Steam cleaning records 2

I recently found a nice copy of David Bowie's Hunky Dory on very thin Dyaflex vinyl. I've not tried steaming a record this thin yet. Do I need to worry more about warping a Dynaflex? Should I avoid steaming it or forge ahead?

Crem1, I took out a record which I bought several years ago for $8.00 by Clifton Chenier "King of the Bayous". This vinyl had so many marks on both sides, it was impossible to even see the scratches, but when both sides were played, the noise level of crackling was appalling. I decided to clean side A only with steam followed by a water rinse whilst side B had the steam plus L'Art du Son + a water rise all performed on the Hannl machine sold by TW Acustic. Both sides looked the same after the clean with surface scratches now clearly visible. the sound however was clear and crisp on BOTH sides with only the gap between tracks displaying a slight surface noise. To me this indicates that steam cleaning plus a rinse is all that may be required to fully clean vinyl? This could potentially save each and every audiophile hundreds of dollars over the forthcoming years? it would be good if someone had access to an electron microscope to confirm on a molecular level, the state of the grooves after steam cleaning and fluid cleaning? Until then, I think my days of purchasing cleaning fluids may be over?

Halcro, I agree with you that, all that is needed is a steam rinse and a water rinse. I have not found that purchasing expensive cleaning fluids, is not needed for me. I use reverse/osmosis water (R/O). Pet stores that sell tropical fish, usually sell it for 50 cents per gallon. You must bring your own container. If your albums have peanut butter and jelly on them, maybe you should buy some cleaning fluid first.

Stevieboy, Go for it , the Palson-Nilo has the appearence and the specs to qualify as a excellent Lp steamer. Try it with the conical unit. Now its OK to get Steamed ! All the best.

Nobody had responded to my question about Dynaflex vinyl so I went ahead and tried steaming my Hunky Dory. I must admit I chickened out and only did one steam cycle instead of my usual two but warping did not seem to be a problem. I then took a real leap of steaming faith and steam cleaned a first pressing of Highway 61 Revisited with the alternate take of From a Buick 6. It came out appearing close to near mint as opposed to the VG+ I paid for. Bottom line, I'm trusting steaming to be a safe method more and more, even on valuable LPs.