[TRE]

Using a Record Dr. with the Record Doctor cleaning solution as some have already mentioned. It works great as far as I am concerned. Some really dirty LPs require a second or third pass. You hear a very noticeable difference in sound. This is my first cleaning machine so I have no other reference.

[Not Insane]

I use warm tap water, dawn, and one of those flat "edger" paint brushes from Lowes or home depot. Those things really get into the grooves. I just put a squirt of soap on the brush and rub it around. I then apply water to the LP, lay it on a towel, and run the brush in circles around it a few times. More if it was exceptionally dirty (Goodwill finds fit into this category sometimes). I then rinse with warm plain tap water and dry somewhat with a towel. The only reason I dry it is because since I don't use distilled water, the less water that is left, the less residue is left.

This has worked wonders on some records. I'm talking dead quiet after using this. The most amazing was an old copy of Annie Get Your Gun from around 1960 with Doris Day. It sounds brand new and almost like a Sheffield recording. And it was a $.25 goodwill find.

BTW, this is my first post here. I couldn't find a "welcome new members" forum, so here I am...

[Not Insane]

This is what it looks like:
https://www.prettyhandygirl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/edger-pad-cut-outs.jpg

[twitch54]

I use warm tap water, dawn, and one of those flat "edger" paint brushes from Lowes or home depot. Those things really get into the grooves. I just put a squirt of soap on the brush and rub it around. I then apply water to the LP, lay it on a towel, and run the brush in circles around it a few times. More if it was exceptionally dirty (Goodwill finds fit into this category sometimes). I then rinse with warm plain tap water and dry somewhat with a towel. The only reason I dry it is because since I don't use distilled water, the less water that is left, the less residue is left.

This has worked wonders on some records. I'm talking dead quiet after using this. The most amazing was an old copy of Annie Get Your Gun from around 1960 with Doris Day. It sounds brand new and almost like a Sheffield recording. And it was a $.25 goodwill find.

BTW, this is my first post here. I couldn't find a "welcome new members" forum, so here I am...

given how cheap distilled water is (80 cents a gallon @ Wally World) why wouldn't you use it ? The fact that you acknowledge 'residue' is but one reason NOT to use tap water

[orthobiz]

Welcome Not Insane.

Paul

[S Clark]

Welcome Not Insane.   Soapy water and a good brush work pretty well for a simple way of cleaning.  But nothing beats ultrasonic followed by vacuuming. 

[vinyl_lady]

Welcome Not Insane.   Soapy water and a good brush work pretty well for a simple way of cleaning.  But nothing beats ultrasonic followed by vacuuming.

What he said. ^^^^

Welcome Not Insane.

[ric]

I use a cheap (inexpensive) Perfection steam cleaner, and fill it with distilled water. Because it is marginal at blasting out the steam, it does have enough pressure to use it on vinyl. It has a tendency to run out of steam (so to speak) pressure wise after 30 seconds or so, and then it takes about a minute for the pressure to build again. IMO, works well.

[529proaudio]

Tried a Kirmuss Audio ultrasonic cleaner and returned it as it is brutally slow.  By the time you get it set up with distilled water and alcohol, run the pulse cycles, and clean two LPs (often just one album!), the machine starts overheating and takes an eternity to cool down.  The Upscale Audio version that can do 3 LPs instead of 2 simultaneously would help, but still a very time-consuming process.  And it is extremely noisy, so you can't do it while listening or within earshot of your family.  Oh, and the tiny bottle of surfactant that is 99% distilled water is maybe enough to do about 25-35 albums depending on how many cycles they require, at which point Kirmuss shameless price gouges the refills. 

Need to find an alternative at some point and will likely go back to one of the vacuum systems like my old Okki Nokki.  That thing was great. 

 

[KCinSeattle]

Tried a Kirmuss Audio ultrasonic cleaner and returned it as it is brutally slow.  By the time you get it set up with distilled water and alcohol, run the pulse cycles, and clean two LPs (often just one album!), the machine starts overheating and takes an eternity to cool down.  The Upscale Audio version that can do 3 LPs instead of 2 simultaneously would help, but still a very time-consuming process.  And it is extremely noisy, so you can't do it while listening or within earshot of your family.  Oh, and the tiny bottle of surfactant that is 99% distilled water is maybe enough to do about 25-35 albums depending on how many cycles they require, at which point Kirmuss shameless price gouges the refills. 

Need to find an alternative at some point and will likely go back to one of the vacuum systems like my old Okki Nokki.  That thing was great.

But the Kirmuss can be used like other ultrasonic cleaners without his whole neurotic multi-step cleaner process, no?
It seems that it takes 2 steps: the cleaning, and then the drying. The drying is still what vacuum is best at, without which the hand cleaning and US cleaning steps rely on air drying which isn't great.

[SpatialKing]

Last night I had a few older friends over that loved music but are not audiophiles.   We were playing old vinyl - everything from "The Music Man" to "Tijuana Brass" to "The Bee Gees".  Some of these albums were never cleaned in any fashion, so the noisier ones I ran through the Nitty Gritty machine.   They all noted how much more musical, cleaner, clearer they sounded as well as how much less surface noise there was after cleaning.   So, if non audiophiles define the sound "obviously better", a good record cleaning machine is something you should own, if you don't already.  I have also found that a really good successful cleaning results in simply dead quiet between tracks.  Case in point - Remember the Tijuana Brass album "Whipped Cream and other Delights"?  That album is over 50 years old but it is still very quiet between tracks.   Keep in mind that the album lived for years without ever being cleaned. 

I use the following solution - 32 oz Isopropyl Alcohol - the 70% stuff you can buy at your local drug store, 72 oz of distilled water - the distilled water eliminates the hardness content found in our tap water, 22 oz Simple Green Cleaner, and 2 oz of Kodak Photo Flo 200, which you can find on Amazon.    That makes a gallon and I use it liberally when cleaning an album.   I scrub it with a brush and let it sit for a bit, soaking in it.   Then I scrub it again.   After running it though the Nitty Gritty I discovered that a good rinse is also needed with distilled water.   For really dirty filthy albums, such as that Bee Gees one, it needed two cleanings before a rinse.   

I use a thin record cleaning brush to swap the cleaner on and I pay extra attention to the first track or two on each side since they collect the most grime.   I use a second brush of the same type to spread the rinse water around.   Note that the Nitty Gritty also dries the record due to the vacuum mechanism.    Once it is cleaned, I just use a DiscWasher brush and DiscWasher fluid before playing each time for a brief clean each time.   Once an album has run through the Nitty Gritty, it just gets the DiscWasher brush.

This does take time, no question about it; a good 5 to 8 minutes per album.    I would love to get a Degritter Ultrasonic Cleaner but I am not willing to part with that much cash.   That being said, every time I clean an album, I start thinking "you know, it isn't really that expensive....."

Comments? 

[baldrick]

Last night I had a few older friends over that loved music but are not audiophiles.   We were playing old vinyl - everything from "The Music Man" to "Tijuana Brass" to "The Bee Gees".  Some of these albums were never cleaned in any fashion, so the noisier ones I ran through the Nitty Gritty machine.   They all noted how much more musical, cleaner, clearer they sounded as well as how much less surface noise there was after cleaning.   So, if non audiophiles define the sound "obviously better", a good record cleaning machine is something you should own, if you don't already.  I have also found that a really good successful cleaning results in simply dead quiet between tracks.  Case in point - Remember the Tijuana Brass album "Whipped Cream and other Delights"?  That album is over 50 years old but it is still very quiet between tracks.   Keep in mind that the album lived for years without ever being cleaned. 
Comments?

It's confusing to me why people say that cleaning doesn't do anything.
Deep (ultrasonic) cleaning can make a magical difference that simple brushing or even wet vacuum cleaning can't.

Ultrasonic solutions are still way too expensive for me, so I use vacuum wet methods.  I find the Disc Doctor fluid and brush kit works pretty good with a VPI machine being used strictly for vacuuming up the mess.

[S Clark]

This does take time, no question about it; a good 5 to 8 minutes per album.    I would love to get a Degritter Ultrasonic Cleaner but I am not willing to part with that much cash.   That being said, every time I clean an album, I start thinking "you know, it isn't really that expensive....."

Comments?

I use a homemade ultrasonic cleaner and dry with a Nitty Gritty.  It's about as clean as you can get vinyl, and it is sonically better than just the vacuum. 
There are 12 pages of comments on homemade units here... https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=127810.msg1684675#msg1684675

[johnto]

I just tried a new product Vinylwipe which is a 7"x7" individually wrapped moist wipe that is biodegradable and has no harmful chemicals. They are very affordable at $ .50 each plus shipping. I had 12 Lp's out and ready to clean and got them all done with one wipe. The first LP ended up with a few dots since the wipe is so moist but they were easily cleaned off as the wipe started by to dry with use. This is an excellent product at an affordable price.

[Arno P]

For me: 1st step ultrasonic cleaning, 2nd step drying with "Keith Monk" DIY system

[Audiosaurusrex]

Two things for me, Easy!
Vinyl Record Cleaning Solution Fluid Professional 8 Oz Spray Bottle VNC-8 Made in USA Lasermedia https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017U7LK40/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_BYTVNT9VBPJ99JP7RTZZ
And perfect size for 12” LPs
MagicFiber Microfiber Cleaning Cloths, EXTRA LARGE PACK https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0050R66X8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_00XW77GWE9NESWEHDK82?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

[Wrong Em Boyo]

Maybe this is cheating, but I use a Degritter.  New LPs get six “Heavy” cycles with only distilled water. 

Newly purchased “used” LPs get hand cleaned with Audio Intelligent Formula No. 15 or Enzymatic Formula- depending on the debris level.  Then, I run the LP through the Degritter for six “Heavy” cycles (distilled water) reapplying the AI cleaner between cycles.

Once an LP has this “deep cleaning,” I will do a quick cycle in the Degritter with distilled water only every other playing. 

This may seem time consuming, but my LPs have never sounded better with no surface noise.

[baldrick]

At $3K plus shipping a Degritter is way to rich for my blood.

I suppose I could try the DIY ultrasonic solutions or maybe a Kirmussaudio.com machine.  At under $900 it's a lot cheaper, but still a lot of money.

[Wrong Em Boyo]

At $3K plus shipping a Degritter is way to rich for my blood.

I suppose I could try the DIY ultrasonic solutions or maybe a Kirmussaudio.com machine.  At under $900 it's a lot cheaper, but still a lot of money.

Understood.  I wasn’t planning on spending anywhere near that amount for an “ancillary” piece of equipment not directly contributing to the production of sound, but with the amount I have spent on vinyl and the estimated cost of my collection, I rationalized the purchase in my head.  I was able to get a nice discount from an online dealer that I have done quite of bit of business with (I just called and asked what they could do for me); but it still was a hefty amount.  That said,  I have no regrets with the purchase.

[S Clark]

At $3K plus shipping a Degritter is way to rich for my blood.

I suppose I could try the DIY ultrasonic solutions or maybe a Kirmussaudio.com machine.  At under $900 it's a lot cheaper, but still a lot of money.

I picked up the Nitty Gritty vacuum used for $100, then built the ultrasonic for another $150. 
For $250 I doubt if there is anything that comes close. 
There is no need to spend $3000 if you can do even a bit of DIY.