals. at least most commercial ones. anyway, it all boils down to how 'safe' you want to be ;) so live and let live i guess :)

regards
 
murali_n said:
Hai all,

I recently cleaned my LPs with Lifebuoy hand wash liquid soap

1) First wetting the LP under running tap ( not the centre label),
2) then applying two drops liquid soap diametrically opposite on the LP
3) then worked up a good lather (takes about couple of minutes ) using a soft nylon fine bristled brush normally used for facial make-up. The strokes were made along the grooves,
4) Then after a few minutes washed under running water.
5) Dried the LP under a ceiling fan.

The result was pretty encouraging the sound was better than cleaning with Isopropyl alcohol.

Thanks,

N Murali.
Click to expand...

Dear Mr. Murali,

Can we clean 78 rpm Shellac Records also with this method.

Regards,
Suresh Babu



Dear Mr. Murali,

Can we clean 78 rpm records also with this method ?

Regards,
Suresh
 
Hi
I believe RO Filter water is not usefull as they advertise it preserve minerals while filtering (Bad for vinyl in long run). As I dont know if regular liquid soap will stay on vinyl even after cleaning so I wont use that (We can rinse it with plenty of water afterwards but it would be too time consuming hard work)

So Basic idea to clean vinyl is removing dust or greasy stuff or oils etc. quickly and efficiently.

As Isopropyl alcohol evoparates quickly and removes greasy stuff it is required. And as distilled water is cheap plus it can remove regulars dust particles easily and will leave no residue on vinyl it is must

If you clean records on flat surface (Not water bath/Tank) you will require something which will spread this combination evenly on surface of record. so few drops of liquid detergent will lower the surface tension and spread the water evenly.

For 78 rpm I would suggest only pure distilled water, grooves are bigger so we can easily clean and Iso Propyl/other chemicals will damage shellac

As canned waters is used in invertors I am pretty much sure it will have no minerals otherwise it would ruin batteries.
 
hey hiten,

i am fairly sure RO removes minerals, the process of reverse osmosis would logically remove minerals, and this is supposed to be a drawback of RO purified water, from a health perspective. Of course, I am not a chemistry guy and I am open to correcvtion.

hitensitapara said:
Hi
I believe RO Filter water is not usefull as they advertise it preserve minerals while filtering (Bad for vinyl in long run). As I dont know if regular liquid soap will stay on vinyl even after cleaning so I wont use that (We can rinse it with plenty of water afterwards but it would be too time consuming hard work)

So Basic idea to clean vinyl is removing dust or greasy stuff or oils etc. quickly and efficiently.

As Isopropyl alcohol evoparates quickly and removes greasy stuff it is required. And as distilled water is cheap plus it can remove regulars dust particles easily and will leave no residue on vinyl it is must

If you clean records on flat surface (Not water bath/Tank) you will require something which will spread this combination evenly on surface of record. so few drops of liquid detergent will lower the surface tension and spread the water evenly.

For 78 rpm I would suggest only pure distilled water, grooves are bigger so we can easily clean and Iso Propyl/other chemicals will damage shellac

As canned waters is used in invertors I am pretty much sure it will have no minerals otherwise it would ruin batteries.
Click to expand...
 
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