Wait time after record cleaning


Record cleaning has become a staple of every vinyl addicted audiophiles routine.  Most cleaning methods use liquids, whether proprietary, DIY, or just plain water.  These fluids are applied and are either vacuum removed, fan dried, towel dried, or allowed to evaporate.  There is a ton of info regarding the different types of fluids and cleaning routines currently available to review. I cannot find any information on "when the record is optimized for playing" after cleaning.  How long are people waiting after cleaning to actually play the record?  I once read that it takes over 24 hours for all the moisture in the grooves to be completely absent following a wet clean, even if on gross visual inspection the vinyl surface appears totally dry.  As a corollary, I have also read that the record sounds better if the record isn't played for 24 hours after cleaning. Distilled water, surfactant formulations, and water combined with isopropyl alcohol will all evaporate at a different rate. Is there any risk of vinyl damage if a small residuum of fluid remains in the groove when playing commences.  Is there any science behind this, or is everyone just winging it?  I typically sleeve all my freshly cleaned records and wait at least a day to play them, based on my previous reading, but am wondering if this is at all necessary.
orthomead

Showing 1 response by tomic601

well, i am glad somebody took the class in Design of Experiments, and statistics.

Ya need a series of sequential pressings, MoFi will get ya there. Inspect them under black light for a uniform level of “ dirt “, Pick your  time interval Here i would look at materials science for evap rates, solvent flash points, dry time An issue is inspecting the stylus…think that thru, thats the big $, Sonics count, so blind, double blind ?…. What does the LAST guru say ?