With an ultrasonic cleaning machine, you don’t need to vacuum out the dirt to clean each record, as the machine removes all the dirt for you. It collects at the bottom of the basin, so you just have to make sure it’s all drained out when you empty the liquid from the machine between uses. Once your records have been bathed in the diluted cleaning solution mixture, place them on a drying rack.
If a record (or, more realistically, a stack of records) is particularly dirty, I clean them twice with either method in progressively cleaner fluids. In my ultrasonic machine, I do all my records once, then change the fluid and do them again. Make sure you have a clean microfiber towel ($5) so the record is completely dry before returning it to its packaging.
Some people like to rinse the clean record with distilled water at the end of the cleaning cycle to remove any remaining solution. If you do this, dry them that way before putting them away.
Scratch or taunt?
These cleaning methods cannot repair scratches or effectively repair distorted records. The only way to keep those things from impacting your collection is to store your records properly: in an honest, clean environment. Records stacked on top of each other or placed diagonally may distort under their own weight. Do not store your records in a particularly hot or cold location, or in a location where temperatures vary greatly, as this can affect the longevity of the vinyl.
When purchasing used records at a store, it is important to know the difference between a dirty disc and a scratched or warped disc. I recommend that you use a bright handheld flashlight or light on your smartphone to inspect any used records to avoid scratching them. Also look at them from different angles to make sure they’re nice and flat. If the used record is sealed inside a polyvinyl bag with tape, a store clerk will almost always cut the tape so you can inspect the disc.
How often should I clean?
Whenever your record is dirty! For most people, doing a thorough clean of all your records once and then cleaning every 20 or 30 plays is a good start. I clean mine once a year. I make a stack of LPs that have been played a lot, as well as new records that I’ve never cleaned. (Newer records may still have the oil used to separate them from the press present on the surface, and thus they get dirty faster than previously cleaned records.) From there, it’s Netflix and clean.
I’m not such a neat-freak that I wear white gloves when I handle my vinyl, but you should always touch the playing surface of the record as little as possible. Hold the disc by the edges or by the edge and label rather than touching the groove.
Before playing a record, clean the needle (I like a gel cleaner like this $16 option), and make sure you brush your record so the needle doesn’t collect dust on the surface (the source of many pops while listening). Properly maintained, your records should last for several decades.
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