There are certain types of styluses that are quieter if set up correctly, these include the Ortofon Replicant 100, The Soundsmith OCL, and the Gyger S. With only one exception these styluses are found only on cartridges over $2000, that is the Goldring 1042, a cartridge I highly recommend for people on a budget.
Phono stages that overload easily, overload with pops and tics, the effect is to make them louder. Using a lower output cartridge might help.
Lastly is just bad plastic. Old records that were abuse when we were kids and trash produced by the record industry. If you love that music get a digital copy.
Washing records is fraught with danger. A machine is in order, one that uses fresh fluid for each cleaning and vacuums the record dry. After that it is all about convenience which cost more. The Nessie is a great unit for the money. The Audiodesk is a reliability nightmare. Not a month goes by without hearing of an other Audiodesk that bit the dust. The Clearaudio Matrix is a step up and the best IMHO is the Clearaudio Double Matrix which does both sides at the same time and is handily the fastest record cleaning method available and it aint cheap. Things to stay away from are repeated use of the same fluid and evaporative drying by any method.