The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I've been cleaning my records with either record cleaners designed for shellac (disc doctor, PURE 1, etc) or a diluted solution of Dawn (the original blue type) dish liquid and tepid water.

However, alcohol is listed as an ingredient in Dawn, and in many other brands of dish soap.

For example, the following URL has denatured alcohol as an ingredient for Dawn Ultra.

http://www.pg.com/productsafety/ingredi ... losure.pdf

I'm assuming the percentage is very low to harm the discs.

I detect no damage to any records I've cleaned. And I'm aware that people have been using similar methods for decades with no detectable issues.

But still, you often hear that no amount of alcohol should ever touch a shellac record.

Anyway, I guess the real purpose of this thread is to have people tell me I am
neurotic and to stop worrying.

You are neurotic... STOP worrying.

Alcohol does dissolve shellac, but I doubt there is much in Dawn detergent especially when it is diluted with water. My favorite cleaner for 78s is WD-40. I have been using it for years with no problems, however it seems that this method is, to say the least, controversial...

alcohol in any amount isn't very good for 78s
alcohol and shellac like each other very much and the latter desolves in alcohol
even if a small amount is present in a solution one should be careful it could make the surfage brittle on a microscopic scale making the record ware faster when played with a steel needle
i just use a damp cloth and a record pad
first play the record with a steel needle plow that accumilated crud out of the grooves then aply the damp cloth and buff with the cleaning pad
cleans it every time with no additives

I must say... alcohol has damaged a few of my records. Not by direct application, but by internal.

Retrograde wrote:I must say... alcohol has damaged a few of my records. Not by direct application, but by internal.

Yup.

Retrograde wrote:I must say... alcohol has damaged a few of my records.

... and I don't even need alcohol for that.

Andreas

But if you have Disc Doctor Miracle Fluid AND Discwasher Pure 1 on hand, why would you ever want to use anything that contained any alcohol? Just because you can't see it doesn't mean damage is not being done.

When it comes to shellac records, keep the 18th Amendment, I say.

Best wishes, Mark

You can't necessarily trust the 18th Amendment, since it was controversial and finally overturned...

victorIIvictor wrote:But if you have Disc Doctor Miracle Fluid AND Discwasher Pure 1 on hand, why would you ever want to use anything that contained any alcohol? Just because you can't see it doesn't mean damage is not being done.

When it comes to shellac records, keep the 18th Amendment, I say.

Best wishes, Mark

Disc Doctor is far too involved. I only use it for rare records. I've cleaned a dozen 78s using the Disc Doc method at once, and while the results are better than anything else I've tried, I just feel...worn out after.

Nitty Gritty PURE 1 is easy to use and the process is quick, but the solution is so mild that it hardly does anything for dirty records. A damp microfiber cloth works better than PURE 1.

Which is why I've preferred to use the "standard" soap and water method when I have a large batch of records to clean. Quick and works well. And I only found out a few days ago that nearly all dish detergents (dawn, ivory, joy, ajax, etc) contain alcohol, which is why I made this thread. It was surprising to me because this is a method recommended by many collectors and websites offering advice on care of shellac records.

Well, I guess I'm going to have to switch to something else that offers quick AND effective cleaning. Ugh, this is such a pain in the ass, since a bulk of the records I buy will probably have been cleaned at one time or another with dish soap by the previous owner(s).

I regret doing Internet research, making this thread...and every hobby I've ever had.

Curt A wrote:You are neurotic... STOP worrying.

Thank you!