Premium distilled water for ultrasonic record cleaner

I run the ultrasonic record cleaning service Record Genie and use 2 Klaudio machines, plus 2 Audio Desk machines. I also have a VPI 16.5 which is useful for pre-cleaning very heavily soiled or moldy records before doing any ultrasonic cleaning steps.

Audio Desk recommends using only "supermarket" distilled water for some reason, but I was curious about using purer "lab grade" water in the Klaudio machines in the hope of getting even better results. I've always used distilled water from CVS (which is also filtered to 0.5 micron) but just like Whart, I bought some NERL "lab water" from Optics Planet.

I bought 3 grades of NERL of varying cost. The 2 lower grades came in 5-gallon "cubitainers" (LDPE bladder in a cardboard box) at about $8 and $12 per gallon. The top grade came in 6 x 1-pint bottles and was more than twice as expensive. This was back in 2013, and the water had to be delivered to my business address because lab water is (or was) restricted from being delivered to a residence since it is required for certain illegal manufacturing activities!  

I asked some of my customers if they would like to try "lab grade" water, and clearly marked those records as such, running one Klaudio with CVS water, and the other with NERL water. Only one of the half-dozen customers that I worked with on this "testing" expressed a preference for the records cleaned with the more expensive water. I didn't charge anything extra for using the more expensive water.

In scientific terms, I'm sure my "experiment" was seriously flawed due to a tiny sample size if nothing else (only 6 customers) and I've gone back to using CVS distilled water in my Klaudio machines since then as I couldn't really justify the additional expense of the lab water.

One other thing, I use a TDS meter (total dissolved solids) to measure how clean the water is, rather than just using a "fixed interval" of x-records between water changes. It's quick and easy to drain a beaker-full from the Klaudio's drain spout every 10 records or so, and pour it back in afterwards, with the small funnel. A quality meter only costs about $60, so I highly recommend using one to ensure consistent and repeatable results..     

Dave- I think the 'uber' expensive stuff has labels like 'ultra pure' and goes beyond the so-called Grade or Type 1 Water; never tried it, b/c it is crazy expensive. (I think it may be used for injectable solutions, among other things). Yeah, they still require a business address- I used to use my law firm, which seemed to foreclose any question. I like your idea of using a TDS meter (which you mentioned in another thread), particularly if folks aren't pre-cleaning and rinsing records before putting them into the ultrasonic. I'm not surprised by the outcome of your experiments. For what it's worth, the pricing of some of this lab water is all over the map in the States, depending on the supplier and quantities--costs more for multiple smaller capacity bottles (obviously, just for packaging and handling) than larger quantities. I don't use enough of it to justify a water purification system. I think the better investment would be a small nuclear reactor in my backyard for cleaner power. Haven't checked  government regulations on that front. Be well,  :)
bill hart 

The impetus to use hyper clean water for record cleaning predates the ultrasonic machines.

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/finding-ultra-pure-water-locallyhttp://

That's a thread from 2008 that discusses the topic and NERL water.  Part of the problem with buying fancy water is the cost of shipping it while buying enough to be cost effective.  And of course some brands charge a lot more;  generally water from record cleaning solution manufacturers is much more costly. Five gallons is roughly 44 lb. to ship (unless the container is glass, then it's lots more.)   In '08, I was buying 5gal of NERL 9805 Reagent Grade Water at $34 shipped, but I could have paid more.  It pays to shop around.  And be cautious about interpreting different grades and costs as one being superior than the other.  Compare the labels.

 

Ultrasonic machines aside, 32oz of Audio Intelligent or Mo-Fi water is $20 plus shipping. It is enough to clean 200 records or so, at least 100/120 if you do double rinse. You would call it expensive if you clean records once or very rarely? It's almost nothing compared to other things. If you can't afford this you can't afford anything audiophile grade.

jtimothya,

I tried that link, and it's not working since it's got an extra http:// on the end, so here's the correct one:
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/finding-ultra-pure-water-locally

whart,

Great to see you are actively furthering the cause of cleaner records Bill, and I agree that the "super lab water" in the pint bottles is very expensive for medically related reasons, not really relevant to record cleaning. LOL about your own nuclear plant, but I've recently acquired a RODI (reverse osmosis deionized) water purification system and have been experimenting with it. I use a lot of water, and even just buying the distilled water from CVS adds up! I can recycle the used 5ppm distilled water from my Klaudio machines and turn it into very nice 0ppm RODI water. I haven't used it in the machines yet, only for making up cleaning solutions (L'Art du Son, and a triple-enzyme mold treatment) for my VPI and of course rinsing, but I really should try it out in the Klaudios on some of my own records..

The TDS water meter I use is available from Amazon.com for $60:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VVVEUI?keywords=tds%20meter&qid=1454777636&ref_=sr_1_14...

Anyone who is reading this thread is going in the right direction towards cleaner records, it's good to have these conversations!

For those interested in ultrasonic record cleaning and curious about what the Audio Desk and Klaudio machines can do for YOUR records (either separately, or better yet, when "double-cleaning" with both) then just ask me or get in touch through my website (it's on my profile) to have a few of your own records cleaned. It's affordable for pretty much anyone, and for those who are lucky enough to be looking at buying their own $3-4k machine the first hand experience will help you make a much better informed choice!

Take care,
Dave Burton