Cleaning records. How often really?

What I hear so far is the opposite but just as extreme approach to cleaning records before each play. This is unlikely to be correct, especially if you have a high resolution system and good hearring.

Bpoletti, would you mind going somewhere else to talk?

Effischer, ideologically I share your view even though I called it 'insane approach'. But I think this would be too much work and very inconvenient arrangements for me. I will machine clean the records I play after 10-20 plays or every year. And of course I will use Last record preservative. Every serious audiophile I heard of does it. There are also records that I don't play, they are for archive, I will clean them every 10 years, maybe. I keep copies of a few albums for future generations or if there is an accident and I lose my playing copy.

Dougdeacon, 5-10% is a lot, especially if they are your favourite records.
It is hard for the records not to get contaminated to a degree while playing, the environment is not sterile.
And how do you know that the first cleaning was perfect unless you clean again?

What a cute breed some of you are. I suppose, you never clean your shoes either or maybe once. Ebm sounds like a true New Yorker to me, there are truckloads of people like these around here.
Albert, thank you, you rarely write these days, but when you do it is always good.

Dougdeacon, it's good to know about totally silent records. I just never thought of that. But I always listen for the clarity first and noise second.
I don' think that brush can remove everything. Imagine, as an example, that while playing records you sometimes smoke or cook. You'll get some of that stuff on your records.
In any case, it appears that the old guard here agree that at least some records do need re-cleaning from time to time. But I don't envy those who have thousands of records that just might need re-cleaning. Out of curiosity I just cleaned a few records that I cleaned a few days ago and played a few times. I didn't hear a difference. I use Okki Nokki machine and Audio Intelligent three step cleaning solutions, and I have a modest rig, though it is quite sensitive to whatever you change. Not this time.

Well ,maybe not 'couple of minutes' but not too long. Depends on how you clean them. In my case, I would skip enzyme solution and just use Archivist solution followed by pure water once or twice. So..I'd say two minutes each side. And I do believe that there is debris. This is needle 'scratching' vinyl not laser moving along.

I did mention contaminats getting on the records, but we should not be too obsessive about it. Just don't examine your records and other things with forensic blue light, if you do everything will look terrible.