LP Cleaning


While there will probably be a lot of replies to my post my search for answers is quite simple......I have an abundant collection of Lp's. Some I have bought new (from very long ago) and some I have bought used. Most of these LP's are in very good or great condition. I always place the LP's into their sleeves after play and handle them very carefully. In the past, I have only use a brush to clean them before each play.I'm not looking for a magic sound improvement but only to preserve my current collection. None of these LP's (to my knowledge) have ever received a "wet" cleaning treatment. Record cleaning processes and machinery are many...from a few $$ to many $$$$.After reading many recommendations and reviews, many recommend a simple wet cleaning process. There are many of those products available while there are super $$$ systems out there with vacuum technology and the like.
Of the many wet cleaning systems( like SpinClean and others) at a modest price, would a system such as this be beneficial? Also, since I don't know how these various systems work.....Is there danger to damaging the label since some of the rare LP's I own may be sold in the future?Thanks

jrpnde
voiceofvinyl....Certainly sounds like you have much experience with cleaning records. Interesting that you mentioned Photo-Flo. It is a Kodak product and a wetting agent/surfactant. I worked for Kodak for 30 years and used Photo-Flo as a final rinse stage in the manual processing of xray films. The purpose was to eliminate drying spots on the films. You have used it in the cleaning process. Would there be any benefit to using it in the rinse stage along with distilled water? Perhaps drying spots may or may not on records be of any consequence. Just curious. Thanks for your input.

I bought a VPI 16.5 25 years ago, and it served me well. Four years ago I got into ultra-sonic cleaning, and a whole new world opened up.

Vinyl Stack has a nice wet-cleaning method which protects the labels by placing each record between two nylon wheels with rubber tires. These wheels cover the label.

The method also works well with an ultrasonic tank. I use an Elmasonic (German lab equipment) running at 80 KHz. Note that all US cleaners are not created equal. They differ in power (more is better), frequency (higher is better), heating (use it), and most importantly, corporate dedication to meeting specifications.

Good luck!
Jrpride, I rinse heroically with pure water, and the water cascades off a clean record like water off a freshly waxed fender. I have never considered photo-flow - I don't want to risk a residue.
Hi,
I’ve been using Nitty Gritty manual model for 35 years after trying a lot of cleaning products .... dry, liquids, lots of brushes and pads, all useless.

With Nitty Gritty never a problem and I washed a few thousand vinyls.

I would not change anything in the world, that’s enough for me.
Although I've never used one, the Gem Dandy cleaner by Merrill Audio would seem to be a good bet for you and your concerns at a reasonable cost.