Vinyl Record Cleaning - STOP NOW!!! 

This is good advice, the goal is to clean records without damaging / scratching them and without leaving any residue behind. The combination of products he shares are perfect for this and way cheaper than any off the shelf product. Nice job 👍

Reason: If they told you what the ingredients are you would realize you could buy the ingredient(s) much cheaper without their label on it.

I get the part where you say "Don't trust a product that doesn't tell you, what's in it". But honestly, I'm a broke kid who just wants his records to live a little longer and listen to them every once in a while. I'm just trying to figure out the basics, on how to keep my records clean. But after watching this video, I became very reluctant to even try it out of fear to "destroy" my records (how exactly? mechaninal damage to the grooves, damage to the chemical composition of the vinyl ?) But I guess not cleaning my records is the abolute worst possible cleaning advice I could follow. Also, WHY am I to use 99% pure alcohol, WHY is Isopropol not enough? As a channel who has the word "scientific" in the channel's name, you leave a lot to be desired in terms of the "science". No explanation, no reasoning, only "don't do this, this is wrong" and "onyl do that, that is the onyl wright way to do it" WHERE'S YOUR EVIDENCE? Why should I believe YOU instead of someone else, who makes a similar video with the same type of arguments, but with opposite opninions? Lastly, there are ways to adress and deal with false advice, misinformation and the like. Hostility i.e. the way you're doing it ISN'T one of them. Directly calling out the people themselves instead of only adressing the things they say is a major red flag. (Not even a single mention of how you don't intend to target anyone directly) Congrats, you made me avoid your channel alltogether and I doubt I will be the only one.

I just put my records in the cat's litter box. Right after I put a fresh load of litter in there, I wait until there are at least three cat turds and then I know the process is complete. They come out like new, and sound amazing!

490ml distilled water 5ml ilford ilfotol 5ml 99% ISO alcohol You do not need much alcohol. You will likely not hear a difference between a 25% and a .5% solution.

Hi, glad I found this video and channel today! Totally agree about the quality control of going the DIY route. But do we need to rinse this solution, or just wiping it up is fine? Thnx

Very enlightening! Enough to make me subscribe, as I'm about to buy a new turntable and want to clean up my old records. Thanks!

Fantastic advice….very thorough, thank you 👍

I’m glad I found this vid. Thanks!

The last one D4 record cleaning fluid has been around since the 60's and was the go to cleaning fluid of the 60- 90's and did a pretty decent job with the velour brush that came with the fluid. It will NOT hurt your records .

dish soap and warm water will not ruin records (it hasn't ruined mine). After the 'deep clean' I spray with distilled water, isopropanol & surfactant with micro fibre cloths. The first round gets the bad stuff out. The second treatment I use every time before I play the record. Full agreement with your recommendation: Either it states what's in the cleaning solution, then you decide. Or it doesn't, and you make your own.

Sigh. This must be one of the main things killing the vinyl hobby. Everyone on the internet saying a different thing, everyone acting like the one and only who knows. I've been OCD:ing over my wet cleaning option for a while, and I just said fuck it and ordered the GrooveWasher G2. I know, "it leaves crud and a film on your records, the sponge is shit, don't ever use it, you should listen to Guy #145" - at this point I'm not going to trust any one party on the internet, I want to start listening to the goddamn records...

Thank you for the informative video. I recently bought a water distiller so I can make large quantities of my own pure water which has been distilled at least three times. I never start with plain tap water, it’s either demineralised or multi stage filtered to reduce scale buildup in the distiller. My wife is going out for the day, so this will be an ideal time to try out my new cleaning system for the first time using the Pro-ject VC-S2 and a cheap ultrasonic cleaner from Vevor. The cleaning formula I intend to use is triple distilled water, 1% IPA (99.8% pure), and 0.1% surfactant (Triton X-100 lab grade). Then rinsed in a clean bath of triple distilled water in my Spin Clean without the brushes then drip dry and a final wipe with a clean micro fibre cloth. The manual handling of the vinyl will be done using powder free food grade rubber gloves. The liquids will be measured using digital scales and decanted into a new spritzer bottle.

I use washingmachine soap and an old Knosti device and after 20 turns i clean it with the knosti filled with normal water..make the record a little dry .than i put the record on a paper and make it dry with soft toiletpaper >>> than i use a anti-static fibre recordcleaner and i'm satisfied with the endresult. I have a question, records are loosened from the motherrecord by using grease or oil..in the beginning the substance is thin but after years /decades it gets thicker almost solid or even solid with dirt in it?. After i started playing records again i noticed my old records had more clicks and thicks than i can remember from the old days. Am i right?

Hi, thanks for posting this video. I was using the spin clean on new records and am getting lots of static. Would you recommend using the homemade liquid on new records?

I have another question. I am planning on buying the mofi super record wash. But i dont have a record cleaning machine Would you suggest me using it for a manual hand cleaning system? Using the groovewasher brush I have mentioned before?

thanks for your advice! People like you are the real friends of Vinyl

I use Kodak Photo-flo or FPP Foto Flow which is the same thing in a smaller bottle. So basically I use what you use. Now, if I’m dealing with a very dirty old 78, it’s gotta be something more potent like plain Dawn dish washing liquid or something similar. Distilled water is a must of course. Very good video and it’s good to call out these misleading channels.

I have just repair an Audio Desk vinyl cleaner and I am in love with that machine, it cleans excellent

So I did an experiment. I live in a dusty environment. I have to clean my records quite often. So I made a solution of distilled water with 70% alcohol. And I noticed after wiping with a microfiber cloth Mike once clean Records now had the bacon sizzling sound. I suppose the contaminants in the 70% alcohol caused scratches and contamination to the records. Then I tried 91% alcohol and distilled water and a microfiber cloth and it made a huge difference in the surface noise. so I agree with you the higher percentage alcohol you use the less contaminants will be on your records and please use vinyl gloves when cleaning. The only problem with 99% alcohol is that it smells awful and I feel so toxic when I use it from smelling it. But it does do a good job. I guess I'll wear a facemask as well.

Thanks for your video and insight! Would you be able to share the ratios you normally use when mixing distilled water, Isopropyl alcohol and Ilfotol? I want to give it a go.

Dude...im old enough I grew up when records were common. We stacked em, we pulled em off turn tables and set them aside. I played Moving Pictures and 2112 everyday for roughly 2 yrs along with many others. We never washed em , bagged em and most of us never dreamed of having high dollar extreme stereo turn tables. Amazing the 2 I mentioned (and most others) still play ok to fine. I take better care now than then but still......really??

A few weeks ago I got a hold of 3 records for €3 each. They were filthy. I tried the tap water + dish soap + dunk in the sink but instead of a brush like he had I used a soft-bristle toothbrush. This method worked mint for me.. It did remove a lot of the cracks & pops it had before.. A few weeks later the record is still fine with no apparent side effects to it or the stylus.

Very interesting. I am sold on this but have question. At approx. the 2:48 mark, you list the required ingredients and the volumes. Do you simply mix these ingredients all together and apply with a typical home sprayer?

What do you think about tergikleen? I’m doing budget cleaning. I have an old, unused turntable, so I bought a vinyl vac and I’m combining it with a 1.75 hp shop vac, and just to be careful, I’m using the second smallest suction reducer that comes with the vinyl vac. I plan on going a tergikleen cycle, and then a distilled water cycle. I’m using the mofi wet cleaning brush, which I’ve had good experiences with in the past. I’m also cleaning the platter with one of those sticky blue rollers in between cleans, and brushing the velvet strip with the brush the vinyl vac comes with. I know I probably sound insane, I’m just trying to be safe and effective.

So, to clarify, I can use the Super Record Wash on both vinyl and my 78s? Besides apparently alcohol, what are other do-nots for 78s that might be acceptable for vinyl?

Excellent Video, Quality, Accurate information.... This is the video that needs 500k views and not dish soap dude !!

If I had a $50,000 sound system with a stylus that cost $500 I might be as fussy as this guy is about cleaning my records. But I don't. I agree that records should be handled carefully and cleaned if they can be improved by doing so. But, in my opinion, there is such a thing as overkill. I'm not saying that what this guy is telling you is wrong. He hits on some very good points. I just don't think that the average collector has to be this cautious. My method works fine for me and probably does for most collectors. I don't use distilled water. I use tap water. And the water in my area is pretty hard. The trick is not to let it dry on the record. And I only clean the record once. Just once. Maybe if I cleaned them 50 times they could accumulate enough minerals to cause damage to the grooves and the stylus playing them. I use a sponge dipped in a bowl filled with tap water and a couple of drops of unscented Dawn dish washing fluid. If it's safe enough to clean oil covered birds then it's safe enough to put on my records! I carefully rinse them off by spinning them under running water without getting the labels wet. Then I immediately pat them dry with a soft, lint free towel. If I have a very dirty record I will use a soft toothbrush on the bad spots. You know what I mean. The spots that people leave on them after touching them with chicken wing sauce on their fingers! After I clean them the grooves are amazingly quiet. Good enough, I say. If had to clean hundreds of records regularly (like dealers do) then I would buy an ultrasonic system. I buy mostly used records that have been enjoyed by previous owners. I'm not afraid to run my $40 stylus over a few light scratches. If I'm playing a very old record from the '50's or 60's I kind of enjoy a few pops and clicks. The secret to a happy life is to eliminate as much stress as possible. So do yourself a favor and just chill out and enjoy the music! Your opinions are welcome! Your personal insults are not. LOL.

This custom recipe with distilled water, 99% alcohol and wetting agent could work for clean the stylus ??? Thanks

thank you for this!

Thumbs up for this video. This guy knows what he's talking about. I've been using these exact ingredients for many years. There are a few YT videos that offer this same method, but not many - because as this guy says in this video - these other people do not have the knowledge. Distilled water with 99% Isopropanol (20% mixed of desired volume), Ilford agent (5% mixed of the desired volume).

TY but I tried brand new Micro fiber cloths and part of the material from the cloth came off onto the record. I have had bad luck with this. A thick clean cotton towel seems to work well for me

Do you use a specific ratio for your homemade solution?

What are your thoughts on the spinclean? And I saw the big fudge record friend which is a bit cheaper and comes with a drying rack, thoughts?

I've found many microfiber cloths are NOT lint-free and will leave your record dirtier than it was before you cleaned it. Any recommendations on specific microfiber cloths to use?

Wait. Would you recommend the Groovewasher Walnut Record Cleaning Kit? I've heard very good things about this kit and the bottle that comes with the kit tells you what is in it. It is 100% distilled water with no iso alchohol.

There was a fluid spray sold on Amazon a few years back that left a sheen on the Records that made them shine, and I swear it had some kind of lubricant in it. After a while, it turned to cook on my records, and when I wipe them off with alcohol and water. All of this brown residue came off. I forgot what it was called, slick or slide some thing in a tiny orange spray can? You're right, sir I agree with you all D's cleaning fluids that you can buy are awful and a waste of money.

So I made your solution, and it seems as though there is a bit of residue after letting them dry; however, it if there is, it is very minimal. Should I be using pure distilled AFTER the solution as well?

Thanks for the ingredient list. What is the ratio for the solution?

I do not doubt your cleaning recipe works but it is possible your own recipe might damage records. I am just getting back into vinyl after losing my entire record collection last year and since I am literally starting over I wanted to do a better job protecting my vinyl so I have been researching cleaning fluids and techniques. One thing that has come up more than once in my reading is Isopropyl alcohol decreases a records shine i.e. increases microporosity which can accelerate wear. I have no idea if methanol or ethanol have this same effect on records. I have not read anything about glycols harming records. You are technically correct since glycols contain an “OH” group they are considered alcohols in organic chemistry nomenclature. However to a non chemist consumer alcohol means at most ethanol, isopropyl, and to a very few methanol. If your average consumer is looking for an alcohol free cleaner they are probably looking for a cleaner without ethanol, isopropyl, and/or methanol. Consequently I think you might be miss understanding why a manufacturer says their fluid is alcohol free when it contains a glycol. Distilled/di-ionized water is definitely preferred over plain water but not every company lists the water they used as distilled even when that is what they are using. Some manufactures that do not list distilled water on their ingredients also sell concentrated versions of their cleaners, and the instructions for their concentrates explicitly say to mix the concentrate with distilled water. I definitely understand your frustration with the lack of ingredients being listed. After all there are probably still companies that still sell PVC record sleeves as a way to protect your records. If you buy these mystery ingredient record cleaners you are basically trusting that the company you are buying it from has truly studied the effects of their product. I’m having a hard time trusting any of these companies. It seems all of the truly old companies were sold years ago and underwent recipe changes after they changed hands. I keep reading the original formula worked great but this newer recipe does not work. By modern standards hand washing records with dish soap is not considered the best cleaning method but it will not ruin your records if you use good technique and choose a good soap without lotions and perfumes. Dawn Ultra or Dawn regular (blue colored) are good choices but I would probably avoid the Platinum version since it has water softeners in it. I may end up adopting this method. There are plenty of people that have been doing this for decades with good results so at least we know what the long term effects are on the vinyl. Happy Listening and enjoy your vinyl!

A graphic came up appears to be a ratio Distilled water, 160 ml, 99% pure alcohol, 1 ml ilford ilfotol wetting agent Do you go into deeper on making and storing this. Is this the same mixture you would recomend using with my ultra sound spin machine? Please go into deeper...Thanks Super helpful so far

The water where I live has very little chloride so I do clean records under lukewarm tap water with a clean microfiber spunge. Use regular soap for cleaning plates and spoons Etc. Hold the record with a glove so I can touch all areas. Clean thoroughly. Dunce off all soap then dry with clean micro fiber cloth before letting it air dry another 5 minutes. Then I play record and bever clean it ever again.

Hello, So I was surfing thru various vids re: vinyl cleaning, products, how-to, etc, and found yours to be helpful, talking about the various cleaning fluids out there and that simply using distilled water, 99% isopropyl alcohol and wetting agent seems to be the best and safest way to go. What I wanted to know though, is your thoughts on how to safely use this mixture and how to apply and clean vinyl. I’ve seen various vids of the “vinyl vac” and though it seems effective with its vacuum method, it also seems a little cumbersome and I’m not totally sure I would feel safe and confident using such method, so let me know your thoughts on this and again what you suggest. Thanks

Would you still recommend to mix 99%isopropol alcohol with the Mobile Fidelity - Super Deep Cleaner(16oz) ? PLease let me know, thanks

Vinyl is an incredibly delicate material. It's not like they made siding for houses from it, or something.

What do you think about a Humin Guru? Is a device like this with the appropriate liquid like in the video recommended?

Could you use the alcohol/wetting agent/distilled water mix in an ultrasonic cleaner?

Would you recommend adding 99+% in the right proportion to the Super Record Wash to bring it up to your spec? Tx

I've found that many microfiber cloths are NOT lint-free and will leave your records dirtier than they were before you cleaned them. Any advice on which microfiber cloths to use?

What sort of cloth should I use to clean my wave files, should it be dry, should it be wet, maybe somewhere in the middle ?? I'm really confused, help please. The sooner the better.

how do you feel about the vinyl vaccuum

Will filtering water or boiling it and allowing it to cool make the tap water safe for cleaning a record?

Thankk you sir. Can you please give me the ratio of water to Isopropal? I assume you only use about a teasoon o the photo agent?

I have to say the guy dunking his record in the sink made me laugh, I hope it was just a joke! It reminded me of a video some of my photography friends sent me a couple years ago of a great way to clean your camera, pull off the lens, dunk your camera in water, scrub the sensor with whatever and rinse with a water hose 😁 If someone has to be told NOT to do these types of things they most likely have more important things to worry about than simply running a record. Having said that…please DONT wash your records in the sink!

finally a channel that is objective on their opinion and based on facts, thanks for your awesome content

Hello my friend, how are you? I hope that you can help me. I live on a smaller city and this is a place where i dont know another collector to exchance expiriences. I need to clean some of my old 50's cover discs that are to much dirty, like Nat King Cole and George Shearing , King Creole from Elvis and others. Could you help me with this? Sorry about my poor english, but i live in Brazil and i have learned from discs and video games. Thank you so much!

This is the best info on recording cleaning I could find, but it only covers the ingredients, not the process or technique. FYI, 99% is about the max, since it immediately absorbs water out of the air the instant you open it.

I use Fairy Liquid and warm water, the discs sound great when dried, no idea why you'd use distilled water

Can you demonstrate how you do it. The ratio of the water and alcohol?

I just tried the cleaning very crackly 1970s Twiggy album with a few drops of dish soap (in about 250 ml of luke warm water) and record cleaning brush, and it's actually very good. But then I tried it on a crackly Genesis album, and it made no difference.

I’m making my own! I’ve got that surfactant and 99% pure isopropyl from a photography store! Just need my distilled water and I will be ready to clean!

Thank you !

I've been collecting Jamaican singles for 30 years and some of us including myself use an ultrasonic cleaner, it's absolutely the best way to clean vinyl . Period. A couple of drops of dish soap in lukewarm water slowly rotate by hand up to the label, you can see the dirt lift from the grooves even super dirty records. Then rinse in a separate bowl of the same temp distilled water. Shake, dry the label off with paper towel, set on a coffee cup or glass to dry and it will play as good as brand new I guarantee you. I've cleaned records 30 years ago this way and they still play perfect.✌ edit to add this is the only way that doesn't "wipe" the record which is simply pushing impurities into the groove and dragging them. Ultrasonic Cleaner vibrates the dirt loose and into suspension.

First of all, thank you for taking the time to do the research and putting together this video. You already knew the haters and the doubters were gonna jump all over you and you posted it anyways so hats off to you. Second of all you are questioning the industry that provides their magical tonics in a bottle and majority without explanation. This is absolutely unprofessional and frustrating when we eventually find out that not only were we not cleaning the record, we were making it worse. I think your solution is sound and makes complete sense. Plus, you have no motivation for deception except to uncover one. Could you have been more diplomatic and pass less judgement on those who are only assuming the industry is doing right is completely up for debate. I personally do not care so long as the ending justifies the concerns you identified. Also there are those who are watching this video who remember a time before the internet where knowledge of record care was word of mouth. Now, we all have the chance to share knowledge via this amazing platform and it has helped some of is fast forward are knowledge and debunk myths. This is another video that weighs in on the proper way to take of vinyl and the best on to date to my knowledge. Thanks again for your contribution!

Whats the porpotion you use to make the solution ? Thank you

The great thing about MOFI products is how transparent and honest they are.

While the 99% is a slight PITA to get a hold of, this concoction cleans like nothing else I've ever used. Thanks for posting!

Great great! I’m ok with this video. I think it’s all very good, but I have two simple questions. What is that photography cleaning stuff? I don’t think it was specifically named. A searchable generic name for what it is will do fine. I’m sorry if I missed it, but I don’t think I did. How do you clean those brushes? I can’t imagine only using them once, though I understand the idea that dirt on the brush gets into the records. Should I not be using those brushes? Maybe that was the point. Ok, ended up being three. I’d appreciate any guidance from anyone who thinks they can help. Thank you

These companies don’t tell you their ingredients because you can get the ingredients yourself and not buy their product. I use the Spinclean and have for 10 or so years. Very happy with it. I pre clean my records then use the Spinclean

You said something about making your own cleaner. Do you have a video on that? Or one that you would recommend? I looked on your page and didn’t see one?

I've use at least 10 cleaning solutions over the years. Many differences, many similarities but always based on distilled water. For me the key is rinsing. I don't care if the product used says it needn't be rinsed. All do in my experience. I use a Degritter for my last step. In my view it is a brilliant way of rinsing. I can take an LP that was thoroughly cleaned on another machine, which does a good job with a quality fluid, play it, then come back later and run it on a pure distilled water rinse and it sounds better. Some solution are VERY difficult to thoroughly rinse. My last rinse is lab grade I pure water. Distilled water still has a fair amount of particulate matter in it. A small amount follows a distilled water rinse. That's as good as I've come up with using many products, both solutions and machines, including Kirmuss VPI, Pro-Ject, and Degritter, not to mention various brushes. When a record is properly cleaned and rinsed with the pure water at the end there is very little drying needed. It's almost completely dry by the end.

Would you recommend using this mixture in a "brush and bath" style cleaner like the spin clean?

As I clean 50-100 records, almost daily at my store, I've been thinking of making a similar video. While I agree with most of what you've said here, it seems to be as much of an assumption on your part, as to the quality or poor sourcing of the water and or chemicals used in various products, as it is to assume otherwise. Also, most cleaners are concentrated, and only require a few drops or capful in bottle or basin of water. That said, a final rinse with true distilled or lab grade water is always best.

So I'm kind of new to vinyl. I did just buy a cleaning brush and Record Care Solution from Audio Technica. So because it just says "water" , are we assuming it is from a tap ? I haven't received them yet. Is Audio Technica not a good company for records ? Should I not use the brush ?

How necessary is the Wetting agent? Could it be remove without any attectation to my LPs?

Question: I’m noticing that after cleaning with the homemade solution, my records are sounding more crackley than before. 1) Does the mixed solution a have a degradation point where it should be tossed and a new batch made (I did try this and it didn’t sound like it made any difference.) 2) in the video you don’t mention cleaning method. There are all sorts of chuckleheads who want you to scrub for 5-10 minutes and let the records air dry for a couple hours. Not really practical in my view. Any advice will be appreciated.

ive seen a lot of vinyl oldheads/elders do the wash in the sink thing. perfectly fine for really dirty records imo. for the record i use 99% iso and distilled water for my solution.. but vinyl is tough, it wont be damaged so easily as you claim

I user 70% isopropyl alcohol not 90% in my ultrasonic machine. Will that not be safer?

What do you think of the Kirmuss process for deep cleaning.

Thank you so much for your straight forward; no BS; about all these experts on youtube. I have watched a couple of these experts videos; it has been a while; that you have shown and fortunately have not done what they have advised to do to my records. I do have a spin doctor system and was surprised to find out that even their solution is not up to par. I have been building my record collection for quite some time and do not wish to damage them. I will be trying out this solution that you have recommended. Thanks again.

I have been using distilled water and 99% alcohol. What percentage of these combined with a wetting agent do you recommend? What’s the breakdown?

What is your take on Tergikleen one product you didn’t mention in this video.

When i was a kid in the 80s i loved music and loved collecting old records i loved boney M but in the 80s the group in the UK went out of fashion a DJ Shop opened in my town and i would go often to buy old singles and 12 inch singles i was only around 12 the guy liked me and would keep stuff for me i went in one day with a record cleaning kit i got from Woolworths and told showed him he said that is rubbish it will leave a residue on the records and when i went home i did clean some records and no matter how well a used the cloth you got with it the record had smudges before i left the shop he said the best way to clean your records is slightly warm water and washing up liquid he said that is what he did and so did i now i have a album from 1985 that i cleaned that way all the way through the 80s 90s and 2000s the record is still minty still plays no reduced sound qaulity so it cant be bad and trust me if it did make the record worse i would know i have great hearing anyway i only ever clean records as deeply as that if there dirty dusty with grit and finger smudges on them iv collected records all my life and cleaned them with the way the DJ told me in the 80s .. i still have that old 85 album and it still plays like a dream.

I always used vehicle traffic film remover neat, and a bit of sandpaper.

is water/iso alcohol ok for removing dust n stuff

I bought records that are all in great shape, in boxes and in their own jackets. However they do have a little fuzzy hair here and there across the surface. I played it first without realizing they were supposed to be cleaned often. I did not hear any pops or crackling, but did notice the dust afterwards. Could just a dry wipe down be all I need? And just a microfiber towel or a clean cotton t-shirt? No stores around me sell the microfiber carbon brushes and I am not one to buy online. Went to Walmart, a record store and even called Guitar Center who says they carry them, but rarely.

Wear can I get the microfiber cloths at?

Everything said is true! Please tell me how many milliliters of Ilfotol are needed to wash 5 records in an ultrasonic bath with a capacity of 5 liters?

One thing some people do, which I don't feel is necessary, and that is wet clean brand new records before they even listen to them. Fair enough if a new record looks dirty as some do, but if a record has no surface noise when you play it then best left well alone. Just make sure you take care with handling and use a carbon fibre brush to remove any dust while the record is spinning.

This is how I do it for really dirty records - Squirt a little dawn onto a flat paint trim pad with water., give the record a quick rinse, place record on towel, scrub in groove pattern with trim pad. It rides the grooves. For extra dirty stuff I scrub it good. Rinse in tap water and let dry. For this method I use my At LP120 USB to spin them during brushing after spraying them because that has a 78 speed and ridiculously high torque (it's DD). This is for goodwill finds, etc. I even got 80 or so records from a friend that had been in a flooded basement completely submerged, about 20 years ago. the records along with their jackets had been "glued" together in bricks of records. They had to be peeled apart and there were even trails of mold "root systems" on some of them. When I finished my method, they were as good as they were before they were flooded. And that means some of them sounded brand new, because most of them had never been played or only played once. FWIW, my friend owned a Jazz music production company back in the 70's. Oh, and yeah, the labels were shot and I had to use Shazam to find out what was on each one. Also, because of how they had set for decades, they were all perfectly flat. I actually created a thread on this with photos on Audiokarma.org. I got a roll of 3" circular adhesive labels to make new "hand printed" labels for the records. Note: This won't fix wear or scratches. It also won't make bad recordings sound good. It assumes a very good record under a lot of dirt, mold, oils, etc. Also: Yes, the label is exposed directly to water. I don't care. The exposure is VERY brief and I do dry the label before air drying the record. No problem.

What about Groovewasher G2 Fluid?

It's just a vinyl record - have been cleaning them for 40 years with over the counter stuff or a soft brush. No issues.

Ah was a bit confused when you said don’t just buy isopropyl and wrote 99% pure alcohol. Thought you were indicating to use ethyl over isopropyl

I’ve honestly had no issue with hot soapy water. It does the job and you can hear it.

I agree about the dangerous RU-vid videos. Some are appalling. I use both a vacuum machine and a Degritter ultrasonic. I've used/test at least a dozen cleaning fluids. I thought Tergikleen would be the solution but there were some issues. If a record is truly dirty or used I start with the vacuum then use plain distilled water for a thorough rinse in the Degritter. I follow that with a lab grade Type I pure water rinse on the vacuum machine. I'm a rinse freak and as a largely classical listener, it's beneficial. Last, I quit using microfiber cloths last year. Someone in the industry with a very serious microscope convinced me that they are not, in fact, lint free and that the lint is, of course, microfiber, small enough to lodge in the grooves. He recommends cloth diapers but I actually prefer old undershirts cut into piece or "antique" hand towels so worn you can almost see through them. Does a better job of drying as well.

Did I miss the measurement of the three products or are they all used separately?

some people just enjoy playing records to play records, and might think tracking dirt into them is much worse than rubbing it with soft fabric brushes, or, god forbid, water that might leave some scaling after a few thousand washes.

Hmmm agree on the Mofi wash and rinse product but can't say I agree on just wiping the LP with a clean micro fiber cloth. I mean, we are dealing in a microscopic world here and a rag is just going to glide across the top of the grooves leaving cleaning fluids in those grooves to be eventually scraped out by ones stylus. (eventually gunking up the stylus. ) Personally I use a vacuum system arm to vacuum the wash out then a different arm to vacuum the rinse out while it all is still wet. But...that's just me...

You never mentioned if you dilute the 90% alcohol with any distilled water?

how many cleanings is the solution for?