Record Cleaning Machine Fluid

I prefer the Audio Intelligent products, they flow better, clean better and cover the record, where the RRL stuff always beaded up.

It seems that the old adage "you must empty your tea cup before it can be filled with the new" really worked for Paul Frumkin. Being a lawyer, he came on to this project with his teacup empty. I remember him really soaking up (pun intended) my advice on ultrapure water production. I'm about to receive some products he offered me back then. Now I have a used Record Doctor RCM and have all my remaining albums together in one place. From what he was explaining to me back then the combined action of the soap used and ultrapure water make an effective combination that does not have much surface tension, yet has adequate cleaning action.

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I'm consistently amazed at audiophiles, as a group, believing that a product costing $20-$50/pint or quart or what have you will provide better performance than a basic cleaning solution discounting far more salient factors such as good brushes and vacuuming.

How soaps and detergents work is taught in high school chemistry. Soaps have both polar and nonpolar ends to link water and 'dirt'. We are also taught that scrubbing action is ALWAYS needed in order to properly clean. Therefore, the cleaning solution (whatever is being used) must reach down into the grooves and then be scrubbed. How it is removed is another issue.

I've decided to give this a try since it makes a lot of sense to just use plenty fresh water to rinse record fluids ( hey, just like washing salt water out of a boat).

Groovmaster

I can always do like in a commercial car wash: use lower dissolved solids water to do final *spotless* rinsing (ultrapure water in my case). I do not plan to use my vacuum machine to remove soapy water and contaminate its pads. I'll use the Groovmaster to flush all cleaning solutions ( the soap ) while protecting the record labels. My local water supply comes from the rain forest so its conductivity is around 90 microSiemens, much less than most bottled water.

The guy in eBay who sells the Groovmaster has plenty following. I plan to write a review on this gadget.

Dougdeacon, that 'intentional low surface tension' thing is another high end marketing trick for the gullible. Anybody with enough chemistry background knows it's crap.

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If the canned air contains a non-naturally-occuring percentage of oxygen, or a cleaning fluid has a surface tension different from pure water, then it IS a design feature.

Well, what's pure water?

ASTM standards I, II, III, IV ? Too wide a margin for its parameters. Wonder how surface tension changes as we go up or down...

Nuclear grade? All nukes have different standards, even those owned by the same power companies.

Nuclear lab grade? Now we're getting somewhere. Wait! It doesn't last too long because exposure to air makes CO2 dissolve in water and change it's pH. Shit.

The safe way is to use a good soap and rinse it thoroughly. At least that's how I take showers (don't want incomplete cleanup nor sud deposits in hard to reach places). That's how I like to clean records, too. Hell, I even put a few drops of Purple Death in my heavy duty home brewed cleaning solution!

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